Question:
I'm struggling with my water intake- HELP!
I am struggling with my water intake (64oz)HELP!! I have a mug at my desk and I sip throughout the day but I just can't get it all in. After dinner is almost out of the question because it takes me a long time to digest my dinner. So, any advice you all could give would be great. Kathy — Kathy *. (posted on March 4, 2004)
March 4, 2004
No one can drink 64 oz, soon after having wls. it is a gradually progress
you have to go through. try to up it gradually each week and before you
realize it you will be drinking that 64 oz each day.***
400/208/-192 lbs***
14th month ***
open rny***
— B4real
March 4, 2004
Your profile has not been updated since surgery, but I think you are 3
months post-op? Like the previous poster said, it can take some time to
work up to the 64oz and keep in mind that other forms of non-carbonated,
non-caloried and non-caffeinated drinks count toward the amount too. I
have a water bottle in a sling over the shoulder casing that goes
everywhere with me-in the car, to meetings at work etc, etc. Its the only
way I can get it all in. Its become attached to me..habit now!
— Cindy R.
March 4, 2004
have you measured how many ounces your mug holds? Some coffee mugs are
about 12 oz and not just 8, which if that was the case 8 of those would be
96 oz. <br><br>
I really work at trying to space my water drinking out. I usually use a 16
oz (2 cups) glass or bottle. I like the bottles since I will take them
with me everywhere I go, I can drink quite a bit while driving. everytime I
am at a stop light I sip. But while I am at work, I try to get in one
bottle (2 cups) before lunch, then another one in after lunch but before 3
pm, another one in by 7 and the last one in by 11. For me keeping a time
goal helps me, before I throught of it like that, I would let the day pass
me by and it would be 8 pm and I would maybe only have in 1/2 my water.
Working on it on a schedule helps me keep it spaced out.
— Patricia T.
March 5, 2004
Hi you had your surgery about the same time as I had mine. As for water
intake it will take a while and sometimes it means saraficing a portion of
your meal for water depending on your thirst. Sometimes I'm so thirsty I
give up my 1 of my 4 small meals for 4 oz of water. Also, I never drink I
always sip, which is what my nutritionist told me to do. Your stomach just
can't hold it all - and I know how you feel about waiting to drink - at
night sometimes I just fall asleep w/o any water. But first thing each
morning I have 2 oz of water - and about an hour later I have 4-8 oz of my
Protein drink which is how I start each day.
— Anna M.
March 7, 2004
Sugar free popcicles have been a God send to me. They count toward your
fluid intake. I also like crushed ice, and will chomp on it during the day
at my desk. Water is difficult for me, too. Good luck!
— wschaffer
March 7, 2004
Kathy. I am so glad you posted this question. I am 2 mo post op and I am
having the same problem. I was anxious to see what answers you got and you
got some good ones. good luck to you.
— Carolyn B.
March 8, 2004
For both nutritional and water requirements, yes, you slowly build it up in
the months after surgery. I am now 8 months post op, and can easily drink
what I want - to a certain point. I can drink 8oz at once (over a few
minutes) if needed. Here are some tips of things I do to get my water in:
1) when I wake up in the a.m. first thing I do is head to the kitchen and
drink 8oz. Right post-surg you can't do that, but eventually you can. It
takes a minute or two to let the water flow through the pouch, but it
doesn't take a whole lot longer than I used to do this before surgery.
Listen to your body. If you have to, drink 4oz then drink another 4 before
you head out the door to work. 2) repeat as soon as you get home from work
3) repeat before bed. your body will eventually get used to the fluids
and you shouldn't be up all night 4) at work, once or twice a day when I
pass the cafeteria I take a cup and have another 8oz. Stand right there,
take a few minutes of a break and sip. 5) drink in the car on my way to
and from work 6) keep beverages in front of me here at work all day long,
as soon as something is empty I go get more water or another drink.
Remember you CAN count diet coke although you shouldn't be having much of
it. Others will say you can't count this, but the caffeine dehydrating
thing is for caffeine pills. So coffee, tea, etc also count; just don't
drink a LOT of them. Count milk and soymilk and soup. Those are liquids
too. I have days that are lower in fluid and days that are higher. Just
always work at it, and track yourself. Good luck
— Calleigh Q.
March 8, 2004
While Calleigh has some good ideas about how to work water in throughout
the day, I beg to differ on the notion that only caffeine taken in pill
form is dehydrating. Caffeine is caffeine. Your body neither knows nor
cares where it came from--it will process it the same way. Obviously,
check with your own medical team, but I was told by three different
dietitians, and a college biology professor who specializes in nutrition,
that caffeinated drinks cannot be counted at all toward my daily intake of
liquids. Avoid it not only for the dehydrating effects but because it also
leaches calcium from your bones and can cause an ulcer in your pouch and/or
stoma. As for getting the water in, I found it was a matter of developing
a routine, much like Calleigh suggests.
— Vespa R.
March 10, 2004
When you get up in the morning start drinking water. I make sure I drink 8
oz - 16 oz before I eat my first meal. You should stop drinking 1/2 hour
before you eat, do not drink during eating and wait 1 hour after. Your
meals should only take you 20 -25 mins to eat. If you are eating longer
then that you are taking to long to eat. If you wait one hour to 1 1/2
hour after you eat to start drinking that should give you time to start
drinking your water. Bring that water with you everywhere you go.
Meetings, car trips, etc. Get at least 8 to 16 oz before you go to bed.
You must find a way. Also, any decaf liquid product counts as water. Good
Luck.
— Linda R.
March 11, 2004
I can <u>totally</> relate to this question! Up until about 6
weeks ago, I was (and always have been a camel), partly because I have a
very overactive bladder. However, I have a <b>very practical
solution</b> which really helped me.<br>
<br>
Since I started working out in the morning before i go to work (up at 5:15
am), i've noticed it is so much easier to get my water in. During my
workout, I easily put away 40 ounces. When I get home from the gym, i will
often have my protein shake (best time to drink it is within one hour of
workout), which is another 20 ounces. 2 bottles of water at work for
another 40 ounces. At night I slow down a bit, so I may get in another 20
ounces tops. <br>
<br>
Believe me, before I started working out, i was lucky if i got in over 40
ounces a day (immediately post-op). Pre-op, don't even get me started - try
maybe 2 glasses of fluid a day!?! Really. And in the beginning (overactive
bladder or not), YOU WILL LIVE IN THE BATHROOM. But even my teeny tiny
overactive bladder has adjusted to this pretty well, and i can feel a
difference in my body by making sure it's hydrated enough. i feel like i
really did an injustice to it all these years by keeping it in a state of
chronic dehydration (which can cause damage to your urinary system, over
time). My skin looks great, my digestive system is finally
"on-line" without me having to "supplement" to get it
to eliminate properly.<br>
<br>
As you can see, i have a lot to say about water. I love it now! Good luck,
Kathy! (Open PROXIMAL RNY, 7/7/03, 227/150/>127)
— sweetmana
March 11, 2004
Oops.
— sweetmana
Click Here to Return