The Shrine

Well, I've decided that I drink waaaaaay too much soda and not nearly enough water. I'm drinking at least 1-2 sodas a day and then usually a Powerade at night on the days that I lift weights.

1-2 sodas a day might not sound like a lot but I feel like it's more than I should, at least compared to the amount of water I drink.

So, I'm going to start drinking more water throughout the day. What's the recommended amount of water someone is supposed to drink per day?

Eight glasses, I think. But I've never found that to be realistic. Instead of trying to hit a certain amount of water a day, just drink water instead of soda for a while. It is nice sometimes to just have a glass of water around and sip on it throughout the day.

Personally, the only time I drink soda is if I'm at a party and I don't feel like having an alcoholic drink - and even then, I often don't. I don't like the idea of drinking carbonated sugar water when I'm thirsty. At restaurants, I just get water. In general stick to juice, water and milk (I don't worry about extra calories or carbohydrates; I'm active enough that I actually need them).

Lox wrote:What's the recommended amount of water someone is supposed to drink per day?

Enough so that when you pee, it usually comes out clear. Seriously.

No offense, Kupek, but that "eight glasses a day" thing is complete BS (Google it, there are a ton of articles that proclaim it a myth).

Lox wrote:and then usually a Powerade at night on the days that I lift weights.

That's actually a bad idea. Powerade is really just a mixture of sugar, potassium, and salt - which is fine if you want to keep your energy levels up and keep from cramping during more exercise, but it really does nothing for your muscles to help them recover from resistance training. What you should do instead is get a lot of protein (either from a powder/shake or a meal replacement bar) in you within an hour after your workout, since protein is what muscles are made out of.

I don't know if you know this, but when you lift weights, you are actually breaking down your muscle fibers - the part where you gain strength happens after your workout during your rest periods, when the muscles rebuild themselves bigger than before, so that they can better handle the stress you just put them under. (After which you use a larger weight to break down even more muscle, which causes the muscle to rebuild itself even bigger, and so on and so on.)

By ingesting a lot of protein right after your workout, you are providing your muscles with an immediate supply of what they need to rebuild themselves.

Lox wrote:I'm drinking at least 1-2 sodas a day.

You'd really be best served to quit drinking soda altogether, as it has no positive nutritional value whatsoever *and* dehydrates you as well. If you're only drinking one or two a day, it shouldn't be too hard to go the rest of the way - and if you still need carbonation, do what I do and go with sparkling water/seltzer. Once you get used to the lack of sweetness, you'll be fine.

Actually, thanks for calling me on the eight glasses of water thing. I've always been suspicious of it, but never checked it out.

You missed something with lifting, however. Making sure that your body has plenty of water is just as, if not more important, than making sure your body has plenty of protien. Muscles are 80% water; they're more water than they are protein. I generally don't use sports drinks when I lift; I just drink water inbetween most sets. Basically, just keep hydrated while you're lifting. (I've recently started using them, however, because I'm now lifting after doing other physical activity, and I want to make sure I maintain enough calories and such in my system while I'm lifting. Normally I just make sure I have a full meal a few hours before.)

Agent 57 wrote: Enough so that when you pee, it usually comes out clear. Seriously.

No offense, Kupek, but that "eight glasses a day" thing is complete BS (Google it, there are a ton of articles that proclaim it a myth).

I actually saw some stuff about that online. It's so annoying to wade through this theory and that theory that I figured I'd just post a message here.

Agent 57 wrote: What you should do instead is get a lot of protein (either from a powder/shake or a meal replacement bar) in you within an hour after your workout, since protein is what muscles are made out of.

I agree...my Powerade statement was in regards to the fact that it's just more sugar in my system after all the soda.

Agent 57 wrote: I don't know if you know this, but when you lift weights, you are actually breaking down your muscle fibers - the part where you gain strength happens after your workout during your rest periods, when the muscles rebuild themselves bigger than before, so that they can better handle the stress you just put them under. (After which you use a larger weight to break down even more muscle, which causes the muscle to rebuild itself even bigger, and so on and so on.)

By ingesting a lot of protein right after your workout, you are providing your muscles with an immediate supply of what they need to rebuild themselves.

I knew that too. My problem isn't so much knowing things but putting them into practice. I probably would do well to use some kind of protein drink after I lift. I'll have to do some research. I also really need to start working in a cardio routine at least 3 days a week.

I'll have to work on qutting the soda habit. I've done it before. I'm sure I can again.

Thanks for the info!

This is the stuff I use: <a href=http://www.naturade.com/products/detail ... e>Naturade Total Soy</a>

It's not actually marketed as a protein supplement, but as a meal replacement. But I just use it as a supplement with a meal. There are plenty of other kinds of powders on the market with twice the protien, but I use this stuff for two reasons: I like the taste (I drink it generally at least once a day, sometimes more, so taste is very important) and I can find it at most grocery stores.

I very well might be able to gain more muscle if I used some MetRx powder, but I'm not willing to choke that stuff down. I've tried a variety of powders, and I always come back to this stuff.

The 8 glasses of water a day thing is not BS. The only thing is that it is not meant to be taken literally, you get that 8 glasses from all the food and drink you consume in a day. As far as pop goes (or Soda, for you southerners; and soft drinks for us Northerners), I myself used to drink a lot of Coke, the taste of almost any kind of pop nowadays sickens me to tell you the truth. I do still like Fresca once in a while, it is different, it doesn't have the same syruppy taste that others have, mainly because it's non sugar. Another drink I like is Ginger Ale, but only when I drink wine, the two compliment each other very well. I think the best thing to do would be to quit it altogether, it's not really that good, and you realize it once you stop drinking it for a while. If you're addicted to caffene, drink something else instead, like Tea which has it, but doesn't have all the other bad stuff that pop has.

As far as protein goes, it is very important, eggs and any kind of meat are good things to eat; try and stay away from things like margarine, butter, cake, and anything like that. Milk is good, even chocolate milk, it has fat, but cut fat out of other areas of your diet and this won't matter.

Personally, as far as water goes, I probably drink quite a bit more than 8 glasses (that's around two litres); I think I usually have on average 12-14 (including the water in everything I eat and drink), but I'm also larger than most people, and very active.

The Seeker wrote:The 8 glasses of water a day thing is not BS. The only thing is that it is not meant to be taken literally, you get that 8 glasses from all the food and drink you consume in a day.

You're pointlessly arguing semantics here. The myth, as currently written, is "you need to drink eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day," which, as I said, is BS. You even backed me up by saying you get a lot of your daily ingested water from the food that you eat, which is indeed true. (To be specific, most of that water comes from fruits and vegetables - I like to call cucumbers "crunchy water.")

At any rate, I stand by what I said earlier - if your pee is clear and you're hitting the bathroom fairly often, you're fine. Listen to what your body tells you, not some nutritionist somewhere who pulled a number out of his ass.

Kupek wrote: Making sure that your body has plenty of water is just as, if not more important, than making sure your body has plenty of protien. Muscles are 80% water; they're more water than they are protein. I generally don't use sports drinks when I lift; I just drink water inbetween most sets. Basically, just keep hydrated while you're lifting.

You're right, I didn't mention it, but I know it and I definitely practice it. "Hydrate to dominate," as a teammate of mine said this past weekend - I constantly take sips between exercises, and sometimes even between sets.

On the subject of protein, I personally use Optimum Nutrition's powders for my post-workout shakes and either Meso-Tech or Myoplex Deluxe MRBs for afternoon snacks. Optimum is okay as far as taste goes - it gets a little gritty when I handmix it in a glass with either soymilk or water, but it's fine in the blender with a banana added. The only problem is when I can't find their 'Natural' flavor in GNC and have to go with the one that adds artificial sweeteners (which, admittedly, tastes better) as opposed to stevia. Oh, and that's why I picked those two brands of MRBs, as well - they're the only ones I can find that don't add stuff like sucralose or acesulfame K.

The Seeker wrote:Try and stay away from things like margarine, butter, cake, and anything like that. Milk is good, even chocolate milk, it has fat, but cut fat out of other areas of your diet and this won't matter.

I just want to clarify one thing that Seek's said here - fat is not necessarily bad for you. In fact, having some fat in your diet is necessary for good nutrition - you just need to make sure it's the right kind of fat.

For example, trans fatty acids, the ones that come from stuff being hydrogenated, are the worst fats you can eat. Check the label of everything you can to make sure it doesn't have trans fat in it (a lot of products nowadays are trumpeting the fact that they have 0g of trans fat in them, which is good). Some saturated fat is okay (I can't remember the % of total diet off the top of my head), and unsaturated fat is considered the 'good' fat (like the fat in nuts, fish, lean meats, etc.).

Basically, the only things I can think of that you should make every effort to cut out of your diet completely are trans fat and refined sugar - although I like sweets too much, so I give in once a week and cheat (however, I've even heard that cheating on a healthy diet every once in a while is also actually good for you).

I just realized I'm totally rambling here, so I'll stop for now.

I have maybe two full glasses of water a day and two sodas but they are sprites (not like that's any better than a dark soda...) but that's about all I drink when I'm eating. Usually when I eat I grab a soda because well, I like the taste with my meal, if not soda go to the vitamin D milk or 2%.

I was able to completely cut caffine out of my diet for like 4 months at the beginning of the semester, but now that I'm in the hard liquor drinking stage again, it'll be at least another month before I can cut that out because of the Jack and Bacardi. I need to stop drinking so much dark soda though and really invest in some crest whitening strips.

I'd also be looking at this from a dental stand point since both of my friends are pre-dental majors I've had to endure them guilting me on my eating and drinking habits (non-alcoholic). So yeah, you may just want to cut out soda completely and only have it on occassion. Stay away from red drinks, I'd go with just regular gatorade, but I think they've changed the formula over the years and it doesn't taste like it used too.

It's generally 2L (8 cups, for you Americans :-) for every 1/2 teaspoon of salt you consume each day. Since it's impossible to determine how much salt you eat a day (you have no idea how much salt is in the foods you eat) unless you go on a severely restricted diet, just make sure that when your mouth is dry, you drink water.

Don't forget, the water content in coffee and sodas and other drinks still count, it's just that you're also taking in a lot more salt (and sugars), so it's not quite a 1:1 ratio

I love soda. I drink around 1-2 cans a day. I try to balance things out by drinking a large amount of water during one of my meals (around 1 to 1.5 of those large Taco Bell cups).

When I used to work out, I'd have a Red Bull at the beginning, and a bottle of Gatorade at the end. Not the best thing to do, I know, but I don't work out much. There seems to be a lot of good advice in this thread, so at least I'll know where to look when (if) I start again.

zeus wrote:8 cups, for you Americans

We actually use liters a lot in the US. Anything that comes in a bottle we measure in liters (or ounces if it's small). Otherwise we generally use quarts or gallons though, never cups (unless it's a recipe).

See, this is why I don't excerise. It's not enough that I have to do push-ups, pull-ups, or whatever, but I have to actually understand the fucking science of how it works to get any use out of it. I don't have the time to go workout on something for a month, and then have somebody tell me "Oh, wait, you're doing the wrong excerises.", letting me know that I just wasted a fucking month doing jack shit.

It's bad enough to wake up at night, down some soda to keep me awake, and try to figure out what fattening one-course meal I'm going to fix before I go to work. At least I'm drinking water for the most part afterwards, but step 2 of the 13 step plan is certainly not working.

Bwah!

SineSwiper wrote:See, this is why I don't excerise.

No, you don't exercise because you don't have the motivation. This stuff is just an excuse.

Trust me on this: <i>any</i> exercise is much better than no exercise. This crap we're talking about? Yeah, it makes a difference, but really, it's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that I <i>do</i> it. Keeping all of this stuff in mind is just making what I do more effective.

Look at it this way: you play some fighting games. Sometimes you'll just play the game every now and then, not bothering to learn all the moves and crap. But some games are good enough that you like learning how to do things correctly and well, so you spend the extra time and effort to do so.

I don't treat lifting and working out in general as a chore, I treat it as a hobby. If it's a chore for you, then don't worry about this crap. Just go and do it.

Kupek wrote:

SineSwiper wrote:See, this is why I don't excerise.

No, you don't exercise because you don't have the motivation. This stuff is just an excuse.

Trust me on this: <i>any</i> exercise is much better than no exercise. This crap we're talking about? Yeah, it makes a difference, but really, it's not the most important thing. The most important thing is that I <i>do</i> it. Keeping all of this stuff in mind is just making what I do more effective.

I don't treat lifting and working out in general as a chore, I treat it as a hobby. If it's a chore for you, then don't worry about this crap. Just go and do it.

Exactly what I was going to say, but you beat me to it.

Just doing anything is better than doing nothing. For instance, when we started in September, we were doing just bench press and flies. Then we started slowly working in other excercises once we got into a routine with these. Now I'm working my back, my arms, my shoulders, my chest. The only thing I'm not really working is my legs, which needs to change.

I'm not following half of this stuff because it takes time to phase it in so you don't burn yourself out before you get going, but I'm still seeing results in my chest, my arms, everywhere. I actually have muscle in my chest...trust me, that's an amazing thing.

Lox wrote:The only thing I'm not really working is my legs, which needs to change.

Work in squats. They'll be hard at first (just one rep will tire your whole body out a lot), but they're awesome. I used to do some leg presses as a concession, but leg presses are not as good as squats. Start with really low weight; if you haven't done squats before, it will take a while to build up the ability to do so. It also takes time to get used to just bearing the load.

What this woman has to say about squats is good stuff: <a href=http://www.stumptuous.com/learnsquat.html>Learning the Squat</a>

Find some sort of sport or activity you like, and go with that.

Best shape I've been in was when I fenced in college, and the extent of my exercise was that (and occasional trips to the gym to ride a stationary bike).

It worked for me because I enjoyed it independent of it being "exercise". It just so happens it worked well for that purpose.

Kupek wrote: Work in squats. They'll be hard at first (just one rep will tire your whole body out a lot), but they're awesome. I used to do some leg presses as a concession, but leg presses are not as good as squats. Start with really low weight; if you haven't done squats before, it will take a while to build up the ability to do so. It also takes time to get used to just bearing the load.

What this woman has to say about squats is good stuff: <a href=http://www.stumptuous.com/learnsquat.html>Learning the Squat</a>

Sweet. Thanks for the info. I'm going to start those on Friday!

[quote="Tortolia"

Best shape I've been in was when I fenced in college,.[/quote]

Did you carry your rapier around everywhere? I don't even fence and I carry one with me...

I was annoyed when yet another Fundamental Law of Nature went up in flames. However, I have heard that the more salt you take in, the more water you should drink to counter act it. I eat a lot of salty stuff (frozen and fast foods) and I'm a heavy sweater, so I know I drink way more than 8 cups a day. If you listen to you body, *in general* you should be OK. But if I listened to my body, I'd way about 700 lbs, so YMMV.

TheTrueIshamael wrote:I was annoyed when yet another Fundamental Law of Nature went up in flames. However, I have heard that the more salt you take in, the more water you should drink to counter act it. I eat a lot of salty stuff (frozen and fast foods) and I'm a heavy sweater, so I know I drink way more than 8 cups a day. If you listen to you body, *in general* you should be OK. But if I listened to my body, I'd way about 700 lbs, so YMMV.

de acuerdo. i think it's hard to get in trouble if you REALLY listen to your body.