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So I'm trying the drink a gallon of water a day! Is it possible to drink too much water ? I'm over 200lbs! Thank you

You feel drunk and nauseous. If your not used to drinking that amount you could feel that way. Start slow and than you can go to that amount. However if your also drinking other low sugar, salt and caffeine drinks those also count.

Thank you for your reply! I've heard of people drowning themselves by drinking too much water ! Is this something I should be worried of if I'm spreading my water intake out through the whole day ?

It_Is_What_It_Is said "So I'm trying the drink a gallon of water a day! Is it possible to drink too much water ? I'm over 200lbs! Thank you "

If your mass will have as much to do with it as your physiology, but I am thinking you should check with a doctor before drinking three to four times what the recommended intake for an adult wold be.  
 
 
http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/water-intoxication#1  
 
I read an article on CBC News recently about a 20-something woman who died of H20 Intoxication, but a mitigating fact in her death was she had taken an Ecstasy pill the day before.  
 
I had never heard of this until I saw it on that show, HOUSE, MD.

If you are a normal health person a gallon of water a day is not going to hurt you.  
We have kept track of my water intake different times just to see how much I do consume in a 24 hour period, and the reason I have done this is because I was alway worried about water intoxification as well as leaching minerals and chemicals out of my body, or causing damage to my kidneys. My day starts out with a 6 cup pitcher of water that is drank within the first half hour of getting up, and then thoughout the day I will consume another 9-10 litres, not cups, but litres of water, so we are looking at around 12 litres of water per day..  
From many years of drinking a lot of water, and asking every doctor, that I have come into contact with, about my excessive consumption of water, I have learned a few things about water intoxification, or any damage to my body that may be cause by it. I have found out the water intoxification can happen fairly easy in infants who are given water in a bottle, or are given a diluted down formula. I have also learned that water intoxification happens in adults usually as a result of dehydration being and existing condition before drinking a larger amount of water. Dehydration causes an imbalance in your bodies electrolytes, usually a loss of sodium, and unless your electrolytes are close to balanced cells will absorb to much water and swell.  
As for the damage to the kidneys. Different doctors have told me that the kidneys have a capacity of around 16 litres per day for fluids, but the blood does not absorb anywhere near all the water you drink, and if you drink way to much water it never sees you blood or you kidneys but ends up passing through you body much the same way as food does and that is in your gastrinal intestinal tract.  
 
If you wish to drink more than the recommended amout of water, and I certainly hope you will, check with your doctor about your electrolyes, which would be your biggest concern, but which are normal in most people, then enjoy the fluid that makes up better that 70% of our body.

That's an incredible amount of water Don.I drink a lot of water in the warm months.Do you keep this pace up in winter time.

I asked my wife if she thought I drop off much in the winter, and she she said she didn't think much. When I tell doctors about the volume I drink,the doctors always worry about my blood sugar, but so far so good.  
In the really hot weather a 3.87 litre jug of water will not last 4 hours, and I know I lose a lot from perspiration. For me it is sort of an addiction, but I should add that if I was drinking water that had been treated, as in city water, there would be no way that I could drink that much.

I drink 3-4 litres of water a day and have never had any issues!

How much water one should drink is based on body composition, activity level etc. It's best to ask your Doctor not ebrandon.

When a link is supplied from a credible source like webmd or the mayo clinic, I usually read the link, and not just the answer to the question asked but the whole link. By reading the whole link provided you sometimes gain a bit of extra information on a topic. We are all told to consume 4-6 cups of water per day, and yet in the link it was stated that most people are dehydrated to some extent. If a doctor tells you that 4-6 cups is adequate, because that is the "recomended" amount, and does not explain how much water you could consume with out any medical problems, I would likely consume a larger amount if I accepted the idea of 4-6 cups leaves a person partially dehydrated.  
 
In Canada and the United States there is a very large amount of money spent because people become constipated, and how often would a doctor recommend to a patient that if enough water is consumed the problem would likely look after itself unless there was a medical issue.  
If you are going to ask a doctor about how much water you should consume be sure to ask if doubling his recommended amount would cause you any harm, and maybe do a bit of your own research about your concerns

Don, that is a LOT of water. Are you sure there's no underlying health issues? I'd be worried that it'd be flushing out all the vitamins and minerals that I'm consuming.

i too drink a lot of water but i finally found someone who drinks more then me (Don) lol i drink a milk jug every day at home, usually at least half before i leave for work, then i dont measure at work but probably at least another two liters then the rest of the jug at home, plus sometimes i refile and drink more of it, depends on the day so at least 6 litters every day, as i have aged i have decreased the amount a bit compared to years past, I too have asked drs and been checked for many health issues and nothing significate came of any of it so imo a 200 lbs person could easily drink a gallon of water without harm.  
 
the recommended water intake actually doesn't have much fact behind it, water intake depends on many factors including what you eat, activity level ect as long as your body is running normally you should be able to process your water intake fine, sending the electrolytes where you need them and flushing the rest out with your urine, which is anything thing you can watch, your urine should be quite light, if it isnt you need more fluids, so go ahead and get checked out by your dr just in case but one gallon is hardly abnormal amounts

2 to 3 litres per day is a good guideline, espeically when wanting to lose weight. But I've read it's better to have your water 15 to 20 minutes before a meal. Or about 30 minutes after. Reason is that a large amount of water (especially cold water) at mealtime interferes with the acids, gastric juices & bile in your stomach necessary to digest the food. It may also hinder the absorption of nutrients in your food (dilutes them), and can possibly trigger acid reflux (especially if you suffer from G.E.R.D). Adding some lemon (or cider vinegar) to your water at mealtime is better for digestion. As is having a cup of warm water or herbal tea. The main thing is to keep hydrated throughout the day, not just at meal times.Good luck!

Are you sure Don?? 12 liters of a water a day is too much Don.  
 
Only drink that much if you sweat a lot, because of working in front of a hot furnace or running a marathon or doing other strenuous exercise in the heat, thus losing a lot of sodium in your sweat, and replacing it only with water, no salt tablets or specially designed electrolyte (not glucose) drinks containing extra sodium will you get sick not because of your kidneys, but because of water intoxication (Yes there such a thing)  
 
A regular healthy person should consume around 2 liters a day. Although if you are active, weight training, cardio, physical activity etc. your intake may be 3 - 4 or even slightly higher but no where near 12 liters. Very few should be drinking 12 liters a day, very few. In fact I can't even imagine trying to force myself to drink 3 of those 4L milk jugs...  
 
I advise listening to your body, drinking when you are thirsty, eating when you are hungry.  
 
If your kidneys are healthy, they will eliminate the excess. But you will have REALLY colorless urine.

All that happens is that you pee more. Doesn't do you a damn bit of good. It is voo-doo mythology.

Yes, it is possible to drink to much water. Too much can disturb the functioning of the kidneys to get rid of the excess water, and it will cause problems with the balance of sodium in your body. It can wash out other important nutrients and minerals in your body as well, which could cause many health problems.  
That being said, I have no idea what is considered too much based on your size, age, etc. Honestly a couple litres would be more than healthy for you though. You can actually get 2 litre sized drinking bottles from walmart in order to monitor your intake over the day. My sister did this for a long time. She would just fill it up in the morning, and would make sure she got through it by the end of the day.  
 
What is your reason for wanting to drink so much water?

I'm sure someone has already mentioned it, but you need to take a few things into account when you are lookinga t your water consumption levels.  
 
Some foods are high in their moisture levels, which allows for water to be consumed in the form of the food you eat normally. Or should potentially consider eating, if your not already. I'm not talking about soup or stew. I'm talking about fruits and vegetables.  
 
One other things that comes to mind is the other potential which was explained to me from a chinese practitioner. This is something you might not find easily on any western sites. That is, the level of water you consume in relation to the time you eat your daily nutrients.  
 
I know this may seem like some vegan level stuff to consider, but its very worthwhile. Considering that if you don't pay some credence to it, you would be throwing your money down the drain. Pun intended. So, look at the stuff you eat, and the amount you drink.  
 
I'm guilty of this one. I think the recommended level is something like a medium sized glass of water. So, check it out.  
 
Of course, I have also been told by other people that believe drinking water is some how an appetite suppressant. Like, filling up on water will make you feel less hungry? I don't know.  
 
Food for thought.

I've heard a few pod casts that recommend drinking a cup of pure grape juice, by Edgar Cayce who was astoundingly brilliant for his day and age.  
 
They mentioned him having backed up a huge wealth of data in an archive which has since been made accesible to the public by some web server.  
 
And, this doesn't necessarily mean it is about anything metaphysical. According to this source, 15% or less of his material was ever about metaphysics. But it stands out most prominently, being as he was acknowledged as a leading source in the field for his day and age.

I wonder if a persons body adapts.  
So far my medical history has been non eventful, or I think it has, but anytime I have had to see a doctor the first thing I mention is my excessive consumption of water, which leads to tests for blood sugar as well as sodium and potassium levels, and so far so good. Never has a doctor ever suggested that I reduce the amount of water that I drink, and most haven't seemed to give it a second thought, which leads me to believe that if there was a concern they would make mention of it.  
Maybe over time a persons body just get used to it, really can't think of a better addiction than drinking to much water.

to be careful with the Dihydrogen Monoxide in water though. http://www.dhmo.org/facts.html  
 
Edited by Trevor B, 2017-01-06 19:05:26