Does Drinking Too Much Water Make You Gain Weight?

Every time I drink a lot of water, I notice that I gain a few pounds. I brought this up to my mom and she said it was just water weight that I’ll lose over the next few days. I never really understood what this meant and how our body works. I thought drinking a lot of water would help you lose weight. Here is a clarification!


Water is necessary for your body to function properly and is necessary for the transport of oxygen and nutrients. The Mayo Clinic says that water makes up 60% of our body weight and every system in our body depends on it. “For example, water flushes toxins out of vital organs, carries nutrients to your cells and provides a moist environment for ear, nose and throat tissues,” Mayo Clinic. “Your metabolism is basically a series of chemical reactions that take place in your body,” says Trent Nessler, who is managing director of Baptist Sports Medicine. By drinking a lot of water, one can keep their chemical reactions smoothly running. Even being just 1% dehydrated can make ones metabolism drop. Too little water can lead to dehydration. Additionally, Water helps to decrease your appetite so it helps you to not overeat. However, drinking a lot of water at one time can backfire and actually make you gain weight.

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The extra pounds that I gain from drinking water are called water weight. If a person drinks a large amount of water at one time, their kidneys won’t be able to keep up and won’t be able to dismiss the extra water. This extra water that’s left over in your body disrupts the electrolyte balance that is responsible for regulating the water. One quart of water is equal to two pounds. This weight will be on the scale immediately after you drink the water, however, in about 24 hours it will cycle and your weight will return to the normal. Additionally, if a person’s diet is very high in sodium, and very low in potassium, then a person has a greater risk for holding water in.

On the other hand, water can also help one lose weight. Adding a lot of water to a person’s diet can help them not feel as hungry throughout the day. “When your body realizes it is getting enough water, it will allow you to release retained waters from your cells through digestion,” (Discover Good Nutrition).

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Hypernatremia can come from drinking too much water. This occurs when someone drinks a lot of water at one time. Hypernatremia causes a persons blood and electrolytes to be diluted and also leads to nausea, confusion, seizures, muscle spasms, swelling of the brain and vomiting.

Stew Smith, a fitness author, had a client that lost 20 pounds in one week by just adding water to their diet. His client was very bloated and this was removed when he drank water because the bloating was caused by dehydration and a diet filled with a lot of sodium.

One study found that the people who drank water before they ate consumed less food during their meal. Approximately they consumed 75 fewer calories during each meal. It does not seem like a lot, but if you times it by 365 for every day during the year, then you can avoid eating 27,000 calories.

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There is no universal standard for the amount of water one should drink in a day. It is different for each person and depends on their environment and their personal activity level.

Credit:Dr. Wang Chieh