I don’t like drinking water because the fact is you don’t need that much of it. When I was hiking the Pacific Crest Trail, walking 12 hours per day, I drank at most 3 liters, plus a pint for breakfast and a pint for dinner. So that’s 1 gallon total for extreme physical activity. In such a day I would pee maybe 3 or 4 times.

In normal life in an arid climate my water needs are about 1-1.5 liters. But this can entirely be covered by coffee or tea, a fizzy water, and maybe a beer or bedtime tea.

The only reason for the hydration obsession is excessive salt intake. Because salt and water are always a balancing act, excessive hydration will likely lead to salty snack cravings. If it didn’t we’d have a lot more cases of hyponatremia. The only serious side effect of being in the yellow pee club is kidney stones, but those are better prevented by lemon water and avoidance of spinach than excess hydration. I have no complaints of constipation or dry skin.

Drink when you’re thirsty. Eat when you’re hungry. Rest when you’re tired.