I was told by my surgeon.  Drink 30 mins. before you eat, and 30 mins. after.  And drink plenty in between.  I drink diluted Gatorade, half water/half Gatorade, for electrolytes, about 8 glasses a day.

I do not believe in 'rules' in the sense that we are all different and have different lifestyles and needs.

I drink a glass of water and 1of juice at breakfast + 1/2 pot of coffee. 

Before bed I drink at least 2.

During the daytime I try to drink whenever I am thirsty (water only) and at meals a drink at least 1 glass. 

I figure that gives me what I need. At work, I try to keep refilling my water bottle and that tells me +/- how much I am drinking.

I drink more in the summer or if I am active. I drink more if I am stressed or my output is too thick. I drink more if I feel light headed.

Most often I drink water but I make a jug of lemonade ever day. Fresh lemon juice (or concentrate), mint leaves, fake or real sugar.

My rules a simple really, try to avoid mineral water and drink mostly filtered water whenever possible (my nephrologist advise me of that after I had my 1st kidney stone), avoid pop, sugary drinks and too much juice (mornings only or very diluted), coffee is my drug. I drink 5-15 daily depending on if I am working or not...my body likes it, yours may not. I do herb teas at night, whatever I have in the house. 

I avoid milk because my pouch hates lactose (I get enough with ice cream and yoghurt). 

Your body will be able to tell you what it needs if you know how to listen. 

If you are getting headachy, weak in the knees, seeing stars, dry mouth, papery skin then you should try upping your intake. If your urine is too dark or smells strongly then ditto...increase water. 

Other than that follow you gut...pun intended!

Sharon

I also include diluted juices and other fluids in my diet as well, soups etc.

This is a bit over the top. If you are struggling to gain weight then water with a meal can make you feel full sooner. If you have had weight-loss surgery you may get specific instructions about drinking liquids with meals. If you're an ordinary J-poucher then the only useful instruction is to drink enough to stay well-hydrated at all times, whenever the heck it suits you.

Yes, we need to be mindful and drink plenty of fluids to avoid dehydration. However, the notion of avoiding fluids with meals is to help prevent "flushing" your meal through too quickly before it can be properly digested. It is more of an issue in the early post op months. 

These are less rules than guidelines/suggestions. Over time you'll figure out what works best for you.

Jan

I was told to avoid drinking while eating because it can cause more gas. We're also supposed to avoid drinking out of straws to avoid gas, but drinking out of straws helps keep me far better hydrated and I don't really feel a difference when it comes to gas. They're just general guidelines - you need to find what works for you. Staying hydrated is CRITICAL, so do whatever you find is best for your body and habits/route.

I agree, follow your gut!  With me, I tend to be a little OCD and find that if I have a routine established, I make sure I don't get dehydrated.  Still working on things, only 2 mos out from Takedown.  After experiencing severe dehydration and malnutrition (still fresh for me),I am very careful about this issue.

I try to ensure I'm hydrated before sitting down to dinner and I drink as much as I want with the meal (a glass of alcohol is excellent for digestion) and "then" I stop drinking for a while after eating.

My reasoning is that my guts need water to do their digestion thing properly but if you drink too much water then the guts don't feel the need to extract water from the stool, the food isn't properly digested and gets rushed through you much faster than we want.

This is probably a load of nonsense but even if the meaning I impose on it is absurd, the actions of drinking with a meal and not drinking for a while after work well for me.