Here's how Sen. Cory Booker did it—and the max for how long most of us can hold off going, according to science.
Here’s How Long Humans Can Actually Hold Urine, Say Experts
Published on Apr. 02, 2025
For 25 hours and five minutes, Senator Cory Booker captured the nation’s attention by breaking the record for the longest speech in U.S. Senate history. During that time, he did not leave the Senate floor, not even for a bathroom break. “Did he have a catheter?” I mused out loud to my husband, an MD, who shrugged in a way that was clearly impressed. Whether it’s to engage in social causes or due to some medical or circumstantial necessity, this was the first time I’d found myself asking: How long can we actually last without urinating?
As the night went on, we learned that Booker had strategized. After his marathon session, the U.S. senator from New Jersey confirmed to reporters that he’d “fasted into it. The last food I ate was Friday night,” he told the Meidas Touch podcast’s Aaron Parnas. Booker added that he’d “dehydrated myself” by cutting off water as of Sunday night, noting this tactic was effective but caused him to cramp and experience “signs of dehydration” during the last hour of his speech. “I don’t want my doctor to get mad at me but I really spent time dehydrating myself beforehand so I did not have to go to the bathroom,” Booker told reporters after his speech.
Typically, urologists say most individuals should urinate somewhere between four to 10 times per day, depending on how much liquid they drink. Dehydration could cause some to urinate less frequently, which can lead to a host of health issues—just one being the potential for kidney stones, while on the less serious side can be muscle cramps. “I’m a former athlete so I know when you get dehydrated you get a lot of cramps,” Booker said. “That was the biggest thing I was fighting was different muscle groups were really starting to cramp up.”
Though there doesn’t seem to be a definitive medical answer for how long you hold it in safely, urologists say the human bladder can only hold a maximum of 17 to 20 ounces for women—the same volume as a standard-size water bottle—or 24 to 27 ounces for men. The bladder is an organ with the ability to stretch…but within reason.
It’s very unlikely for a bladder to explode, or rupture, from holding onto urine for too long, but it is possible, according to Piedmont Healthcare. “If too much pressure builds up in the bladder, it can rupture. But this is a very uncommon occurrence,” says Nazia Bandukwala, DO, a urologist at Piedmont.
If you’ve heard it said that holding it may cause a UTI, it can happen. That’s why after many medical procedures, healthcare professionals will encourage the patient to drink plenty of fluid and urinate when they sense the urge. Even on a regular basis, Keck Medicine of USC notes, “If you frequently wait to use the bathroom, you are more likely to develop severe urinary tract infections (UTI).” Other complications from not urinating for long periods include kidney issues or urinary incontinence.
Because peeing is the body’s waste-flushing mechanism, it’s a good idea to let those toxins flow freely.
And if you were cheering for Sen. Cory Booker to go enjoy a big, juicy burger after those press interviews last night, it’s possible—but it would have been vegan, in keeping with his personal practice. Booker revealed that his first snack immediately after his speech was none other than many endurance performers’ pick: a banana.
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