Questions about giving up soda

[meriface11]

i still drink diet soda at work (it's free), but i stopped buying it 2 months ago. i bought a sodastream for the house and only drink the seltzer i make with it at home. i don't mind plain water, but i drink a lot more of it with the "fizziness". the machine cost $80 and the replacement cartridge is $30, so i should save money in the long run with the amount of soda i was drinking at home.

 

[JDUCKY]

A little OT, but could save money in the long run...

Has anyone tried to give up soda? Did you do it cold turkey? Were there any bad withdrawl symptoms...bad headaches?

Quit on Aug. 8 last year and haven't looked back. Get my caffeine through tea. One of the best decisions ever!

 

[manhattan]

I gave it up cold turkey about 3 months ago....funny thing was I did not even realize I had done it! Its free at my office and there were days I would have 3-4 cans a day at work and then come home and drink another 2-3 glasses. I have started drinking Crystal Light at work and seltzer water or arnold palmers at home. No weight loss for me either.

 

[FoundMyPrince]

I stopped drinking soda 12 years ago when pregnant with my first child. Since then I only have water, milk, and the occassional juice. I didn't notice a weight loss since I was pregnant at the time. And, since I buy the groceries, DH doesn't drink soda now either....nor do our children. It does save us a lot of money...especially when eating out. We always drink water when eating out and that saves us about $10.

 

[wide awake]

I've tried to stop but w/ all the other things I am disciplined about...haven't been successful. I drink diet...there isn't a lot of caffeine in soda, about 1/6 of a cup of coffee...and I drink coffee too. I have no idea if I would get headaches or not. I refuse to worry about caffeine, sodium, etc... If the calories are zero it is a freebie for me. I don't buy it at a restaurant, because 1. I hate it over ice, and 2. I'm cheap...water at a restaurant. I always have one in my purse though and I don't mind drinking it warm.

 

[Colleen27]

I quit again at New Years, that'll be my 3rd or 4th go at it. I usually lose a small amount of weight, but I drink diet so there isn't a big caloric drop. For me, the first few days are brutal - headaches and just an overall icky, run down, flu-ish feeling. I'm not sure what that's about, because I've tried coffee and tea to offset the lack of caffeine to no avail. It is something specific to quitting Mt Dew that makes me feel miserable for a couple-few days.

My big problem is that I haven't found anything else I genuinely like to drink; water gets old after a while but I don't want to replace a zero calorie soda habit with something with calories like juice or the seltzer blends. Right now I'm drinking mostly tea and not saving any money at it, because soda is cheap and often on sale while neither is true for the teas I like.

But I do feel better overall and it is kind of nice to plan a Disney trip without having to arrange a way to get my Mt Dew fix.

 

[jedijill]

I quit again at New Years, that'll be my 3rd or 4th go at it. I usually lose a small amount of weight, but I drink diet so there isn't a big caloric drop. For me, the first few days are brutal - headaches and just an overall icky, run down, flu-ish feeling. I'm not sure what that's about, because I've tried coffee and tea to offset the lack of caffeine to no avail. It is something specific to quitting Mt Dew that makes me feel miserable for a couple-few days.

My big problem is that I haven't found anything else I genuinely like to drink; water gets old after a while but I don't want to replace a zero calorie soda habit with something with calories like juice or the seltzer blends. Right now I'm drinking mostly tea and not saving any money at it, because soda is cheap and often on sale while neither is true for the teas I like.

But I do feel better overall and it is kind of nice to plan a Disney trip without having to arrange a way to get my Mt Dew fix.

I did Crystal Light for quite a while. It got my "sweet" fix and then I finally just switched to water and/or iced green tea. The Crystal Light got me over the hump.

Jill in CO

 

[OlivesMom]

Gave it up 2 years ago and slowly got addicted again. Switched to Iced Tea, loved it except for on stressful days I'd get a pop. Started a new chaotic job and was back to drinking a can a day. Just getting off it again, tea M-F and minimal pop on the weekends.

Did find that getting Facebook updates from Dr. Pepper was NOT helping me stay away. I'd see the photos of a can/glass and NEED Dr. Pepper. Ended-up having to "hide all posts by Dr. Pepper"

ETA: I did find that Diet pop was triggering my headaches.

 

[PolyndianPrincessJes]

I gave it up for New Year's. I'm going cold turkey, but I didn't have a habit (except at WDW...thanks a lot, CL lounge cooler!! ). No side effects so far, but I don't expect them, as I didn't have them last time I gave it up.

I had water only for all of January (save a fruit smoothie one day when I forgot I was only having water). I found I missed juice a lot more than soda (almost as bad, sometimes worse, sugar-wise). Since February I started grabbing one of the kids' juice boxes every now and then (maybe once a day). I did have a sip of my mom's Diet Coke when we were shopping the other day. Wasn't all that satisfying. Yea! I've lost about ten pounds since January 1.

 

[Squirrel!!!]

I gave up my DIet Coke habit about a year ago, but still drink a cup or two of coffee each morning, so no headaches. Easy to quit as started a medication that made carbonation taste odd, so no beer either. (that is a sad one).

So, drink iced tea, water and milk.

I have noticed about a 20 lb weightloss in the last year, but that is more likely the no beer, not the no soda.

 

[ChisJo]

I gave up cola about 12 years ago. I don't really drink soda otherwise. I find now if I taste cola, it leaves a terrible taste in my mouth. I don't mind root beer or ginger ale, but those are what I call holiday drinks - I'll only drink them at family occasions like Christmas or Easter. I recently also gave up coffee...this is a challenge. I traded in my cream filled/sugar addictive caffeinated coffee for caffeine free green tea. I get headaches every now and then, but I find if I suck back a bunch of water, it makes the head ache go away. I also find now that I don't inhale so much coffee that my energy is BETTER and I sleep better too.

I went to a seminar recently at the sugar contents in products and the amount of sugar in soda is baffling...give it up and don't look back! You'll feel way healthier if you do!

 

[stitchlovestink]

I gave up my extreme diet dew addiction on 7/29/10 due to health reasons. I was consuming 6 to 8 cans or a 2 ltr per day. In the past when I have tried giving up my diet dew, I would encounter terrible migraines from the drastic drop in caffeine levels in my body, and would cave and start drinking it again.
Now that said, I do on rare ocassion have a diet dew. BUT, it is usually when I am eating steamed crabs. I cannot drink any other beverage when picking crabs. So in the prime crab season, I could have crabs about 2 or 3 times a month. I do still try to limit it to a 24 oz bottle and I pick crabs for awhile. I find it soothing....
Anyway, I now try to drink about 8 to 10 oz of milk a day, maybe 6 oz of low cal juice (love that new trop50 line) and then mostly everything else is propel zero. I also might have a Fuse or two per week just for a little more flavor but just a tiny bit of calories (10ish I think?) I cannot stand plain water.... ick..... I will break down and have a McD's sweet tea probably once a month and I try to water than down.
I have noticed a considerable drop in weight and not drinking nearly as much. I didn't used to believe that diet soda made you thirster, but for me, it was really true!!! I still think I drink alot, but I always seem to have been this way for as far back as I can remember in childhood.
As far as the cost...I have not noticed much difference. I do/did always buy my sodas on sale and now I am buying the propel zero (on sale, but a little harder to find on good sales and/or coupons). I do feel like it has been much better for my health overall and don't have any regrets!

 

[torinsmom]

I gave up Diet Mountain Dew over Memorial Day weekend last year. It was really rough. I only drank 1 can per day for years before that and had gotten down to 1/2 can a day and STILL had a really bad headache and felt like I was going to die. That lasted about 2 days and the day after that, I just felt kind of "off". Haven't had caffeine since then. I never did regular soda, because of empty calories, so my biggest problem is finding something caffeine free and sugar free when at a restaurant. I don't do plain water; I mostly drink Sam's water, which has carbonation, flavoring and splenda. Anyway, I bring Crystal Light packets with me in my purse and order water if there are no sugar-free, caffeine free options.

 

[mhsjax]

Well, I won't be any help at all. I drink diet coke. I have since I was 11. I am now 47. I don't smoke, I don't drink. I don't spend much money. I do drink quite a bit of water during the day. I try and eat pretty healthy. I will not, won't, never, ever under any circumstances give up my diet coke. It is my one vice, my one real food pleasure. There are certain foods that I just can't eat with diet coke. Pizza with anything but soda isn't worth having. JMHO.

As my DSIL(who is very thin and very healthy) said. "They can pry the diet coke can out of my cold dead hand, when the time comes." Ok, my rant is over.

OP. This is just me, so good luck in your adventure to give up soda. I really do wish you well, if this is what you want.

 

[lucyem]

We just stopped buying it at home except on special occasions and then we only buy a natural soda made with sugar. I still might have a coke when eating out but that is rare.

 

[JB2K]

I have been drinking Diet Pepsi my entire adult life.

Despite the added tax my state has recently imposed on sodas, in general, I will not give mine up.

After recent events, it's one of my few remaining comforts.

 

[gulf breeze]

Wow! Nice to know I'm not the only one with a pop habit. I've switched from Mt. Dew to Pepsi when I was expecting my first DD . I've always hated ice in my pop but then I CRAVED it when pregnant. Then about a year ago I got sick and pop just didn't taste good for about a month then when I did start drinking again I went with Sirra Mist. I figured at least I got rid of the caffine. When I was sick I had migraines anyway so who knows how much of that was due to pop. I again got sick and that tasted awful but Orange Crush was calling my name! I'm trying to keep it to one or two a day instead of the 4 or 5 that I would drink.
My kids never drink pop. My oldest DD is now 11 and she took a sip when she was little and said Yuck! She refuses to touch the stuff. My youngest DD will take a drink of mine but she's never had a can to herself. One of her first words was Pepsi, the way she said it was so cute! LOL
Good luck everyone!

 

[eroilersgal]

But I do feel better overall and it is kind of nice to plan a Disney trip without having to arrange a way to get my Mt Dew fix.

I have a Mt. Dew delivery guy at WDW. My husband's old coworker moved to Florida a few years ago and he comes to see us when we are at Disney. Last year he brought me a 12 pack of Mt. Dew when we met at DTD. I got a few funny looks carrying it back to our hotel on the bus but I figured they were just jealous

I have tried to give up Dew a thousand times and have even done it once...first pregnancy I gave up all caffeine. Right now I have caffeine free diet mt. dew in the fridge. My husband says it is just green water in a Dew can and maybe if I wash out a few cans and substitute water maybe I could convince myself to switch.

 

[kinntj]

It's been 4 months since I gave up Diet Coke and all soda's. What I drink at home is coffee (2 cups for morning start), green tea, milk and water. I drink iced tea with no sugar when at a restaurant.

I think anything you do to cut out sugar and artificial stuff is the best for your body. One thing at a time.

So far I've given up soda and white rice. I'm working on giving up bread.

 

[SookieStackhouse]

I have pretty much given up sodas. I used to drink probably 5 or 6 a day. I gave up caffeine, and have decided that aspertame is a BAD thing.

I will drink one or two a week now, and usually when I do they are just regular ones. I stick to stuff like Sierra Mist, 7UP etc.

It is not so much a "budget" issue with me as it is trying to not intake so much bad stuff.

The carbonation is what I crave, I have picked up the habit of drinking sparkling water instead of sodas, I go though those things like crazy. Depending on the brand you buy it can be an even more expensive addiction than soda.