Tips for Quitting Soda

[SallySkelington]

I've found recently that I've been drinking way too much soda and have made the decision stop, or at least curb it majorly. It's just making me feel yucky recently. Anyone care to share?

 

[BuckeyeBama]

I switched from regular soda to crystal light a few years ago. After about a year, I started weaning myself off of crystal light. I now drink mostly water - though I still drink sports drinks when running long distances. I try not to drink more than one soda per week now. I treat it like a dessert - something special that I only have rarely.

My goal is to consume 200 calories/day or fewer in liquid. This includes my coffee and sports drink (Gatorade). Since switching to this, I have been able to drop the weight that I wanted and keep it off.

Good luck!

 

[SallySkelington]

I switched from regular soda to crystal light a few years ago. After about a year, I started weaning myself off of crystal light. I now drink mostly water - though I still drink sports drinks when running long distances. I try not to drink more than one soda per week now. I treat it like a dessert - something special that I only have rarely.

My goal is to consume 200 calories/day or fewer in liquid. This includes my coffee and sports drink (Gatorade). Since switching to this, I have been able to drop the weight that I wanted and keep it off.

Good luck!

I like your idea of 200 calories/day or less for drinks. I think that is an excellent goal!

I drink plain water mostly, since I don't like flavored. It's just sticking with it... I was thinking perhaps I could substitute soda with tea instead.

 

[Hisgirl]

Good for you!! Drinking soft drinks is just drinking loads of bad-for-you sugar and tons of chemicals. There is NOTHING redeemable in soft drinks!

When we set asides the cokes and Dr. Peppers we replaced them with La Croix. We like the lime and I LOVE the cherry lime! They are flavored with pure fruit flavors and with the fizz....it's like drinking a soft drink but with no sweeteners, fake or natural at all.

Our other favorite drink is to find a good iced tea that isn't bitter...(Publix has great unsweet tea) and add some sliced lime or lemon or other fruit. We also make iced tea with Red Zinger tea bags, or other fruit tea bags. We don't need any sugar at all.

My favorite treat drink is from Chick fil-a. I order a large unsweet tea and ask for them to put only ONE INCH of regular lemonade in the bottom first. It's wonderful!

Any kind of fake sweetener causes your body to react as if you have had sugar, releasing the same hormones. It's just not good for you or necessary. You're doing a wonderful thing switching to refreshing drinks that don't have loads of chemicals and sugar.

Another good idea is to use almond milk and slightly sweetened chai tea concentrate. It has very little calories and when added over ice, makes a great iced chai tea.

You can also use some left over coffee and some low fat milk over ice for an iced coffee.

Some spring water with sliced limes, lemons and fresh cherries is delicious too!

 

[SallySkelington]

Good for you!! Drinking soft drinks is just drinking loads of bad-for-you sugar and tons of chemicals. There is NOTHING redeemable in soft drinks!

When we set asides the cokes and Dr. Peppers we replaced them with La Croix. We like the lime and I LOVE the cherry lime! They are flavored with pure fruit flavors and with the fizz....it's like drinking a soft drink but with no sweeteners, fake or natural at all.

Our other favorite drink is to find a good iced tea that isn't bitter...(Publix has great unsweet tea) and add some sliced lime or lemon or other fruit. We also make iced tea with Red Zinger tea bags, or other fruit tea bags. We don't need any sugar at all.

My favorite treat drink is from Chick fil-a. I order a large unsweet tea and ask for them to put only ONE INCH of regular lemonade in the bottom first. It's wonderful!

Any kind of fake sweetener causes your body to react as if you have had sugar, releasing the same hormones. It's just not good for you or necessary. You're doing a wonderful thing switching to refreshing drinks that don't have loads of chemicals and sugar.

Another good idea is to use almond milk and slightly sweetened chai tea concentrate. It has very little calories and when added over ice, makes a great iced chai tea.

You can also use some left over coffee and some low fat milk over ice for an iced coffee.

Some spring water with sliced limes, lemons and fresh cherries is delicious too!

Thank you for all of the tips and the support.

I LOVE tea, and used to drink it all the time as a kid. I wanna say that's how I dropped so much weight when I was younger too (my step mom had also cut off soda). But I don't like "sweet" tea (honestly, I ask for sweet tea in a restaurant and it feels like they added the whole bag. half/half for me please!). I like tea with a hint of sugar, so your tip with the lemonade is excellent!

I like water with fruits and mint in it. It's very yummy and gives it a bit of a twist, but I hadn't thought of cherries! Oranges would probably be good too...

 

[afnaechiquita]

i agree about shifting to la croix when you first start to ween yourself, as it will give you the bubbly soda feel without the calories/sugar. and if you like tea, brew your own so you can modify the sugar to your taste. i think lipton makes some cold brew bags now?

one way i kicked diet coke was to make it a point to never buy it at the store. if i'm going to have one (although now i've kicked off the "diet" stuff), i'll have it while out at a restaurant, but having it at home makes it too easy to grab. we had a dinner party a few weeks ago and bought a few cases of coke and ginger ale, of which the leftovers were gone in a week just because they were there.

 

[Zoesmama03]

Slowly can help. Start by cutting out caffeine one can at a time. Or do half decafe stuff like Sprite. Every time I had given up soda I went to Sprite first. I was not a fan of water for so many years. Eventually it got to where I crave water which is not something I ever thought would happen. So just keep at it. Yeah using flavorings can help. crystal lite can be a good jump start. Just cut back the soda and replace one with decaf soft drink and then one with a water with flavor until you are down to one soda and then give it up. I gave up soda way back in May. I've had sips from my daughters(usually Dr pepper) when out but nothing much. I drank one glass of Mt Dew shortly after I started working after a long time not working and was tired so figured I'd wake up but immediately noticed the down falls that evening and the next day. It just doesn't play well with my body.

 

[peg110]

The more I read about Soda (and Sugar) the more I avoid it.

I stopped (mostly) drinking soda many years ago, partly because the cost. You go to a restaurant and you pay nearly $3.00 for a cup of soda. Granted they will refill it, but realistically, with all the ice, you might get it filled 2 times and a total of 30 ounces... MAYBE.

So I enjoy my water with a slice of lemon. I drink a TON of water now. About a gallon a day, because 1. it's good for you. 2. IT flushes your kidneys. 3. It's cheap (unless you buy the bottles of water which most are little more than tap water in a bottle).

For my next trip to Disney, I plan on bringing "Filter" Bottles as the water there doesn't taste so good. I am ok with cool water (as opposed to ice water) and actually prefer it that way. However, it's my understanding that if you go to any Quick Serve restaurant, they will give you a cup of ice (or ice water) for free.

I think the only way you will truly stop the soda is to make up your mind to do so. A good resource I have found is at http://authoritynutrition.com/13-ways-sugary-soda-is-bad-for-you/ While the link is to an article specific about soda, there is TONS of good stuff there about healthy living and eating.

 

[SallySkelington]

Thank you all for the wonderful tips. I wanted to give you a quick update. I've been doing really well with dropping soda for more healthier options such as water or tea. I may have one, once or twice a week. Sometimes not all though. I feel a lot better than I was a month a ago. And I've actually dropped weight, which surprised me. Although that wasn't the original intent, it was a nice bonus!

 

[peg110]

The more you learn about it, the more you will realize that soda is actually not just bad, but terrible for you. It's more about the empty calories and how the sugar (whether it's HFCS or Cane Sugar or some other sweetener) actually is like a drug with similar effects like other addictive drugs like cocaine and heroine.

Good for you for cutting it down dramatically, and the side effect of weight loss is awesome too. Keep up the great work.

 

[Anesthesia Fine]

I still love the occasional soda, because for me demonizing food only makes me want to drink more of it out of spite. But it's so much easier to drink unsweetened iced tea when the weather warms up and I like it so much better.

Those little cans all the soda companies are making now are great; one is just enough when I do want one (especially for the occasional vodka and ginger ale. Shhhh).

 

[peg110]

It's funny. That is one of the few times I use soda. As a mixer. (My go to is Ginger ale and Captain Morgan). Probably the other is when I am sick as Ginger Ale (with REAL GINGER not artificial flavoring) helps settle my stomach and makes me feel better (Ginger does that) and keeps me hydrated. When I am sick, I don't get the Sugar High the same as when I am not.

I understand what you mean about demonizing the food. I don't want to demonize anything, but if it's bad, then it's bad. Part of the reason why so many people don't want to give up sugar is that they are addicted to it. That is, after all, the definition of addiction right? Just like quitting smoking. Most people agree that it's bad. I quit over 15 years ago (and believe me, that was NOT my first attempt) but to this day, I still get cravings. With smoking, I cannot have even ONE otherwise I will lose (That's what happened in the previous attempts).

So really it has to be a mind set. If you put your mind to it, you can do it. With smoking for me, it was about breathing, so it was (Finally) easy for me to quit in the end. But then I knew it was bad (VERY BAD). I didn't realize the same about sugar (about how bad it really can be) until just a couple of years ago. So now, very little sugar in my diet. Most of it from natural sources (Fruit, honey, etc). Also when I refer to sugar, I usually mean the "REFINED" sugar. Cane Sugar, Agave Syrup, High Fructose Corn Syrup.... All the same. All Bad (with very very low limits in terms of moderation).

Again.... I wish you great success with your efforts which ever path they take you.

 

[ALK$Disney]

I just decided to go cold turkey. I stopped all sodas/colored drinks since Jan 1 2015. 3 months in and I haven't had any colored drinks.

 

[grarsh]

I have recently tried to stop drinking soda as well and I'm a week in. So far so good. I've switched it up to having seltzer water with meals since it's bubbly and the lemon/lime flavored kind of/sort of tastes like sprite. My weakness is Coke though. OMG, do I love me some coke. I would be happy just sitting at my desk at work drinking it all day.

I think overall the point about how many calories we take in just through liquid was motivating for me this past week. I also love lemon in water or in seltzer, and a cool trick I found online was to cut up a lemon, put a slice in each slot in an ice cube tray, and then fill it with water and freeze it. The lemon slowly seeps into your water as you drink. I also read that you can just freeze watermelon or strawberries and use them as ice cubes/flavoring for water. It sounds good, but I haven't tried it yet.

 

[taffy]

I did 2 things . We bought a soda stream so we could make natural fizzy drink. I also switch to drink this stevia soda that is zero calories and no artificial sweetners http://www.zevia.com

 

[peg110]

Sodas are like a drug. It's addicting, but it's legal. http://authoritynutrition.com/13-ways-sugary-soda-is-bad-for-you/

I too like Soda but have been able to eliminate it for the most part. When I am out at a restaurant I drink water with a slice of lemon. At home my go to drinks are Water or Coffee (and sometimes Tea both hot or Iced and unsweetened). For me it was easy to drop the "Soda". I tend to be a "Cheapskate" (but not to the extreme). I find paying upwards of $3.00 for flavored sugar water loaded with ice is a lot (and at restaurants adding the tip for the equivalent amount). Water with lemon is Free at most restaurants and it's generally a healthier choice too.

 

[Lisaloo]

If you like tea, you're set. It has awesome antioxidants and it boosts your metabolism....so much better than any kind of soda. I brew oolong tea and sweeten it with just a bit of honey and keep it in the fridge for our family. When I am craving a fizzy drink, I have seltzer. Cranberry lime is my favorite so far. I have found that you have to be careful when buying the seltzers because they are usually with other carbonated "waters" with artificial sweeteners, blech.

 

[grarsh]

If you like tea, you're set. It has awesome antioxidants and it boosts your metabolism....so much better than any kind of soda. I brew oolong tea and sweeten it with just a bit of honey and keep it in the fridge for our family. When I am craving a fizzy drink, I have seltzer. Cranberry lime is my favorite so far. I have found that you have to be careful when buying the seltzers because they are usually with other carbonated "waters" with artificial sweeteners, blech.

I agree on being careful about seltzer or carbonated water! I like to buy just plain seltzer and add my own lemon or lime - waaaayyyyy fresher tasting!

 

[peg110]

Seltzer water just doesn't do it for me. I think it tastes awful. You wouldn't think that just carbonated water could taste that worse than regular water, but I think it does.

My DW was recently inquiring about it. She had never had it. A co-worker of hers was drinking Polar (brand) Vanilla flavored Seltzer water. It "Smells" awesome, but I warned her that it may not taste like she things. We ended up buying some. She found some other flavors she wanted to try. I again warned her that she should only get ONE and try it first. Well... when she did try it, she did NOT like it. Now we have 4 other bottles of unopened flavored seltzer water.

You are right about the seltzer versus other types of flavored waters. If it's labeled as Seltzer, there is generally NO sweetener (artificial or otherwise) and I think my DW was expecting a nice "Sweet" taste with zero calories. That is not what she got.

 

[sharona]

I went from Coke (in my 20's) to Diet Coke (had to cut some calories in my 30's) to Caffeine Free Diet Coke (had to give up caffeine in my 40's) then finally to just water. I only occasionally order a diet soda now if I'm eating out and want something other than water.