I wasn’t always a soda {aka Coke} drinker!
I call any kind of soda “Coke” {no not the illegal powdery stuff, but really maybe the brown fizzy liquid in the red can should be illegal} so let’s just get that clarification out of the way because to me the two words are going to be interchangeable in this post. There I said it – all soda is coke {for some that might be Pepsi or pop or soda pop or sodey – it’s all the same}. For me my addiction was to Diet Mt. Dew.
I never drank soda as a kid, except the occasional special occasion like Christmas dinner while the adults had wine. Kids today start drinking soda in baby bottles & sippy cups – scary. And even in college and into early adulthood, I wasn’t much of a soda drinker. My real soda habit started a few years ago when I started at my latest corp job. We were in the boom of the high tech industry and “extra” benefits like bring your dog to work, free lunches, beer fridays and free, you guessed it SODA were in abundance! Ugh….looking back I wish I would have avoided the whole soda bindge, but sometimes you have to learn the hard way.
It started off simple enough, one soda here and there just ’cause everyone else was doing it and it was FREE! Yes, I know so is water, and we had the best water with or reverse osmosis system, which means zero impurities, what the hell was I thinking – I’d like to chalk it up to be being young and naive. But the reality is I knew better, but once I had a taste of one occasionally, that turned into one a day, then two a day, and sometimes even up to 4-5 a day! WTF! I could easily suck down a Diet Mt. Dew {also a coke to me} in 2 seconds, but the thought of drinking 8 oz of pure water was like drinking poison. How ironic! After a few weeks, I was hooked and probably 15 pound heavier. Then I started craving them, the fizz, the sugar, the caffeine whatever it was, and I’d get headaches if I didn’t get enough. The soda/coke withdrawal headache is the worst. My boyfriend was addicted to Diet Coke and pretty much everyone I worked with was addicted to some sort of soda. I’d see mountains of Mt. Dew or Diet Coke or Dr. Pepper stacked up neatly in cubes – like a trophies.
When my boyfriend and I got engaged we decided to lose some weight for our wedding and the first thing to go {thankfully} was soda and we did it cold turkey. The first week was the toughest – massive headaches and grouchiness – ibuprofen was our best friend that week. But after that, the withdrawal symptoms went away and we had each other to keep us on track. The best part is that we lost a few pounds the first month just by dumping the soda – it was a nice way to kickstart our “get sexy for our wedding” {I also purchased a dress one size too small – for incentive – brides, I do NOT recommend this!!}. If you want to kick the soda habit and you have a massive addiction, then cold turkey might be tougher for you and you may want to gradually wean yourself off – so if you drink 2 a day, drop down to one a day the first week, then second week one every other day. I have a feeling you’ll still get headaches, it’s just one of those things that comes with soda withdrawal.
It’s now been several years of zero soda for my husband – he’s adamant about absolutely NO soda and I admire him for that. For me, I’ve fallen off the wagon a few times, and believe me, as a health coach it’s tough to admit that I ever drank so much soda in the first place. BUT, I think it’s important for you all to realize that life is a journey and we all have struggles. It’s about progress not perfection. Even years later I sometimes crave it and give in. But right after a few sips, I realize it actually tastes like shit, gives me a headache and I feel guilty because I know it has zero nutrients and likely killing cells in my body. It’s no secret these days soda are bad for you. Whether its from the artificial colors, antifreeze, sugar, HFCS, artificial sugar like sucralose or splenda, other nasty chemicals OR the negative health risks like obesity, bone loss, diabetes and some studies are linking it to cancer – it’s just plain not good for you!
So how did I kick the soda habit for good?
The easiest way to kick the soda habit is to find a healthy alternative. Here are several alternatives that we personally use:
1. For us our #1 alternative is sparkling water.
I realized what I missed most about soda was the fizz. We started buying Pellegrini and La Croix, but that got expensive. So now we make our own fizzy water at home with purified water and our Soda Stream {we threw the free soda mixed we got with it away as soon as we opened the box}. We add fruit slices or a small amount of 100% fruit juice to the sparkling water. Our whole family loves this especially our son. One of my best friends add all natural lemonade to her sparkling water. I highly recommend a Soda Stream. We got ours from Kohls when it was on sale and we had a 30% off coupon so it ended up being about $70. Way cheaper than a soda habit or store bought sparkling water.
2. Our #2 alternative is tea.
We love tea {unsweetened of course, even if we do live in the south} and that’s usually what we order at restaurants, black tea, green tea, hot tea or cold tea – any kind of tea that is unsweetened. My personal favorite tea is the Shaklee 180 Pomegranate Tea and I drink that every single day at least once, sometimes twice. It’s a blend of green, white and red teas for a natural energy boost. It contains taurine, widely studied for enhancing alertness and energy. It has no artificial flavors, colors, sweeteners, or preservatives added, it gluten free and it tastes amazing hot or cold! I love, love, love this stuff and it give me natural energy for the day, and especially helps with the 3PM slump! This tea also comes in Green Matcha Tea too. If you like sweeter tea, then I’d suggest adding pure stevia to your tea rather than sugar or artificial sweeteners.
3. Aternative #3 is just plain iced cold water or fruit infused water.
We love to freeze slices of lemons and limes and use in water as flavor and ice cubes. We also like to add herbs like mint or basil with fruit like strawberries. Or make spa water, with cucumbers or fresh ginger slices. Such a great way to avoid soda, get your daily intake of water and adding fruit will add some antioxidants. {PS these are all also great in sparkling water}.
4. Lower on our alternative list would be natural sodas.
These would be sodas made with healthier ingredients such as natural fruit extracts and evaporated cane juice or stevia. We personally like Zevia {Black Cherry is my fav and goes well with vodka for a healthier adult cocktail}. Other options are Maine Root Soda, Steaz, Dry Soda Co, Veri Soda, and Izzi.
I truly hope this helps at least one person kick the soda habit for good!
Now it’s your turn!
Let me know in the comments below how you kicked the soda habit, your favorite alternative or if you want some support and are ready to kick the soda habit for good. I’m here to help!
Image Credit: / 123RF Stock Photo
