Quitting sodas for water: weight/water lost?

sillinis

Day 1 with experiencing quitting drinking pops (i would drink 2-3 x 355ml of pepsi or coke), I would love to hear about your stories:

Weight loss?
Water loss?
Weight gain? (ate more)
*for diabetics: did it help with sugar level?

I don't really want hear about "oh you need to exercise more to stop the cravings... I know and I do exercise

stephenszymanski

I exercise, run and lift as well.

I quit soda, and all sugary drinks period back about 5 weeks ago.

I've lost about 21 pounds. I'm sure that no longer having empty cals has played quite a large role in that.

simply_meggie

I weaned myself from soda a little over a month ago after reading about the side effects of brominated vegetable oil, which is located in one of my all time favorite drinks. I used to drink 2-3 cans of soda per day.

I switched to coffee and tea and avoid any drinks with high fructose corn syrup and NutraSweet(side effects, again). I have not had a single craving since cutting these from my diet and have lost 10 pounds in about a month. I do allow myself one "sweet" drink in the morning for the sake of caffeination, but it's usually coffee or tea. I should note that I do little in terms of working out intensively simply because of lack of time. I have never been good at dieting and have never lost weight on just a diet before(I have lost over 40lbs with no dieting and exclusively exercise, but I have gained all of that weight back over the years). The trick is drinking at least 8 cups of water each day. I drink between 10 and 12 cups, and since making sure I hit that mark, the weight has literally been vanishing. Best of luck on being healthier!

cwmp

I quit soda a year and 5 months ago and started eating mostly fruit veggies (of course I eat the other food groups also) changed my whole diet. I have lost almost 95 lbs. I changed it all at the same time so I cant say it was all from not drinking coke. but I can tell you my mom is a diabetic and she used to drink diet coke till about a month ago and she switched sparkling water and iced tea and she has lost 10 lbs so far. her counts are much better also. the fake sugar they use in diet sodas made her crave more sugary foods and made her more hungry and caused sugar spikes.

jimshine

I quit soda about 2 years ago and started drinking unsweetened iced tea. I lost a lot of water weight. How much? I am not sure but I could see the difference in my legs, hands and feet the most. They were no longer swollen looking and my tendons and veins were more prominent. I am thinking for me the worst part was the sodium made me retain fluid.

MissJJ74

I quit regular soda years ago and still have diet once in a while, but for the most part I stick to water or flavored water.

My mother who is also diabetic still drinks regular soda and her blood sugar is always high, usually above 350. I once tested her with my meter and it was so high the meter couldn't even read it (which means it was above 700). I have tried to remind her that 1 bottle of soda has enough sugar for 3 days worth of intake, but she's too stubborn to bother. (For diabetics we need to keep under around 25g of sugar a day and your average 20 oz bottle of soda taking servings into consideration is about 85g).

Since I stopped drinking soda way before I was diagnosed, I couldn't tell you about my experience, but I will say anything that can clean out the corrosion in a drain makes me hesitate to drink.

soldiergrl_101

Day 1 with experiencing quitting drinking pops (i would drink 2-3 x 355ml of pepsi or coke), I would love to hear about your stories:

Weight loss?
Water loss?
Weight gain? (ate more)
*for diabetics: did it help with sugar level?

I don't really want hear about "oh you need to exercise more to stop the cravings... I know and I do exercise

Soda is my biggest weakness, I swear its addicting. Id say the first week was the hardest once you get past that you barley miss it and a diet mountain dew will help curve the cravings. I noticed I dont crave junk as much or sugary treats when im off soda I feel overall cleaner. But I am not sure if the bloating difference is due to that or the increase in exercise. Good luck

faely

I stopped drinking regular soda years ago and switched to diet. I've had terrible heartburn and acid reflux for a long time, and always woke up with a nasty taste in my mouth and would hack and cough up grossness when I woke up; usually when I was brushing my teeth and spitting out the paste. I recently read some disturbing things about sweeteners and stopped drinking soda, switching first to tea, then to coffee, but mostly water. I have a diet soda MAYBE once a month. I no longer have the bad acid reflux I used to, and nothing in my throat. No more gagging! I feel tons better and when I do have a soda I can only have a little or it makes me feel icky again.

I firmly believe it wasn't the soda or sugar I was addicted to (I am a diabetic) but the carbonation itself. I LOVE fizzy drinks. But, it was the carbonation (among other things) that was causing my acid reflux and clogged up throat. I'm glad I quit drinking sodas. I usually drink about 7-12 glasses of water every day. This coming from someone that used to drink Dr. Pepper all day long. I used to say when I died they'd find Dr. Pepper in my veins. I worked at a fast food restaurant with free drinks for the managers. Because I switched to diet well before I became a diabetic I don't have any blood sugar measurements to compare, but my blood sugars are now at an almost non-diabetic state, due to cleaner eating/drinking.

77tes

I lost 15 # when I quit diet soda.

cla0321

I lost 26 in a month when I quit drinking all liquids except for water, started eating well, and incorporated a slight amount of exercise. I'm not sure if the soda was the main reason I lost so much so quickly, but I'm positive that it helped a lot!

chrisdavey

I lost 25kg/55lbs from switching from normal soda to diet, watching my overall calorie intake and exercising.

bnm_flutegirl

With drinking sodas, you are basically drinking the calories and I've stopped drinking them for 6 months now and I can tell a HUGE difference in how I feel and my performance. I will admit I had some crazy withdrawals the first few weeks of it, but now, sodas taste gross to me since I've gone so long without them! If you like orange/grape crush, you can visit your local dollar general market and they have the drink packets to add to your water!! Taste pretty darn good actually!!!

starsonlyhope

I quit all sodas at the beginning of the year when I started on here. Since then I think I had about a half a can of Coke one time at a work meeting (which I logged, of course). I can't give you a conclusive answer about whether or not it helped, but I certainly think it did. I was drinking a lot of calories in soda and cutting them out has definitely helped me keep my calories in check. I had some caffeine headaches the first few days, but after that I really haven't even thought about it much. The only time recently that it occurred to me, we were at a 50s-style diner and I thought "oh a root beer float would be really nice" and then realized I don't drink soda anymore, so I had a water and moved on. If I'm craving flavor I'll have unsweet iced tea, but that's it.

HealthWoke0ish

I stopped soda cold-turkey in 2010. I buy myself little treats from time to time (e.g., Monster tea+energy, mio-flavored drinks, etc.) so I can have a flavored drink and enjoy the sound of a popped aluminum can, but I'm firmly on water now.

Since then, I've lost about 140 lbs--almost 50 lbs of that on MFP--and I feel purty good. Good luck to you.

ChangingAmanda

I weaned myself off having 6-8 cans/day (both diet and regular) to none in about 3 weeks. Went about 2 weeks without any and had on at Thanksgiving. It wasn't all that great tasting and the carbonation was almost painful, lol. Since I also changed my diet and started working out, I can't say how much weight loss was just water. Since Oct. 20th when I started my new lifestyle, I've lost almost 47 lbs, over 47 inches, and I can almost shop in the regular sized section stores.

girlPaula

I never drank regular soda pops, only diet colas. Quit 6 months ago and have a diet drink only on special occasions, which is really nice! Instead of plain water we drink lemon/lime/citrus water which has a cleansing effect at the same time. Much better than just plain water. Oh, yes , I've lost about 77 lbs in 6 mths.

alvalaurie

I quit drinking sodas about 5 yrs ago. At first it gave me terrible headaches from caffeine withdrawl so I weaned myself off by switching to sweet tea. Then gradually I decreased the amount of sugar in my tea and eventually was able to drink it unsweatened. Now I just drink water unless we're at a restaurant then I'll splurge with unsweet tea. I dropped 15 pounds after quitting sodas and am not bloated anymore.

Good luck; you can do it!

agdyl

I never drank soda in the first place but one of my coworkers gave up soda and lost 30 pounds - doing nothing else different. That's one of those things that can make a HUGE difference! Stick with it!

RachyLovesRattys

I may seem extreme---but I used to drink about the equivalent of 4- 2 liters of Coca Cola every friggin day. :noway:

I NEEDED to stop. I drank water too, but it was completely nullified by all the caffeine and sugar I was throwing into my gut. Not to mention what I was eating...ickkk.

Gross fact: I would throw up every morning from caffeine withdrawal. So much so, that I was prescribed a cancer patient anti nausea medicine by my doctor for the constant attacks. And ALL I drank was COKE!

I stopped...I didn't want to do that to myself anymore. If I NEED a soda or something, I'll have a 'treat Slurpee' from 7-11. Definitely not "healthy" but they have a sugar-free sprite one that its DA BOMB (tastes like lemon ice!)

In the months I haven't had soda...I lost about 15-16 pounds. I would have lost more, had I not gotten sick twice and therefore not worked out for about 4 weeks out of my total mission. But, nonetheless...empty calories not being there saved my life in more ways than one!

wizbeth1218

Day 1 with experiencing quitting drinking pops (i would drink 2-3 x 355ml of pepsi or coke), I would love to hear about your stories:

Weight loss?
Water loss?
Weight gain? (ate more)
*for diabetics: did it help with sugar level?

I was a Dr. Pepper fanatic. I drank at least 120-oz per day. At least. (shudder)

It has been 8 months and 18 days since I had my last soda. And I have lost 111 pounds.

Obviously, switching to water as my only beverage is not solely responsible for my weight loss. I also eat right and exercise. But the water has made a huge, HUGE, ginormous difference. And I eat less because I drink so much water. I find that as long as I stay hydrated, I very rarely feel that "ohmygosh I'm so hungry I'm gonna DIE if I don't eat a huge double bacon double cheeseburger!" kind of desperate hunger.

Water has also helped me greatly reduce my portion sizes; I drink lots of water with my meals and that helps me feel fuller. If I am still hungry after one serving of food, I drink 16-24oz of water first, then decide if I still think I need more food.

As an added benefit, my skin is super soft, my hair is healthier, and I don't get puffy ankles at the end of the day anymore.

I'm a big fan of switching to water only. It has made ALL the difference for me.

linalovekitty

well for me, I always drank diet soda, so in the past when Ive given it up for water only, I really experienced no difference

but my husband quit drinking regular soda back in college and all caloric drinks and lost 10lbs in like a week

sillinis

Wow congratulation everyone! Since i havé strates this topic I must say i have not quitted for good sodas; but I now drink 1-3 can a WEEK instead of a DAY; i have lost some weight (5 pounds) last summer from switching to flavored water (with less sweeteners). Tho now i got the pounds back, i am going to quit sodas for 1 month to see what happens; if i have no bad symptoms i'm going to keep up with that

marlyme113

I used to drink 2 2litre bottles of diet pepsi a day. last July 13th, I quit cold turkey on a whim. Almost immediately, I lost 30 pounds rather easily. Although I had "withdrawal" headaches of a day or two, they were not nearly as bad as I anticipate. Now, I drink only water. The 30 pounds have not come back and I very rarely have cravings. Good for you for quitting!!

Boogage

Well done for quitting guys. I drink 2-3 cans of diet soda a day which is half what I used to drink but I really want to give up altogether. I'm just not brave enough yet. I suffer from bloating a lot especially in the evening. Do you think soda could be the cause then?

linkirving

Back in 2010 when I weighed 300lbs, I decided to make one change: I switched to diet soda. I was drinking 2 two-liters of Mountain Dew Code Red every single day. I lost 20 pounds in a matter a month. After that I started calorie counting and got down to 230. I quit calorie counting for a few years, before finding MFP in February. I stayed off of the regular soda, though.

I lost those first 20 lbs by simply switching to diet soda.

These days I have a zero calorie Monster now and then, maybe once a week. I've had maybe 4 diet sodas in the last month. Different things work for different people, and for me cutting something out completely isn't sustainable. But I can't believe I used to drink so much of the stuff. Crazy.

thatismesammyg

My husband lost 12 lbs in a week giving up soda. He must have been retaining a ton of water.

biddy249

I gave up soda 17 years ago and only drank tea and water. I have since gave up tea and strictly drink water. You will loose weight when giving up soda plus you will feel better. Do some research into soda and its impact on the body and you will gain some motivation to chuck it. That crap offers no value whatsoever IMO.

sushidulces

I was 225 lbs and I decided the first step was to stop chugging sodas. That was about 2 1/2 years ago. I did minimal walking around (a college campus as a student) and I lost 10 lbs relatively easily. I traded the sodas for herbal teas (no sugar) and water. I don't drink them at all any more and I don't crave them at all. I drink water with lemon at restaurants and I can usually leave spending less than $10 because I don't have to pay for a drink :happy:


I have since started vigorously exercising/watching my diet, and lost more. But the first 10 just from no more sodas helped jumpstart the process.

Elainaf

I gave up diet pepsi for two months and drank only water and lost nothing.

lax2luv

I was a lifetime soda addict, most recently drinking up to 72 ounces of Coke and Dr. Pepper a day. I "weaned" myself to 24 ounces a day last month and have had only water (and an occasional sparkling water) this month. My weight loss has been minimal so far. Maybe it takes more time? I'm doing IIFYM and StrongLifts.

cochrantimothy

I quit soda about 5 days ago and the past 3 where miserable, such bad withdrawls to the point of puking..... on the plus side my gastrointestinal problems have gone away, i was drinking atleast 2 2liters a day, weight wise im not sure because i havent really got a weighin going, thinking i was 302 last weekend when i hit the scale so shooting for under 300