Regular Soda Addiction

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jragan88
jragan88 Posts: 3 Member
in Challenges
Hello! I am on MFP after gaining 80+ pounds between my two beautiful children. My husband doesn't understand my addiction to coke and pepsi. :smiley: I can't stand diet and have tried them all and I drink a ton of water. I would rather drink a pop, than eat a cookie. Does anyone else struggle with this? What do you do to help? I literally think about drinking one ALL DAY!

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  • tcaley4
    tcaley4 Posts: 416 Member
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    What I did was started drinking diet sodas. Some are better than others, but I still didn't like them. So I switched to sweet tea for awhile until I lost the craving for a soda, then switched to regular iced tea. I don't care for hot teas, my Mom gave me hot tea when I was sick as a kid, now I don't drink it at all.

    If you can find them, the diet "10" drinks are pretty good. Only 10 calories to a can. Dr. Pepper 10, A&W Root Beer 10 are my favorites. There are others, but I can't think of them right now.

    Regular iced tea or water for me now 90% of the time. I will still have a soda once in a while, but not very often.
  • pensfan1
    pensfan1 Posts: 45 Member
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    Embarrassed to admit it, but I'm a MAJOR Pepsi/Coke addict. The last million times that I've tried to quit, I'll make it about 5 or 6 months and then fall off the wagon. I crazy it all day.

    The solution that's working for me now is to have half a can a day. I still buy the 12 oz. cans because I feel good about myself when I have the control to dump half of the can down the drain. I strategically plan when I'm going to drink it. Sometimes, I have it for breakfast. Other times I make it until dinner. If I start to get a caffeine headache, I'll drink it then. This is working so far.

    Another goal I'm trying to work on is drinking a bottle of water in the morning before I let myself have my Pepsi. I try to get 3-4 bottles of water down each day. I hate drinking water, so it's a good starting point for me.

    And even though I waste 75 calories a day on a half can, it's better than me drinking as much as I used to.
  • amylg1972
    amylg1972 Posts: 2 Member
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    I feel your pain. I have to ween myself off of them. I usually start by limiting myself to one a day, then one a week, and so on. Then I switch to coke zero, one a day or one a week whatever I need at that time. Eventually I can get off sodas completely. Unfortunately, I tend to fall back into bad habits when my weight isn't a priority and I have to start all over. Sorry...
  • dnaphil
    dnaphil Posts: 2 Member
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    I was the same way. At my height I was drinking a 2L with my dinner. I was a strict Coke man, and never drank diet. I finally was able to make the switch to Coke Zero. It happened at about the same time I switched from sugar in my coffee to Splenda. I have never liked Diet Coke; still dont.

    At first I drank the Vanilla or Cherry Coke Zero, because it masked some taste, but today I can drink normal Coke Zero as well.

    Once in a while I will try a regular coke, but its so thick and sweet, that I never finish it.

    Guess what I am saying, is try the Zero over the Diet.
    Don't give up, your taste can change. When you make the change you can enjoy your Zero without any guilt.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    I drink a soda every once in a awhile. Just like any other treat, you can always try fitting it into your day. I do that with all sorts of things.

    You have to figure out for yourself whether you can drink it in moderation and fit it into your calories, or whether you need to cut it out entirely to avoid temptation.

    I have found flavored hot tea or flavored sparkling water can sometimes work when I want something other than a regular soda. But sometimes I just need some sugar and caffeine so I log it and move on. I don't like most diet sodas, but I like Diet Dr. Pepper :)

    Also, just a heads up, using the word "addiction" in regards to your craving for soda won't go over well here. You crave soda, and give in rather than find another way to deal with it. Misuse of that word has led to a number of threads crashing and burning!

    You are in control, you are not powerless! If it is important to you to stop drinking it, you will find a way to stop. If you are just concerned about the calories, log accurately and consistently and see if you can make a soda fit when you want one. Good luck!
  • teephil
    teephil Posts: 135 Member
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    I know you said you hate diet, but you really should give it another shot. If you drink a lot of soda, the calorie savings can be tremendous. Coke Zero is what helped ween me off, it doesn't have quite so much of a diet taste to it.

    I can't even drink regular Coke anymore, it doesn't taste as sweet and knowing how many calories are in it doesn't make it enjoyable at all.
  • nossmf
    nossmf Posts: 8,990 Member
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    At one point I was drinking a 2L per day. I tried to cut down any number of times, learning along the way I hated diet soda of all kinds.

    A couple years ago for Lent, I devoted myself to going cold-Turkey on sodas. I tried to determine what it was about sodas which I craved so much, narrowing my answers down to two culprits: drinking something cold and sweet, as well as headaches when I go too long without Pepsi.

    For those several weeks, I experimented with various Crystal Light and other flavored waters (personal favorite: Great Value flavored packs available at Wal-Mart), along with caffeine pills to stave off the caffeine-withdrawal headaches. With the additional motivation of Lent helping keep me on-point, by the end of Lent I no longer craved sodas.

    I've since allowed them back into my life, 1-2 12-oz cans per week. Remarkable thing is they taste far better now when drunk only occasionally than they ever did when drunk constantly.
  • NerineLuna
    NerineLuna Posts: 76 Member
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    A great tip I found elsewhere if you don't like the sudden shift is try switching slowly by mixing. So for example instead of a glass of coke, go for half coke mixed with half diet, or any other kind of mix. Then slowly work your way up to 100% diet.
  • zcb94
    zcb94 Posts: 3,679 Member
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    @tcaley4, I love the 10s too!:p I enjoy Dr. Pepper 10 as well as 7up, Sunkist and Canada Dry. The Root beer isn't great unless mixed with a little bit of whole milk or maybe cream, calories permitting. That makes it taste exactly like a gourmet float!
  • darkchocthunda
    darkchocthunda Posts: 20 Member
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    As with any addiction, quitting cold turkey is the worst idea. Track how many cans you drink in a day and drink one less every two weeks.
  • William4MVP
    William4MVP Posts: 166 Member
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    jragan88 wrote: »
    Hello! I am on MFP after gaining 80+ pounds between my two beautiful children. My husband doesn't understand my addiction to coke and pepsi. :smiley:I can't stand diet and have tried them all and I drink a ton of water. I would rather drink a pop, than eat a cookie. Does anyone else struggle with this? What do you do to help? I literally think about drinking one ALL DAY!

    really? I hope you realize diet coca cola and regular coca cola taste the same...
  • L_Master
    L_Master Posts: 354 Member
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    darkchocthunda wrote: »
    As with any addiction, quitting cold turkey is the worst idea. Track how many cans you drink in a day and drink one less every two weeks.

    I really disagree with such a blanket statement, quitting cold turkey always works by far the best for me. Yea, the first couple weeks usually SUCK, but after that 98% of the addiction fades pretty hard. 3.5 weeks in to trying to stay off soda for the front end of 2016 and not really missing them at all anymore.
  • jragan88
    jragan88 Posts: 3 Member
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    Thank you all! There are some great tips here!

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