Gave up pop

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schaapj2
schaapj2 Posts: 320 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I gave up all pop (soda for you odd balls) on 1/19/2013. Everyone raves about feeling better after giving it up and being able to lose weight easier (I am having a very difficult time a) staying consistent and b) its generally not happening despite my best efforts). My caffeine withdrawl headaches are gone, but overall I feel utterly exhausted and generally worse than when I was drinking pop.

When have people started to feel better after ridding themselves of this addiction? For the record, I was drinking probably 80 oz. of diet coke/coke zero a day. So when does it get better? HELP!
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  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
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    I gave up all pop (soda for you odd balls)

    you mean coke, right? ;-)

    I think what you are going through has nothing to do with your coke habit. If you were drinking diet coke and coke zero, you weren't getting a sugar spike. Coke zero doesn't even have caffeine, so the only caffeine would be from the diet coke, unless you were drinking caffeine free.

    How long have you been changing your eating habits versus dropping "pop"? Have you made any other changes? Like cutting carbs?
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
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    looking at your diary, it could be because you are on a 1300 calorie a day diet and you don't even eat all of that.
  • Dougf90
    Dougf90 Posts: 95 Member
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    (I am having a very difficult time a) staying consistent and b) its generally not happening despite my best efforts). My caffeine withdrawl headaches are gone, but overall I feel utterly exhausted and generally worse than when I was drinking pop.

    Go back to drinking it then! :wink:

    You can lose weight drinking all the diet soda you want.
  • Tuala42
    Tuala42 Posts: 274 Member
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    Around here at least (midwest) all the coke zero has caffeine.

    Sorry, no advice---I'd be curious to hear if you start feeling better though! The ONLY food that I think of as comfort food is coke zero. Tough to give up the only comfort food I have but I'm trying to limit myself to weekends at least for now.
  • schaapj2
    schaapj2 Posts: 320 Member
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    Well I have to think putting fake chemicals in your body and caffeine can't be that great of an idea. I gave up caffeine more because I'm having some fairly negative side effects related to breast pain (sorry boys TMI). I figured it was just better to cut it out altogether because of this. And I was drinking mostly diet coke.
  • schaapj2
    schaapj2 Posts: 320 Member
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    Around here at least (midwest) all the coke zero has caffeine.

    Sorry, no advice---I'd be curious to hear if you start feeling better though! The ONLY food that I think of as comfort food is coke zero. Tough to give up the only comfort food I have but I'm trying to limit myself to weekends at least for now.

    Yea, I was going to say...last I checked coke zero was still caffeinated.
  • Chief_Rocka
    Chief_Rocka Posts: 4,710 Member
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    Everyone raves about feeling better after giving it up and being able to lose weight easier

    Most people are full of it
  • TNR32
    TNR32 Posts: 110 Member
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    I went off caffeine once for 3 mo. and was feeling better after a month. It might take longer or shorter for you. You are still going through caffeine withdrawal it might take a full 3 months before you feel better.
  • cz52
    cz52 Posts: 7
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    im not a nutrientionist or nothing but ............if you do find some kind of link to diet coke and weight....lemme know.
    until now i was 118 and thats under weight drinking cases a day of only diet coke. i only weight 150 now bc i had a child.
    js:smile::wink:
  • cbernhard11
    cbernhard11 Posts: 3
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    It seems like giving up caffeine after having it every day tends to take a while for people to get back to normal. Maybe quit slower if you are set on no caffeine? Substitute coffee or tea instead if your worried about the contents of the coke?
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    I gave up pop awhile back (was a 3-6 12oz mt dew per day guy)...no real reason other than I don't like diet and I could no longer fit it into my macros on a regular basis without missing out on other essential vitamins and minerals from nutrient dense foods. Do I feel better? Hell yeah...but I don't think it has anything to do with giving up the pop. I think my feeling better has more to do with eating a more balanced diet and better overall nutrition most of the time and losing weight at a reasonable caloric deficit plus getting in some good exercise.

    I started with baby steps...a reasonable caloric deficit (maybe yours is too big a deficit)...then I started looking at all of the foods I was eating and knew I could do better for myself...once I established a better nutritional foundation I started looking at my macros and tweaking those to reach my desired goals...baby steps and eventually you will find the right combinations.
  • juliec33
    juliec33 Posts: 238 Member
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    I gave up diet coke (soda, pop, whatever you want to call it :smile: ) three years ago, cold turkey. I was probably drinking well over 2 L of diet coke a day. I didn't give up caffeine, I still drink lots of unsweetened iced tea and a few energy drinks here and there. I've had two diet cokes since I gave them up.....both times I gotten a horrible headache (I don't have migraines but I bet these were close). IMHO I reallly think that all of the chemicals in the diet coke (especially the caramel coloring) are what affect me. It took me almost a year before I quit craving diet coke. Don't give into the cravings and you will eventually feel better. I know that people say that you can drink it but there isn't anything natural in it. All of those chemicals can't be good for a person..............
  • lvtruu1
    lvtruu1 Posts: 211 Member
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    I gave up diet coke (soda, pop, whatever you want to call it :smile: ) three years ago, cold turkey. I was probably drinking well over 2 L of diet coke a day. I didn't give up caffeine, I still drink lots of unsweetened iced tea and a few energy drinks here and there. I've had two diet cokes since I gave them up.....both times I gotten a horrible headache (I don't have migraines but I bet these were close). IMHO I reallly think that all of the chemicals in the diet coke (especially the caramel coloring) are what affect me. It took me almost a year before I quit craving diet coke. Don't give into the cravings and you will eventually feel better. I know that people say that you can drink it but there isn't anything natural in it. All of those chemicals can't be good for a person..............

    Read this as I finished off my 8th or so Coke Zero Cherry....
  • quirkytizzy
    quirkytizzy Posts: 4,052 Member
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    It took me about two and a half months to wean myself completely off sugar drinks. (Two weeks at two cans of soda a day, two weeks at one can a day, a month with sugary lemonades and teas, and then finally switched to water.) It got pretty easy about a couple of weeks ago for me.

    I had to switch out the drinks for an equally sugary drink at first until I grew to like water. And now I not only love it, but prefer it above all other drinks. (Outside of my morning coffee. NOTHING drags me away from that!)

    It was really hard, but it was worth it. You can do this!!!
  • GauchoMark
    GauchoMark Posts: 1,804 Member
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    Around here at least (midwest) all the coke zero has caffeine.

    Sorry, no advice---I'd be curious to hear if you start feeling better though! The ONLY food that I think of as comfort food is coke zero. Tough to give up the only comfort food I have but I'm trying to limit myself to weekends at least for now.

    huh... I stand corrected. I looked it up and it does have 45 mg caffeine. I was thinking that when it first came out they marketed it as coke "zero" because it had zero caffeine and calories.

    I was... wrong! (don't get used to me admitting that tho)
  • bluskies01
    bluskies01 Posts: 72 Member
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    I too gave up soda about 2 weeks ago (the 12th). The first week or so I was very sluggish and groggy, I had the withdrawal headaches and lack of focus. I had to cut it out for health reasons, so I can't use any substitution. My only advice is just to pump the water. I know they say that caffeine can make you more dehydrated, but maybe it somehow tricks your brain bc I find now that I've given up Coke if I don't drink at least 5 bottles of water a day, my lips are dry and my throat feels parched. Good luck to you on your journey!
  • aakokopelli7
    aakokopelli7 Posts: 196 Member
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    I gave up Soda, and haven't had any problems. I only have one cup of coffee a day. When I first started here I had my thing set to 1200. After four days I was sick as a dog, headaches, nausea..... one I realized that I was hungry it went away. After that I changed it to 1690...much better and loosing. I say no soda, not even diet but that's just me To each there own in the soda department.
  • lightdiva1
    lightdiva1 Posts: 935 Member
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    I gave up pop (soda) January 6th. II made sure to find foods that helped ease the sugar addiction, like fresh fruits like strawberries. I drink a blend of ice cubes, orange juice, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries and half a banana. I blend it in the blender and sip on it. It completely kicked the sugar headaches and fits into my caloric intake nicely.
  • Petrapoo45
    Petrapoo45 Posts: 271 Member
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    I had the same problem with soda. Now I have one cup of coffee and Sparkling flavored water. My favorite is from Market Pantry and you find it down the water aisle in Target its called "sparkling Chill" and it has 4 or 5 different flavors. This has seriously saved my butt on the whole no soda thing!!
  • Zumaria1
    Zumaria1 Posts: 225 Member
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    Are you drinking enough water? What liquids do you drink to replace the soda? Also, are you eating enough? That might cause the headaches too.

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