Help! Need some good tips for kicking the soda habit

I gave up daily soda years ago. Now on occasion I'll have one (nothing goes better with pizza than a root beer). But if and when I do have one, I opt for a soda that has no high fructose corn syrup like Sprecher. Read labels. The stuff in soda is terrible. If will power alone won't get you there, think long and hard about what you are consuming. There is nothing natural about soda (diet is worse). Water, tea, coffee, milk - great alternatives. Don't like plain water? Spruce it up with lemon/lime/cucumber. You can do it!!!!

Maybe allow yourself one soda a week and really focus on the enjoyment you get from drinking it?

After some time passes, you may decide that you don't really need or miss them anymore and cut them out completely, or you could continue savoring and enjoying them as a once-a-week treat.

I am working on kicking my Diet Coke habit. Once upon a time I would drink about 6 a day, I gradually cut to 4, then three a day. Just a couple of days ago I decided to go cold turkey. It's been 72 hours since my last Diet Coke. I've been drinking lots of water and lots of iced tea, no sweetener. I thought I would go nuts, but I've really been okay and don't feel so bloated.

what do you like about diet soda? you need to figure that out, and figure out how you can get your "fix" but in a healthier way.

i loved the carbonation. so i switched to lacroix. after a couple months, i just flavored my water, couple months later, i only drink water.

if you love the taste, then switch to diet, and then go cold turkey during a time in your life when you feel strong, have emotional support (we can help with that!) and are committed to quitting.

i have a soda stream and i can made soda from squash. there are some lovely sugar free or no added sugar squash drinks, i have cherries & berries with soda water and its just delish...

also i know diet sodas taste off at first but if you keep with it you get used to them and in the end find you will prefer them. they dont all taste the same, and some are not as good for you as others. i like diet irn bru, and coke zero (which i used to hate, but my taste has become less sweet since dieting)

you need to get rid of full fattening soda, if you cant switch to diet just ditch them for natural juices, find some really lovely ones and go over to them. all that sugar is the DEVIL!

Just quit. It's called willpower, either you want to or you don't, there's no trick.

No nonsense approach, I agree.

I disagree. I loved (really I still do!) Coke and I made myself really evaulate what I liked about it. I found that I love the fizz the most and so swapped out Coke for seltzer with lime or a splash of juice. Same thing worked for me for beer. I would say find a sub for what it is you really love about pop and you will be most successful.

I too am a hopeless soda addict. But I have been able to quit (once for a two years) -- maintaining that quit is something else though.

Anyways, two quitting strategies I've had work for me : (1) switch to gingerale (for about 2 weeks). then move over to diet gingerale (for one week). then stop soda completely, and go with iced water.
The other method (2) switch to iced tea / hot tea (this really helped me avoid the caffeine withdrawal) -- then gradually move over to water. For me, I've found the more ice the better. [ If you can't stomach a substitute, then decrease your volume -- it is always easier to quit a 12oz a-day habit than it is to quit a 2-liter a day habit.]

Good luck!

Sparkling mineral water with a little juice, or a slice of a citrus fruit or a few berries or mint leaves. Add lots of ice cubes and have it in a nice glass to make it a bit of an event.

I too had a bad soda habit. I guestimate (and probably low at that) 4-6 cans of soda a day. I can only tell you what worked for me. The first week I only drank it if I was still craving it after more than an hour and drinking at least 8oz of water. I probably had about 6 sodas in the first week and then didn't crave it again. On Thanksgiving day, I decided to have the last Dr. Pepper in my fridge with my pizza. I found it wasn't near as tasty as before and the carbonation felt harsh. I did have a Root Beer and about a 1/4 a can of Dt. Sierra Mist (yuck) over that weekend. Since, I haven't craved it at all.

I will say, this morning was tough, I really, really, really wanted something with caffeine. Had my water, went about with work, and never went and got one.

if you Google something along the lines "water infusion recipes" you'll find sites with recipes to add stuff (fruits, cucumbers, etc) to water that you may find replaces the need for a soda flavor.

Good luck!

seltzer water and juice. Better for you than diet soda, in my opinion.

Wow I'm the exact same as you! I've cut down considerably but I still NEED a can at least per day.. I actually get grumpy if I don't have one.
I'll try some of these suggestions though too

You get grumpy if you don't have it because you are addicted to it. To break that you just have to stop drinking it and after a couple of days you don't need it any more.

I was a Diet Mountain Dew ADDICT for years. I started alternating & drinking carbonated water, a Kroger brand lemon-lime actually. It was a decent replacement. I haven't had soda in well over a year & now drink a variety of flavored waters. My favorite is actually the Walmart brand raspberry apple, but there are a lot of good ones out there including SoBe & Sparkling Ice. It can be done. Good luck!

If you care about your health you'll stop drinking soda. IT'S POISON! Good luck and just do it pleeeeze.

I've quit almost everything but that... I take diet now and once a day or one every two days but ...I still do.
Stopping everything you like won't help you out in a long run.

Try to slowly reduce the quantity and take diet... if you can't stop.

It's not the best I know but.... If you train,workout,eat everything else well........a treat's fine sometime.

Same here, soda is my vice. When I started tracking calories it helped me kick it pretty quickly. Seeing that I was drinking more than my day's worth of allowed calories alone was a rude awakening. I slowly weaned myself off of it, switching over to sweet tea and then cutting out the sugar to drink unsweet tea. Eventually I made it to all water, all day long. If I want something with taste, I'll grab an unsweet tea again. The diet vs regular was a no-brainer for me, because diet gives me migraines (pun intended). I have been soda free for about 6 months now, and then last week I got a wild idea that I needed one in the afternoon. Worst bloating and gas (TMI) followed soon after. That was enough to convince me not to drink one ever again.