Having trouble quitting Regular Soda

As you can see from my moniker, I have a similar problem.

The fact is that the only person who can give it up is you. The caffeine headaches will never go if you don't persevere for more than a week.

Someone here told me that generally it takes 21 days to work a routine. Whether for diet or exercise. Give yourself 21 days and if you cannot do that right away then tell yourself ok so you can have cola on the weekend IF you are good all week. That's what I am doing and I was worried that I would binge and just drink loads but I am not doing that at all! I think because I know I just want it and don't NEED it now.

Hi Iceman. I gave up all soda cold turkey because my doctor told me I was pre diabetic. I had been a Pepsi junkie for most of my life. I don't have any extra ordinary willpower other than I am scared of becoming diabetic! Now I drink black coffee, green tea, and lots of water. I can tell you that the cravings for sweets does diminish with time-at least it did for me. good luck to you!

Hi Iceman. I gave up all soda cold turkey because my doctor told me I was pre diabetic. I had been a Pepsi junkie for most of my life. I don't have any extra ordinary willpower other than I am scared of becoming diabetic! Now I drink black coffee, green tea, and lots of water. I can tell you that the cravings for sweets does diminish with time-at least it did for me. good luck to you!

As much as people poo poo Dr Oz I have seen exactly 2 episodes in full - and one of them was about cutting down on sugar. One of the main culprits were beverages - I love Coke Zero as it is a once-a-day-treat that has no calories but I know it is not a healthy choice over all, so feel your pain. I am also a HUGE tea drinker so know something about cravings.

PP are talking some sense. Quitting anything is hard. There are ways of doing it - like cutting it back over time, or cold turkey, or substituting - which can all work depending on what works for your personality. I find that cold turkey on food items is hard because it is all a ritual - but one thing about it is that if I don't have it in the house it gets to be a nonsense to think about going out and getting it. Maybe another route to approach it is by seeing if your family doctor can refer you to a nutritionist who could give you advise about cutting it out in a way that makes sense for you. I would say the caffeine thing can be pretty significant given the amount it sounds like you are drinking - maybe some coffee of tea with caffeine but no sugar and low fat milk would help you with the worst of that.

Best of luck - in the end it will be worth it - great for you smile and great for your health!

Here are many ideas for other things you can drink: http://www.myfitnesspal.com/blog/Robin_Bin/view/water-265761

It's generally easier to get rid of one habit when you replace it with another. Because of the caffeine withdrawal and because for me it's usually easier to change a bit at a time (your mileage may vary), I'd suggest gradually replacing the soda you drink with something else. So for example, once or twice a day, replace a soda with flavored, carbonated water. Drink tea or coffee instead of another glass. Try other drinks... find the ones you like and drink more of them. Have the drinks you want to switch to more easily available. Over time drink more of the alternatives, and you may not even have to try to eliminate the regular soda because you won't be drinking it anymore.

Good luck!

P.S. Diet sodas weren't really an option for me. Some of the artificial sweeteners have such an awful aftertaste for me that I'd end up eating and drinking more of other stuff to get rid of the taste, and others give me headaches, migraines and other icky symptoms. So, I prefer the carbonated water, or when I have room for the calories, fruit juice, but that's just what works for me.

Hi, I don't know if this will help but this is how I did it, 2 years ago I was ADDICTED to coke, I was pounding down a 1.25L bottle a day by myself, and sometimes I could start on another bottle, I'd tried giving up a few times but the caffeine headaches always had me crawling back to the delicious red label. Finally I had enough, I bought cans, and limited myself, after a couple of weeks I completely stopped coke, I would have a coffee in the morning and then Powerade throughout the day until I completely went to water, it was a really easy transition doing it like that Hope my story helps you a bit, even if it just gives you ideas.

I drank a ton of Coke. I was able to go cold turkey and stop soda. IStopped bying it and switched to water. One thing I d drink is unsweetened Ice tea. Its very good I i now drink tea instead.

make yourself look in a mirror as you drink it and ask yourself if it is worth it

I am working on this now...slowly but surely. I try to stick to one coke a day and some weeks I try to have it every other day. Some weeks are better than others. But I know it is getting better and I am working towards a final goal. My advice is to try and wean yourself off if going cold turkey would be too difficult. Best of luck to you in your journey! I am finding I can still have some coke and still lose weight...but being healthy is my ultimate goal so I know it cannot stick around forever!

Since quitting cold turkey isn't working and diet sodas are not an option (and not a healthy choice either), begin weaning yourself off. Treat it like a medical issue.

How much soda do you drink in a day? If it's normally 4 cans or glasses (for example), allow yourself 4 for a day for a week. Next week, you are allowed 3 a day and so on. When you get to the end, you can taper even more. Your body will slowly adjust. If moving down a level is too hard, stay on the current one for a while longer.

I drank a ton of Coke. I was able to go cold turkey and stop soda. IStopped bying it and switched to water. One thing I d drink is unsweetened Ice tea. Its very good I i now drink tea instead.

^^^^^^ This is it.
Cold turkey is the best. I was having at least 1 or 2 cokes a day. I made up my mind to stop and I haven't had a coke since July 20th. I have had a couple of unsweetened teas but I really just drink water. Use a pain reliever to help with the withdrawal headaches, they will only last for a week or two. And I always try to "drown" my headaches with lots of water. Good luck! This will make a huge difference in your health and how you feel.

still feel uneasy over the whole aspartame thing....carbonated water and juice is nice

Like a lot of people are saying, there isn't really a quick fix for any addiction. When I quit soda and energy drinks I did it in two ways: First I switched my caffeine cravings to green tea and then slowly weaned my way off of that using a couple of different herbal teas--not that green tea is bad, but I simply didn't want to switch one dependency for another. The greater challenge for me was that I like the fizz from soda. So I have switched to a combination of Kombucha and San Pelligrino sparkling water. I will admit that Kombucha can be a bit of an acquired taste, but it is full of very healthy probiotics and whatnot.

I did the switch to diet sodas for a while, but I was more than a little leery of the added chemicals.

I drink diet pop all the time but I don't think that is healthy for me either, probably better then the real stuff but still probably not healthy, aspartame is not the best thing in the world.

I was drinking Coke since I was 8 yrs old. It became my "water". I've had 4 kidney stones because of that. Food would taste horrible without it. If I didn't have a coke by noon A headache would trigger...It is the nectar of the gods. I gave it up cold turkey. No diet coke no nothing, my meals would taste like crap at first but my belly started getting flatter and fast. I drink coffee in the morning to avoid that caffeine withdrawal. Coke does not control me, I control me. Had to repeat that to myself alot. Good luck!