Giving up diet soda. So hard!
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It took me well over a year to get off the diet pop completely. I was off, then on, then off...over and over. I'd even refuse to buy pop at Publix and then run to the Circle K for a 20oz. It was crazy. Eventually I got sick of having to re-quit all the time and decided to just not have another sip, period.
I feel so much better when I'm off that stuff!! Don't give up, even if you fail. Keep trying. It's worth it in the end!
I just drink ice water. If I am making something with lemon or lime and have extra, I'll throw some in my water, but usually it's just ice water.
Some people here get very upset when other people make changes to their diet. They'll demand to know why you're doing it. Anything short of a virtual doctor's note (and sometimes not even that) will not meet their criteria for whether or not it's okay for you to change your diet, so then they'll feel justified in insulting and mocking you. They do it to different people every day. Don't take it personally. It's not you.
Thank you Kalikel. I was feeling pretty discouraged. Thanks to all who gave ideas and encouragement.0 -
herrspoons wrote: »But... why?
+1-1 -
Sometimes I'll flavor my water with lemonade (1/8th lemonade, just enough to give it some flavor); minimal calories.0
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I was a 3 Mt. Dew a day person just to try and get enough energy to make it through the day. Of course that is a self-defeating thing.
Giving up soda, etc. is tough for some people. A bit of flavor that you like is in there as well as just the act of doing it is a bit of variety. Going to a bunch of water is an option but most people fail at that even though it is a good choice. Find something to replace it. Lemon in the water and things like it add variety and flavor.
I used AdvoCare's Spark. Many flavors, B vitamins, etc. and some caffeine. I can get you a sample if you would like to try it. This isn't an advertisement or anything so don't take it that way but it's what I used to get off my Mt. Dew, and up my daily energy. Give me a notice and I'll mail some off.
A few times a year I will still have a Mt. Dew. Probably three times or so. A nice cold one. I still enjoy it but I don't drink it like I used to. I'd say I have in one year what I'd have in one or two days in the past. As a result it has been much easier to control my weight (and health of course) and my overall energy level is significantly higher.
Mike-2 -
My suggestion for a good alternative: flavored, non-sweetened sparkling water. I'm a big fan of Perrier Lime or Pink Grapefruit, or almost any of the LaCroix seltzer waters. They taste a bit bitter at first if you are used to sweetened sodas, but they totally fill the "fizzy craving" for me.
It's a hard habit to break, but totally worth it. I had been under treatment for some GI issues last year, and none of my docs told me it could be artificial sweeteners as a cause. I gave up all of them on a whim, and started feeling better within 24 hours. I now feel MISERABLE if I try to drink anything with them (accidentally grabbing the Splenda-sweetened tea at my parents' house at Christmas made me feel gross enough I had to leave early
). 0 -
If you want to give it up, go for it. You can substitute with other drinks like water or unsweetened tea. There are also diet drinks like ICE (flavored sparkling water) that I like, but those also contain artificial sweeteners, which I assume is what you mean when you say "chemicals."
Personally, drinking diet soda doesn't affect my weight loss at all. In fact, I am better at keeping to my calorie limit when I drink it instead of coffee, in which I have to put sweetener and milk or creamer to enjoy. I mainly drink it for the caffeine fix.0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life.
I think if she wants to give it up she should. Some people probably feel better not drinking it, especially if they seem to drink it to the exclusion of everything else. I give up coffee from time to time since I can get into a pattern of going overboard with it (right now I'm trying not to drink coffee or caffeinated tea after noon and it's driving me a bit crazy, since I was overdoing it).
However, sometimes people think they ought to give up something instead of really wanting to, and diet soda is one of those things where you hear that it's poison or making you fat or silly things that are not true. If people are giving it up for those reasons, and not more factual ones, they might want to know that it's not necessary--for example, that lots of people are able to drink it and lose or even find it helpful.
I don't agree with the frequent advice that you should change your diet as little as possible when starting a weight loss plan, since for me it's motivating to see myself doing something positive, and some of the bigger changes go along with that, so I can see that side.
But, on the other hand, if I had added on to my dietary changes when I started a requirement that I also drop coffee--which happens to be something I can use in place of how I used to use food, as a break, a relaxing taste treat, whatever--I would have made this harder for myself and deprived myself of something I enjoy, for no reason. I actually made the call when I started that I wasn't going to worry about coffee until I was really comfortable with my eating. (And now that I'm close to goal I'm messing with it and might drop it for a while.)
Similarly, I like to give up foods as part of my Lent practices, usually meat plus sweets. This time I did not (I started losing weight last January, so was still somewhat in the early stages), in part because I don't want my practices to relate to weight loss efforts, but more because I thought adding things would make it more difficult than it needed to be when I mostly wanted my diet to feel natural and enjoyable. This year I might well go back to my usual.
So I do think that sometimes newbies to MFP seem to be doing too much at once and adding difficulties that are not necessary (if you really miss diet coke and end up having more trouble not overeating cookies, that's not helpful). However, that's going to depend on the person, so I think it's both useful to present the "you don't have to" ideas to OP and challenge things like "aspartame will KILL you TOMORROW and make you FAT" (not said by OP, of course) and also to respect her decision and answer her question.
When I gave up diet soda I lost a lot of weight, whereas I couldn't before. It did not lead to me eating more cookies. It might have actually lead to me craving less cookies. I don't know. I was also counting calories, so that was probably what did it, but I had a hard time losing prior to this and this time the pounds just flew off and i was able to keep it off for almost 2 years now. I don't know that the giving up soda had anything to do with it, but it might have. Also, if you're drinking soda, it's pretty much guaranteed that you will be drinking less water. Isn't water good for you? myfitnesspal recommends 8 glasses a day. I know that's an unnecessarily high amount, but if I'm drinking soda instead, it's likely that amount will be reduced to zero.
I suppose it hasn't been proven definitively that the chemicals in soda are bad, but that doesn't mean they aren't.0 -
Now we are comparing drinking diet soda to being an alcoholic?? *SMH*Lynette4321 wrote: »Thank you Aviva. I was a bit surprised to find myself on the defensive, lol. Thanks Victoria. I'm doing two weeks giving it up (let's call it a lent type thing). I might have it in moderation later but I feel like an alcoholic...not altogether sure I can drink in moderation. I have to keep it in the house because my husband refuses to give it up.![:\](https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/resources/emoji/confused.png ":\")
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Lynette4321 wrote: »Thank you Aviva. I was a bit surprised to find myself on the defensive, lol. Thanks Victoria. I'm doing two weeks giving it up (let's call it a lent type thing). I might have it in moderation later but I feel like an alcoholic...not altogether sure I can drink in moderation. I have to keep it in the house because my husband refuses to give it up.
There's no need for you to feel you need to defend yourself. No one was personally attacking you. They were just trying to figure out your motives. A lot of the time people start a diet and think "I have to give up everything I love and eat rabbit food in order to lose weight!" And that's simply not true. You can still enjoy the things you love as long as you make them fit. That is why people are telling you not to give it up.
It's all up to you in the end. If you want to give it up, go for it. But understand that diet soda will not hinder your weight loss and contains no "chemicals" that will hurt you (unless you have a medical condition).
Artificial sweeteners don't agree with me so I gave up soda because I don't like to drink my calories. I will still have one every now and then but mostly I drink water or warm tea. It really just takes a little getting used to. I do find that I drink way more water when I drink through a straw though. You can try flavoring water with fruit too.0 -
why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life. i gave it up. i think that water is better. might be a coincidence that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off for almost 2 years afterwards or it might have been the diet soda causing me to eat more. i don't know. all i know is that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off, whereas i never could before.
i weened myself off of diet soda by drinking seltzer at first and then just got used to regular water eventually. sometimes still drink seltzer though.
Yes!!!! It's a crazy cult on MFP that no one should change their diet because no food is "bad". There is no nutritional value in diet soda and just because it won't kill you doesn't mean you should be putting it your body! Sheesh......
I also gave up diet soda and found that I can stick to my calories much easier without feeling hungry. I still occasionally drink a diet soda, but not daily or even weekly (more as a treat for a movie or something like that). Instead, I drink seltzer water and herbal tea. I really don't miss it either!0 -
lemurcat12 wrote: »why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life.
I think if she wants to give it up she should. Some people probably feel better not drinking it, especially if they seem to drink it to the exclusion of everything else. I give up coffee from time to time since I can get into a pattern of going overboard with it (right now I'm trying not to drink coffee or caffeinated tea after noon and it's driving me a bit crazy, since I was overdoing it).
However, sometimes people think they ought to give up something instead of really wanting to, and diet soda is one of those things where you hear that it's poison or making you fat or silly things that are not true. If people are giving it up for those reasons, and not more factual ones, they might want to know that it's not necessary--for example, that lots of people are able to drink it and lose or even find it helpful.
I don't agree with the frequent advice that you should change your diet as little as possible when starting a weight loss plan, since for me it's motivating to see myself doing something positive, and some of the bigger changes go along with that, so I can see that side.
But, on the other hand, if I had added on to my dietary changes when I started a requirement that I also drop coffee--which happens to be something I can use in place of how I used to use food, as a break, a relaxing taste treat, whatever--I would have made this harder for myself and deprived myself of something I enjoy, for no reason. I actually made the call when I started that I wasn't going to worry about coffee until I was really comfortable with my eating. (And now that I'm close to goal I'm messing with it and might drop it for a while.)
Similarly, I like to give up foods as part of my Lent practices, usually meat plus sweets. This time I did not (I started losing weight last January, so was still somewhat in the early stages), in part because I don't want my practices to relate to weight loss efforts, but more because I thought adding things would make it more difficult than it needed to be when I mostly wanted my diet to feel natural and enjoyable. This year I might well go back to my usual.
So I do think that sometimes newbies to MFP seem to be doing too much at once and adding difficulties that are not necessary (if you really miss diet coke and end up having more trouble not overeating cookies, that's not helpful). However, that's going to depend on the person, so I think it's both useful to present the "you don't have to" ideas to OP and challenge things like "aspartame will KILL you TOMORROW and make you FAT" (not said by OP, of course) and also to respect her decision and answer her question.
When I gave up diet soda I lost a lot of weight, whereas I couldn't before. It did not lead to me eating more cookies. It might have actually lead to me craving less cookies. I don't know. I was also counting calories, so that was probably what did it, but I had a hard time losing prior to this and this time the pounds just flew off and i was able to keep it off for almost 2 years now. I don't know that the giving up soda had anything to do with it, but it might have. Also, if you're drinking soda, it's pretty much guaranteed that you will be drinking less water. Isn't water good for you? myfitnesspal recommends 8 glasses a day. I know that's an unnecessarily high amount, but if I'm drinking soda instead, it's likely that amount will be reduced to zero.
I suppose it hasn't been proven definitively that the chemicals in soda are bad, but that doesn't mean they aren't.
Water in soda somehow doesn't count for ... water. Check.
You started counting calories and lost weight but it was maybe because you stopped drinking soda at the same time. Check.
Chemicals aren't shown to be bad. But maybe they are. Check.
Logic, this post has it.
I'll buy that being used to the taste of sweetness might influence your palate and make you crave other sweet, calorie rich things and thus increase the tendency to go over on your calories. That seems to be a personal taste thing.
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Water is the best drink. Diet soda has a lot of chemicals in it and you are right to want to give it up. Have you tried water with a twist of lemon in it? It does get easier. I found I really like ice water and will drink that all day. I first gave up the caffeinated sodas about 25 years ago, then realized how much restaurants were charging for soda and opted for water. Found it easier to make the transition at home as well. Keep at it, treat yourself once in a while so you don't feel totally deprived but in control. You will get to prefer water eventually. I know I did.
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EvgeniZyntx wrote: »lemurcat12 wrote: »why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life.
I think if she wants to give it up she should. Some people probably feel better not drinking it, especially if they seem to drink it to the exclusion of everything else. I give up coffee from time to time since I can get into a pattern of going overboard with it (right now I'm trying not to drink coffee or caffeinated tea after noon and it's driving me a bit crazy, since I was overdoing it).
However, sometimes people think they ought to give up something instead of really wanting to, and diet soda is one of those things where you hear that it's poison or making you fat or silly things that are not true. If people are giving it up for those reasons, and not more factual ones, they might want to know that it's not necessary--for example, that lots of people are able to drink it and lose or even find it helpful.
I don't agree with the frequent advice that you should change your diet as little as possible when starting a weight loss plan, since for me it's motivating to see myself doing something positive, and some of the bigger changes go along with that, so I can see that side.
But, on the other hand, if I had added on to my dietary changes when I started a requirement that I also drop coffee--which happens to be something I can use in place of how I used to use food, as a break, a relaxing taste treat, whatever--I would have made this harder for myself and deprived myself of something I enjoy, for no reason. I actually made the call when I started that I wasn't going to worry about coffee until I was really comfortable with my eating. (And now that I'm close to goal I'm messing with it and might drop it for a while.)
Similarly, I like to give up foods as part of my Lent practices, usually meat plus sweets. This time I did not (I started losing weight last January, so was still somewhat in the early stages), in part because I don't want my practices to relate to weight loss efforts, but more because I thought adding things would make it more difficult than it needed to be when I mostly wanted my diet to feel natural and enjoyable. This year I might well go back to my usual.
So I do think that sometimes newbies to MFP seem to be doing too much at once and adding difficulties that are not necessary (if you really miss diet coke and end up having more trouble not overeating cookies, that's not helpful). However, that's going to depend on the person, so I think it's both useful to present the "you don't have to" ideas to OP and challenge things like "aspartame will KILL you TOMORROW and make you FAT" (not said by OP, of course) and also to respect her decision and answer her question.
When I gave up diet soda I lost a lot of weight, whereas I couldn't before. It did not lead to me eating more cookies. It might have actually lead to me craving less cookies. I don't know. I was also counting calories, so that was probably what did it, but I had a hard time losing prior to this and this time the pounds just flew off and i was able to keep it off for almost 2 years now. I don't know that the giving up soda had anything to do with it, but it might have. Also, if you're drinking soda, it's pretty much guaranteed that you will be drinking less water. Isn't water good for you? myfitnesspal recommends 8 glasses a day. I know that's an unnecessarily high amount, but if I'm drinking soda instead, it's likely that amount will be reduced to zero.
I suppose it hasn't been proven definitively that the chemicals in soda are bad, but that doesn't mean they aren't.
Water in soda somehow doesn't count for ... water. Check.
You started counting calories and lost weight but it was maybe because you stopped drinking soda at the same time. Check.
Chemicals aren't shown to be bad. But maybe they are. Check.
Logic, this post has it.
I'll buy that being used to the taste of sweetness might influence your palate and make you crave other sweet, calorie rich things and thus increase the tendency to go over on your calories. That seems to be a personal taste thing.
well, water is in foods too, but pure water sounds better. pretty sure when they have the 8 cups of water recommendation, they mean actual water, not water in foods.
doesn't matter if my post is right or wrong. giving up diet soda will not kill you.
man, i think some of the people here have diet soda as their personal god.
oh and i stopped counting calories regularly almost 2 years ago and still kept the weight off and it was extremely easy. any other time i tried to diet, i put it right back on. diet soda is possibly the reason.0 -
I gave it up for a few reasons. One, I was sick of spending so much money on it (we went through a lot in our household) and having all those bottles and cans to return to the store. Two, I also prefer not to drink or eat artificial sweeteners (I also try to avoid things like high fructose corn syrup). Three, once I got used to drinking water all the time (even with pizza!), I found I developed a taste for it! There is nothing like it to quench your thirst. As others have suggested, you can squeeze some citrus in it for something a little more "exciting".
That said, nothing is banned from what I eat or drink. Once in a while I might indulge in a soda to shake things up, but it doesn't happen often. I just don't care for it much now!
I'm now drinking 16 glasses of water a day (128 oz.), sometimes more. It's been really great.0 -
LeslieB042812 wrote: »why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life. i gave it up. i think that water is better. might be a coincidence that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off for almost 2 years afterwards or it might have been the diet soda causing me to eat more. i don't know. all i know is that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off, whereas i never could before.
i weened myself off of diet soda by drinking seltzer at first and then just got used to regular water eventually. sometimes still drink seltzer though.
Yes!!!! It's a crazy cult on MFP that no one should change their diet because no food is "bad". There is no nutritional value in diet soda and just because it won't kill you doesn't mean you should be putting it your body! Sheesh......
I also gave up diet soda and found that I can stick to my calories much easier without feeling hungry. I still occasionally drink a diet soda, but not daily or even weekly (more as a treat for a movie or something like that). Instead, I drink seltzer water and herbal tea. I really don't miss it either!
I've lost 121 pounds drinking diet soda, I have reverse my heart disease and my blood work is excellent. Doctor says I am in excellent health. There is no such thing as "bad" food, drink, etc.0 -
My fiance used to drink close to a 2 liter of Diet Pepsi every day. I enjoy the occasional Diet Coke, but I could always tell that it made me crave sweets and would bloat me. Everyone's different. We gave up diet soda and have been so much better off. I enjoy La Croix. It's sparkling water with natural flavors, and comes in a can so you still get that fizzy awesomeness that comes with pop 0
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Lynette, Kudos to you for working to give up diet soda. I gave it up for the very reasons you describe as your rationale. It took me several months before I gave it up completely. I cut back little by little and eventually only had my precious Diet Coke when I went out to eat. Eventually, the Diet Coke that I loved so much began to taste horrible to me, like a glass of chemicals. I haven't had one in about a year and I don't miss it - so don't give up. In place of Diet Coke, I've increased my intake of tea - both hot and cold (lots of natural flavor options), coffee (but I watch my caffeine intake), water (both plain as well as with fruit - berries, lemons, limes). I'm so glad that I gave it up. You can too!0
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LeslieB042812 wrote: »why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life. i gave it up. i think that water is better. might be a coincidence that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off for almost 2 years afterwards or it might have been the diet soda causing me to eat more. i don't know. all i know is that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off, whereas i never could before.
i weened myself off of diet soda by drinking seltzer at first and then just got used to regular water eventually. sometimes still drink seltzer though.
Yes!!!! It's a crazy cult on MFP that no one should change their diet because no food is "bad". There is no nutritional value in diet soda and just because it won't kill you doesn't mean you should be putting it your body! Sheesh......
I also gave up diet soda and found that I can stick to my calories much easier without feeling hungry. I still occasionally drink a diet soda, but not daily or even weekly (more as a treat for a movie or something like that). Instead, I drink seltzer water and herbal tea. I really don't miss it either!
I've lost 121 pounds drinking diet soda, I have reverse my heart disease and my blood work is excellent. Doctor says I am in excellent health. There is no such thing as "bad" food, drink, etc.
good for you. losing 121 pounds would have been impossible for me. that would have made me 19 pounds. pretty sure i would have died before then. it worked for ME to give up diet soda. it worked for YOU to keep it.
is diet soda your god? do you pray to the diet soda god every night? why do you care what the op or anyone else does?-4 -
I think it's great that you are giving up diet pop. It truly is bad for you, you're better off drinking regular if you can't curb the pop habit. Take it from me - it's not easy to give up pop! I was a three can a day pepsi drinker - it was awful! So much sugar! You kind of have to quit cold turkey. Once you get through the first two weeks it gets a lot easier. Your body won't crave it anymore. I wish I had some awesome tip on a substitute for you, but I don't...:( I just switched to water. I feel so much better if that helps you stay more determined at all! Good luck and good job!0
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LeslieB042812 wrote: »why do people need to defend diet soda as though it's a huge travesty to give it up? if she wants to give it up, it's her life. i gave it up. i think that water is better. might be a coincidence that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off for almost 2 years afterwards or it might have been the diet soda causing me to eat more. i don't know. all i know is that i lost a lot of weight and kept it off, whereas i never could before.
i weened myself off of diet soda by drinking seltzer at first and then just got used to regular water eventually. sometimes still drink seltzer though.
Yes!!!! It's a crazy cult on MFP that no one should change their diet because no food is "bad". There is no nutritional value in diet soda and just because it won't kill you doesn't mean you should be putting it your body! Sheesh......
I also gave up diet soda and found that I can stick to my calories much easier without feeling hungry. I still occasionally drink a diet soda, but not daily or even weekly (more as a treat for a movie or something like that). Instead, I drink seltzer water and herbal tea. I really don't miss it either!
I've lost 121 pounds drinking diet soda, I have reverse my heart disease and my blood work is excellent. Doctor says I am in excellent health. There is no such thing as "bad" food, drink, etc.
good for you. losing 121 pounds would have been impossible for me. that would have made me 19 pounds. pretty sure i would have died before then. it worked for ME to give up diet soda. it worked for YOU to keep it.
is diet soda your god? do you pray to the diet soda god every night? why do you care what the op or anyone else does?
Pro tip: this thread isn't about you.-1
This discussion has been closed.
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