Quitting Soda

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13

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  • UG77
    UG77 Posts: 206 Member
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    I wanted to see others who have had or are still having struggles with this issue. I also wanted to see tips and advice from people who have gone longer and feel they've officially weened themselves off soda.

    If you want to quit doing something, then quit doing it. If you want to stop drinking soda, then stop drinking soda. It's what I did. Was it pleasant? No, it was decidedly unpleasant at first. Once the withdrawals went away it wasn't unpleasant anymore. Without the caffeine dependency I'm in general more alert. Without the empty calories of zero nutritional value, I also weigh less. This is an on going benefit.

    You're ultimately responsible for the choices you make. If you want to stop doing something, then just stop doing it. If it is something you're dedicated to then it shouldn't be a problem. You can try to step down your usage but really you're just negotiating with yourself for more of it. Rationalizing. The worst part of removing it from your life is the caffeine headaches. In the past I've mitigated this with green tea and stepped down my intake levels of caffeine until I reached zero. This time around I just stopped.

  • emsmomtina
    emsmomtina Posts: 7 Member
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    I switched from Coke to Coke Zero. Not quite as good as Coke but not as horrible as Diet Coke. Zero calories or carbs so I can get them from something else and still have soda. Works for me.

    What is the difference (ingredients) in Coke Zero and Diet Coke?

    This has been a huge issue for me. I decided to give up Diet Coke and all artificial sweeteners, so I would grab an occasional Coke. Then it turned into a much too regular thing. Recently switched back to Diet Coke, but now I'm getting headaches. Wondering if Coke Zero would be a better option.
  • lisawinning4losing
    lisawinning4losing Posts: 726 Member
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    I'm addicted to diet soda. Trying to switch to tea, but it's hard. I keep going back. Lately I've mostly been drinking Diet Pepsi, since it doesn't contain aspertame. But I'm sure it's still not the healthiest thing.
  • Alyssa_Is_LosingIt
    Alyssa_Is_LosingIt Posts: 4,696 Member
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    UG77 wrote: »
    I wanted to see others who have had or are still having struggles with this issue. I also wanted to see tips and advice from people who have gone longer and feel they've officially weened themselves off soda.

    If you want to quit doing something, then quit doing it. If you want to stop drinking soda, then stop drinking soda. It's what I did. Was it pleasant? No, it was decidedly unpleasant at first. Once the withdrawals went away it wasn't unpleasant anymore. Without the caffeine dependency I'm in general more alert. Without the empty calories of zero nutritional value, I also weigh less. This is an on going benefit.

    You're ultimately responsible for the choices you make. If you want to stop doing something, then just stop doing it. If it is something you're dedicated to then it shouldn't be a problem. You can try to step down your usage but really you're just negotiating with yourself for more of it. Rationalizing. The worst part of removing it from your life is the caffeine headaches. In the past I've mitigated this with green tea and stepped down my intake levels of caffeine until I reached zero. This time around I just stopped.

    What's wrong with wanting to keep doing something that you enjoy?
  • RUN_LIFT_EAT
    RUN_LIFT_EAT Posts: 537 Member
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    Diet soda has been linked to cancer.

    So has being alive. Sometimes people who are alive get cancer.

    Drops mic, walks off! ;)
  • Beaner63
    Beaner63 Posts: 69 Member
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    Is diet really any better?

    Absolutely.

    Zero calories. Still fizzy, still sweet, still satisfying.

    In moderation, like all things, of course.

    Diet soda has been linked to cancer.

    Breathing in LA has been linked to cancer
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    edited February 2016
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    I switched from soda to diet soda years ago and don't even like non diet anymore. Don't see anything wrong with diet soda in moderation, but I quit it for a time just to see if I noticed a difference (I did not). It wasn't particularly difficult to quit, but the truth is I love coffee much more and just let myself drink coffee instead, which isn't really something I'd recommend (I drink coffee black but was drinking way too much caffeine).

    I quit coffee for a while last year, and that was hard. I'm going to cut back again soon -- you really just have to do it if you want to do it, but having something else to drink helps if you are someone like me who always seems to be sipping on something. Luckily I enjoy cold water and that's available.
  • TheBeachgod
    TheBeachgod Posts: 825 Member
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    emsmomtina wrote: »
    I switched from Coke to Coke Zero. Not quite as good as Coke but not as horrible as Diet Coke. Zero calories or carbs so I can get them from something else and still have soda. Works for me.

    What is the difference (ingredients) in Coke Zero and Diet Coke?

    This has been a huge issue for me. I decided to give up Diet Coke and all artificial sweeteners, so I would grab an occasional Coke. Then it turned into a much too regular thing. Recently switched back to Diet Coke, but now I'm getting headaches. Wondering if Coke Zero would be a better option.

    All I know is I've tried Diet Coke and didn't like the taste at all. I gave Zero a shot and think it is OK. I haven't had Diet Coke in a long time so to be honest, it and Zero may be the exact same thing and I just think I like Zero better due to selective memory.
  • Alyssa_Is_LosingIt
    Alyssa_Is_LosingIt Posts: 4,696 Member
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    emsmomtina wrote: »
    I switched from Coke to Coke Zero. Not quite as good as Coke but not as horrible as Diet Coke. Zero calories or carbs so I can get them from something else and still have soda. Works for me.

    What is the difference (ingredients) in Coke Zero and Diet Coke?

    This has been a huge issue for me. I decided to give up Diet Coke and all artificial sweeteners, so I would grab an occasional Coke. Then it turned into a much too regular thing. Recently switched back to Diet Coke, but now I'm getting headaches. Wondering if Coke Zero would be a better option.

    All I know is I've tried Diet Coke and didn't like the taste at all. I gave Zero a shot and think it is OK. I haven't had Diet Coke in a long time so to be honest, it and Zero may be the exact same thing and I just think I like Zero better due to selective memory.

    They are flavored differently, you're not imagining.

    The story behind Diet Coke and Coke Zero is actually pretty interesting. I'm at work and don't have time to find a link at the moment, but basically Diet Coke is not supposed to taste like regular Coke. It was marketed as a different product from the start. They reformulated Diet Coke at some point to make it taste more like regular Coke, and customers were not happy about the change. Coca Cola quickly switched the formula back to the original, different-tasting formula and continued to sell Diet Coke as a completely separate product from regular Coke.

    Coke Zero is formulated to taste more like regular Coke, and is marketed to regular Coke lovers who want to drink Coke without the calories. In my opinion, Coke Zero does taste more like regular Coke than Diet Coke does. So Diet Coke drinkers stay happy with their different-tasting product, while regular Coke drinkers are happy to have a product that tastes similar to regular Coke.
  • dubird
    dubird Posts: 1,849 Member
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    There's no need to give up soda entirely. I ended up cutting back on my intake drastically simply by not having it in the house. I also started ordering unsweet tea at restaurants, swapping out the soda for something else I like. Now, while I still have one sometimes when I go out, it'll be because I know have the room in my daily calories for it. I also never cut it out of game nights since that was once a week at the time, so I still had some then.
  • Beaner63
    Beaner63 Posts: 69 Member
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    I've quit many different times, but always come back to it. I realized, I love the taste and the bubbles. More than any other drink, I truly love the tatse of Coke Zero. I drink water when I am working out, hiking, or riding. Other than that I drink coke zero.

    I probably average around 60 ounces a day. I've still lost weight so it's all good. 26 LBs since January first.

    I see no need to quit it.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
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    emsmomtina wrote: »
    I switched from Coke to Coke Zero. Not quite as good as Coke but not as horrible as Diet Coke. Zero calories or carbs so I can get them from something else and still have soda. Works for me.

    What is the difference (ingredients) in Coke Zero and Diet Coke?

    This has been a huge issue for me. I decided to give up Diet Coke and all artificial sweeteners, so I would grab an occasional Coke. Then it turned into a much too regular thing. Recently switched back to Diet Coke, but now I'm getting headaches. Wondering if Coke Zero would be a better option.

    All I know is I've tried Diet Coke and didn't like the taste at all. I gave Zero a shot and think it is OK. I haven't had Diet Coke in a long time so to be honest, it and Zero may be the exact same thing and I just think I like Zero better due to selective memory.

    They definitely taste different. I like Diet Coke a lot (can't stand Diet Pepsi), and I didn't care for Coke Zero.
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    Pepsi is horrible now cause Splenda...blech
  • counterman8100
    counterman8100 Posts: 1 Member
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    I lose a lot of weight when i don't drink soda, that and donuts
  • Hornsby
    Hornsby Posts: 10,322 Member
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    I lost a lot of weight when I don't eat beets or asparagus.
  • LBuehrle8
    LBuehrle8 Posts: 4,044 Member
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    Hornsby wrote: »
    I lost a lot of weight when I don't eat beets or asparagus.

    :o I'd be so sad if I couldn't eat asparagus. Beets... not so much!
  • Lydilod
    Lydilod Posts: 135 Member
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    Used to be seriously addicted to the caffeine in soda (not a coffee drinker but 4-5 cans of soda each day wasn't unusual). Best advice I got was to suffer through withdrawal, as in, when the awful headaches start, don't take any Advil or anything for it. Quit on a Friday. Spend the weekend on the couch dying. You'll never go back

    Me too, only I drank about 2litre a day. I only drink the occasional can now, much prefer water.
  • xKoalaBearx
    xKoalaBearx Posts: 181 Member
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    Like many here, I was addicted to diet coke. I quit cold turkey.... had a TERRIBLE week, where I felt groggy, lightheaded, weak, dizzy and had headaches galore... then after the 4th day, it all disappeared. I suddenly felt clear, energetic, no more afternoon lows... like one of those Claritin commercials.

    Anyway, I was lucky that I never craved it again and I love drinking ice cold water and I really don't drink anything else.
  • 1LChele
    1LChele Posts: 1 Member
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    Trying to quit but I love my soda. It's usually the first thing I grab when I wake up and I have several throughout the day. So recently I started drinking coffee in the morning with a little artificial sweetener and creamer. Gonna try to lessen the amount of those until I can drink it black. Throughout the day I am drinking water and eating ice, which helps me a lot. Also I started drinking tea along with adding the sweetener that I am gonna try to lessen as I can. Hope it works!
  • rockstargreatness
    rockstargreatness Posts: 23 Member
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    Is diet really any better?
    Not according to my dentist. Trying to quit soda for my teeth's health.

    Down to two a day which is sad since that is lower than what I used to drink. (4-5 a day. 2 home. 3 out. One from stores.) Six maybe it used to be.

    And it's fusterating.

    Hopefully by July it's one a day. Dentist is going to have to wait a bit for one a week.

    One a day first.

    My problem is the only other thing I drink are energy drinks (which I'm also trying to cut back on.) and water.

    And flavored water tastes horrible and doesn't help with the sweet craving.