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whm1974
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Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 1:37 pm

OK as some of you know, I drink about two 2 liters bottles or more of soda a day. Well since that is not good for my health and keeps my wallet emptier than I like, I putting my foot down and going to cut my soda drinking in half. I'm going only drink one bottle of soda a day and no more. I've been drinking a tea mix that a lot cheaper. I crave soda, but I been taking the bottles and filling them up with tea drink when I'm done with them. That way I have something else to drink after I used up a bottle of soda.

Been doing this since Saturday. I brought my normal amount of soda at the store and forcing myself to make that last two weeks and not go to 711 after I run out. I drunk one bottle already and while I'm craving soda, I'm telling myself not to open that second bottle.

To motivate myself, I'm thinking of all the stuff like that keyboard I could buy instead of pissing it away. Hell I will saving money buying the stuff I want.  
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 1:49 pm

I gave up sweetened, carbonated/non-carbonated beverages about a decade ago.  It was difficult, at first, to break the psychological habit.  But, once you, taking even a sip of a soda/soft-drink/pop/"Coke"/wtfever you call it is like drinking syrup.  It's just...sickly sweet.  All I drink now is: black coffee, unsweetened "iced" (black) tea, hot (unsweetened) green/white tea, water, unsweetened almond milk, and beer.  Beer and almond milk are the only beverages from which I ingest calories.  I have an intolerance to artificial sweeteners (they mess up my heart rhythm something fierce), so I fortunately couldn't go down the "diet" soda route.

Hang in there, you'll make it.  When you have a craving, stop what you are doing (if the situation allows) and maybe go for a quick walk.  Do something to disassociate the two activities (e.g., working at the PC and having soda).  Some of the flavored green and white teas, for me, were great substitutes in the beginning (e.g., Lipton had a white "island peach mango" tea that was wonderfully flavored and aromaed).

Best of luck.  You'll be amazed at how much better you feel once you break the habit.
 
Hawkwing74
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 1:50 pm

4 liters of regular soda or diet soda?
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 1:58 pm

Holy cow, bro. That is a lot of soda. You didn't say if it was diet or not that you are drinking. Either way though, not good. Well done on cutting down. That's a good first step to take.

I average a little less than a can a day and my wife is kicking my ass about it.
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whm1974
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 1:59 pm

Hawkwing74 wrote:
4 liters of regular soda or diet soda?

Diet. I gave regular soda and sweeten tea after my blood sugar went up to 430 a few years ago. It way under control now.
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:06 pm

Good on you for working to cut back. If it's caffeinated soda you've been drinking, be prepared for an unpleasant period -- headaches, general grumpiness -- as your body adjusts to less caffeine, until you've found a new baseline.
 
Anovoca
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:08 pm

I cut all sugar and artificial sweeteners out of my diet 2 years ago. My advice to you is if you have the will power to go cold turkey then go cold turkey. When most people cut out sweetened beverages from their diet, they don't lessen the cravings and usually just end up getting their sweet fix from another equally unhealthy source. Tea is a good step away from sugar but if you are drinking sweet tea, you aren't helping yourself out as much as you think. For me, I switched to hot/cold unsweetened greentea with yerba mattee and eventually started brewing Kombucha with it. I have always loved black coffee so I just spent some money on a really nice grinder and press for my office so that gets me through the morning right there. I also forced my self to keep trying different flavors of La Croux. I hated it when i started but eventually I found flavors I liked and got used to the bitter taste. Pear, coconut, and cucumber blackberry are my current favorites. 
Last edited by Anovoca on Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:08 pm

Just quit buying it at all. I cut out soda entirely because my doctor said I had to. I don't know if the headaches were a "reverse placebo" (something that is happening because I expect it) but they went away within a week. My doctor says not to buy into the "diet" hype, but every doctor is different.

Now I drink mostly water and some black coffee first thing in the morning. We'll see in July if it makes a difference on my A1C, but I've dropped around 10lbs by dumping diet soda and between-meal snacks (I need something to do with my hands basically at all times and food had become a go-to activity). Very little else has changed and so far so good.

In my own experience, the only way to quit was cold turkey.
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:09 pm

I inadvertently cut my soda consumption by just having water in an arm's reach at work. When thirsty, I drink water. When craving, I have soda. Using a smaller water container forces me to stretch my legs and refill it every so often.

After drinking enough water you realize how sickeningly sweet soda is, and I can't even finish a standard 11oz can anymore. I get about 6-8 oz in and by the end of the day I have to dump the rest out. It's just too sweet. Forcing yourself to eat/drink blander things for a week augments taste buds' recognition of how sweet/salty something is, and makes it easier to keep sugar/sodium consumption sane.

Now, in Europe, I discovered this limon soda (Sprite-like) stuff that seemingly every major grocery store had by the 1.5L bottle. It had about 12g of sugar per serving, instead of 25-35g, and it's so refreshing without being overly sweet! I wish soda makers here made less-sweet drinks, though maybe I'd drink more soda if they did.
 
Vhalidictes
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:13 pm

Duct Tape Dude's suggestion is great, as I've found. Having water nearby stops soda from being water-replacement, and also helps fight any cravings that come from dehydration.

Good luck whm1974; this isn't as easy as some people would assume.
 
whm1974
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:17 pm

I've tried the cold turkey method and that doesn't work for me. My main problem is running out of soda that I buy when shopping, and so I go buy more from 711. That is what is costing me. I'm drinking the peach tea drink mix now. It's basically a a store brand of Crystal Lite and it's sugar free.

I did the math, and it turns out that it will be much cheaper for me to buy nice things instead.
 
whm1974
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:20 pm

Vhalidictes wrote:
Duct Tape Dude's suggestion is great, as I've found. Having water nearby stops soda from being water-replacement, and also helps fight any cravings that come from dehydration.

Good luck whm1974; this isn't as easy as some people would assume.

Thanks. I'm having cravings right now for soda. But I already had a bottle today, so I'm not opening another one.
 
Anovoca
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:32 pm

For home, I spent the money and got myself a nice Hamilton Beach refrigerated water dispenser from Costco. I spend $10 a month for a 5 gal jug of fresh spring water sourced an hour north of my home. Just having something cold, fresh, and convenient on hand has cut my consumption of other beverages down significantly. 
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LostCat
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:37 pm

derFunkenstein wrote:
Just quit buying it at all. I cut out soda entirely because my doctor said I had to. I don't know if the headaches were a "reverse placebo" (something that is happening because I expect it) but they went away within a week. My doctor says not to buy into the "diet" hype, but every doctor is different.  

I used to have killer headaches if I stopped drinking pop, then I discovered that Tylenol pretty much took care of it.  I wish I'd figured that out several years before...
These days I don't like drinking it all the time, but it's an option.  Crystal Light with caffeine is my healthiest (and best tasting) replacement so far...don't like drinking that all the time either though.  (Just beware the Wild Strawberry flavor...holy crap it's strong.)
Last edited by LostCat on Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Firestarter
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:39 pm

do you like the water you drink? have you considered getting other water? I'm lucky in that I love the tap water around here, but if you have to buy some to be able to enjoy it then just buy that instead of soda and you won't have any soda to drink since you didn't get any. You'll probably have to put some conscious effort into not drinking soda for a while but it's not an addiction as nicotine or similar substances are, so it won't be long until you've change your habits for the better
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:53 pm

I completely stopped drinking pop/soda about ten years ago and never looked back.  Diabetes runs in my family and my mom was a dental hygienist growing up so it didn't take much effort for me.  Once you make drinking water/tea/coffee your natural "fix" for thirst, it's really easy to skip soda, both out of habit and because your taste buds start to reject the insane amounts of sugar in a can/glass of pop.  I have several Nalgene style water bottles in my house that I keep filled with water and that's really all I drink at home (along with a cup of coffee in the morning).  At work I have a mug for tea or coffee and also a small ~12oz cup I will with water.  I prefer to use smaller containers so I get up and move at least once an hour or so.

Good luck on your plan - keep on cutting it in half until it's just a "special occasion" drink. 
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 2:59 pm

Anovoca wrote:
For home, I spent the money and got myself a nice Hamilton Beach refrigerated water dispenser from Costco. I spend $10 a month for a 5 gal jug of fresh spring water sourced an hour north of my home. Just having something cold, fresh, and convenient on hand has cut my consumption of other beverages down significantly.

Firestarter wrote:
do you like the water you drink? have you considered getting other water? I'm lucky in that I love the tap water around here, but if you have to buy some to be able to enjoy it then just buy that instead of soda and you won't have any soda to drink since you didn't get any. You'll probably have to put some conscious effort into not drinking soda for a while but it's not an addiction as nicotine or similar substances are, so it won't be long until you've change your habits for the better

+1 to both of you. If you don't find water appealing/convenient you should invest in something that makes it so. For me, I don't like the idea of drinking tap water, but after going through a filter and being refrigerated it's totally refreshing. I know tap water is probably perfectly fine, and I don't need to spend money on the filters or electricity to cool it, but I drink more water this way because my weird mind doesn't like tap. And it's still cheaper than soda+diabeetus.
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 3:11 pm

I wish you the best of luck in curbing your habit. I suggest getting into tea, preferably lower in caffeine varieties.  Also, keep a cool bottle of water with you at all times.  It will be more enticing if it's closer than the nearest pop.

Don't just factor in the cost of the actual drink but the total cost to your health.  That's a motivator for me.
 
whm1974
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 3:17 pm

Thanks guys, you encouragement means a lot to me. I just wished I started this much sooner.
 
SecretSquirrel
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 3:56 pm

One thing I found, that helped me out greatly (also work for beer to a lesser extent) is club soda/carbonated water.

I'm not drastically effected by caffeine. I can drink enough to be physically effected by it, if I really try, but it just makes me jittery then. I've stopped all caffeine intake cold turkey on several occasions (necessitated by medication I was taking at the time), and don't have any of the "normal" withdrawal symptoms. I went on a big weight loss kick about five years ago and drastically cut soda consumption. What little I do consume is diet. Which is worse, artificial sweeteners, or extra weight? Only time will tell on that one. Anyway, I found that it wasn't the taste of soda I missed so much as the carbonation. Same thing goes for times when alcohol is verboten (medication again). Club soda with a twist of lime is a decent enough stand in. It's not as cheap as straight up water, which is what I keep at my desk. Either that or iced black tea. On a bad day, I might consume 24oz(~750ml) of soda. Most days it's a single can, and some days, none at all. I've considered making the effort to cut it entirely, but so far, the effort has exceeded the perceived reward.

Like any other habitual thing, will power gets you over the hump while you adjust your habits to the new norm. If you are impacted by caffeine then, as others noted, be prepared for withdrawal, which does make it harder. Regardless, good for you. You'll feel better physically (once you get past the withdrawal thing) and have more money too!

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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 4:02 pm

Once you're a few weeks in you'll notice the difference. I used to drink a lot of soda also, but now even just a single can will give me the jitters from the caffeine. Just take it slow. It's a marathon not a sprint, and a few months from now you'll be glad you made the choice.
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 4:30 pm

Great work! I have been there. One thing that helped me eventually (over a few years) stop craving soda was to intentionally develop a taste for very highly carbonated mineral water. (Topo Chico is good for this, its carbonation level is off the charts.) A couple years down the road, now I drink a lot of sparkling water, and I can have a Coke here or there when I go out to eat, without wanting to buy some to take home.
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 4:53 pm

Holy cow. This thread makes me happy me dear old mum didn't let me drink soda until I was in my teens. By then I pretty much had no preference for the stuff. These days, I have a can of pop maybe once a month or even longer than that.

I more than make up for that with beer though. I usually have 3 beers a day on week days.
 
Vhalidictes
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 4:58 pm

That's a good point Wonders, when I was getting off of soda I found that flavored (but unsweetened) seltzer water was really useful.
 
paulWTAMU
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 8:53 pm

But if I totally give up soda what do I mix my bourbon with?
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:00 pm

paulWTAMU wrote:
But if I totally give up soda what do I mix my bourbon with?

Mix?? Sprinkle a few drops of cold water off your fingers, give it a good swirl, and that's all one needs.
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 9:23 pm

Captain Ned wrote:
paulWTAMU wrote:
But if I totally give up soda what do I mix my bourbon with?

Mix?? Sprinkle a few drops of cold water off your fingers, give it a good swirl, and that's all one needs.


My preference is a good single-malt, or cognac, but otherwise.... spot on! :lol:
 
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:13 pm

paulWTAMU wrote:
But if I totally give up soda what do I mix my bourbon with?

Good question. I gave up pop a couple decades ago and that was my biggest issue. Now I just drink hard liquor neat. Less filler, and don't get sugar headaches after a night out.
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 10:57 pm

I typically go through 2x2 Liters of soft drinks a day.

Plus three Monster Energies.

And typically my caloric intake is 3,500-4,000 per day.  Back when I was power lifting a decade or so ago it was probably 5,000+

Eventually my ankle and lumbar areas got really bad, to the point where heavy lifting was out of the question and I spend maybe a week out of the month on crutches because my joints sometimes flare up really badly.

However I couldn't bring myself to stop eating a crap tonne and am now 180 lbs overweight.

If I could cut my caloric intake in half and do so long term it would do me good fiscally and physically, however I am addicted to fine dining so that's never going to happen.
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whm1974
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Re: Cutting my soda habit in half.

Mon Feb 13, 2017 11:12 pm

ultima_trev wrote:
I typically go through 2x2 Liters of soft drinks a day.

Plus three Monster Energies.

And typically my caloric intake is 3,500-4,000 per day.  Back when I was power lifting a decade or so ago it was probably 5,000+

Eventually my ankle and lumbar areas got really bad, to the point where heavy lifting was out of the question and I spend maybe a week out of the month on crutches because my joints sometimes flare up really badly.

However I couldn't bring myself to stop eating a crap tonne and am now 180 lbs overweight.

If I could cut my caloric intake in half and do so long term it would do me good fiscally and physically, however I am addicted to fine dining so that's never going to happen.

Holy crap, you are in worse shape then me. I would advise you quit the energy drinks now. I just heard a news story last year about a kid in his early 20's that died of a heart attack cause by overconsumstion  of those things.

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