How did you give up Pop/Soda/Cola/etc...?

[HunterRose]

Switched to sparkling water, and German fizzy water. My brain thinks they are sodas.

[gls:maverick]

Well I am officially over the 48hr mark of not having any pop. It has been tough but I should be fine all week. What will be hard is the weekend coming up. I talked to my wife about it and she is going to give it up with me so we can support each other. She doesn't drink nearly as much as I did but she can keep me in check.

[BsickPassat]

So I am a somewhat healthy person. My wife and I eat fairly well. We are not vegetarians or vegans and eat pretty much every type of food. We cook a majority of our own food and only eat out once or twice a week on a "date" or something.

My only crutch is pop (Mt.Dew and Coke mainly). I would love to give it up completely but I have been drinking it for at least 14 years (I'm 32). We didn't have a lot of pop around the house growing up so it was mainly when I went off to college. I can go a day or three before succumbing to Mt.Dew because I am sure I am addicted somewhat and its comforting to drink.

If you you have been in my position what did you do to give it up? I am fairly fit and ride my road bicycle regularly and drink a ton of water everyday (64oz or so) but I still drink a can or 20oz (on a bad day) constantly.

Help me out!!

Cold turkey... but everynow and then, reward yourself, after accomplishing some sort of goal you set, I dunno, you do a metric century....

I was in Howell, not too long ago... visiting Michigan Rod Products...

[Ninja Boot]

Just stop drinking it. I smoked for 6 years and kept researching the best way to quit. What electronic butts should I smoke? Should I ween myself off? How long should I use the patch for? etc...

Then I just realized those were all crutches, and it was a simple as stopping. So I stopped. I had a wicked ****ty 2 weeks, a bad first month, but now over 4 months later and I'm still not smoking. Just deal with it for a week or two and move on

[familyguy]

I believe that I had it the opposite as you. It seemed like we always had a two liter bottle of cola in the fridge and six more in the pantry. It wasn't until I went to college that I stopped having it near me which really reduced the chances of me drinking it. When I went to the cafeteria instead of soda I would get a milk or water. Eventually the cravings went away.

I noticed that if I have some diet soda I will get back on that bandwagon again for a week or two until I realize the habit is harmful. It is so surprising how addicting soda can get even if you only start up for a week. It takes a few days to get over the cravings and they will randomly pop up weeks later.

[Vdub303]

Switched to sparkling water

Same

[skaterhernandez4]

I'm drinking a Mt. Dew as I'm reading this. I'm not fat. I eat pretty healthy. The difference is I know it's bad for me and I use moderation. I haven't had a Mt. Dew since last wednesday and it's not the end of the world if I have one.

[::xander::]

I believe that I had it the opposite as you. It seemed like we always had a two liter bottle of cola in the fridge and six more in the pantry. It wasn't until I went to college that I stopped having it near me which really reduced the chances of me drinking it. When I went to the cafeteria instead of soda I would get a milk or water. Eventually the cravings went away.

I noticed that if I have some diet soda I will get back on that bandwagon again for a week or two until I realize the habit is harmful. It is so surprising how addicting soda can get even if you only start up for a week. It takes a few days to get over the cravings and they will randomly pop up weeks later.

to add, cravings aren't genetic, they are learned (IMO)

if you never have soda, you'll never want it. My house is the WORST for snacks, I don't keep ANYTHING in the house that you don't have to make to eat. So when I want to snack...I have to make a salad. In return, when I buy do buy a treat, sweet stuff goes a long way with me. Even 2 pieces of candy is plenty. It's just way too much for me after that.

you can control your cravings by your habits. The longer you go without something, you will even lose the taste for it. I don't even much care for soda at all anymore

[BetterByDesign]

Well I am officially over the 48hr mark of not having any pop. It has been tough but I should be fine all week. What will be hard is the weekend coming up. I talked to my wife about it and she is going to give it up with me so we can support each other. She doesn't drink nearly as much as I did but she can keep me in check.

Something's gotta give

[tomhank]

It is not hard as much as we thing ,I started drinking green tea. Not Sobe green tea with sugar, just plain green tea. It has about half the amount of caffeine as coffee actually so you won't miss the caffeine. There is a phytochemical in green tea called ECGC (Epigallocatechin gallate a catechin) which is quite healthy in a number of ways.

[Egilbe]

I started drinking green tea. Not Sobe green tea with sugar, just plain green tea. It has about half the amount of caffeine as coffee actually so you won't miss the caffeine. There is a phytochemical in green tea called ECGC (Epigallocatechin gallate a catechin) which is quite healthy in a number of ways. It has anti-cancer affects for one, it's actually been shown to induce death in cancer cells. It's also a mild aromatase inhibitor. Anyway you could probably just take a green tea supplement too, many multivitamins include it now. I stopped the tea because of the caffeine and only drink water now.

bots are hilarious

[Clean PG]

didnt read the entire thread but are you at all a coffee drinker, or could you be? i'm not talking about a 20oz frappucappawhatever-ccino from starbucks, just an actual cup of coffee with a little milk/creamer/sweetener if need be.

i used to average 3 cans of soda a day in my high school and college years. about 3ish years ago i got off that kick and took a liking to coffee and have gotten into a habit of drinking much more water as well. both of these have been my crutch since and i'll only have soda if i'm out for a drink with friends which rarely happens anyway ( my captain and cokes ). i cant even remember the last time i bought soda to have at the house. out of sight, out of mind

i had a similar issue with just sugar in general; i'd always be eating fruit snacks, skittles and other candy. but same thing, i stopped buying it a few years back and no longer crave it. but if i do end up consuming some, it takes much less and i feel satisfied sooner.

[Maggiolone]

Lent.

Every Lent for a few years, I made a point to do the 40 days without sodapop (and I was a huge drinker of it).

Now, I can go months without having it. I'm now repulsed by the heavy carbonation and sweetness of it.

Not everyone follows Lent, but apply the same basic ideas of it when giving up the sodapop addiction. 40 days without it.

[GodSquadMandrake]

bots are hilarious

why am I bot? I don't understand

[heshootznscores]

I only drank soda/pop when I was out to eat (I only like stuff out of a fountain really). I stopped drinking it entirely for about a year and recently started doing diet mt. dew for caffeine because I don't drink coffee.. It tastes no different to me than regular dew.

I pretty much drink only three things: Water, Powerade Zero (red, blue or purple..but red/fruit punch is best) and diet mt dew (maybe one a day).

[sortadelux]

Decide to get serious about living on a budget.

I drank a HUGE amount of redbull daily untill recently. Last month my wife and I decided to get serious about our finances and have instituted a $0 daily spending cash budget. I went cold turkey and other than my coffee in the morning, I'm good with it.

I gotta say though, with my caffine consumption the first couple of days were really crappy!

[Brett92]

go to iced tea with sugar, to iced tea, to water

Yeah, my only big vice is sugary drinks (coke, sweet tea, etc.).

I started making tea at home and have been able to gradually lower the sugar content to where there is almost none in there. I think the calorie per 8 oz serving is down to like 15 calories, where it was like 4-5x times that before at the recommended sugar amount. I haven't been able to kick the sugar altogether, but it's progress.

With that said, I still have a goal of kicking sugar altogether if possible. My wife is a social worker at a dialysis clinic and her stories about diabetes are downright terrifying. Supposedly they had a guy who lost his toes, then his foot, then his entire leg below the knee within 3 days! All because of diabetes, or "diabetus" as it is technically known.

[Egilbe]

why am I bot? I don't understand

A bot quoted you, word for word, in bold. I quoted the bot and your post, but the bot post finally got deleted.

[Papa Dras]

I drank a HUGE amount of redbull daily untill recently.

Damn. Even the smell of red bull gives me a hangover now.

This sys admin guy I used to work with would drink can after can of Monster. Literally finishing a can and popping open another. He'd do this all day long.

[sortadelux]

Damn. Even the smell of red bull gives me a hangover now.

This sys admin guy I used to work with would drink can after can of Monster. Literally finishing a can and popping open another. He'd do this all day long.

Yea well, I generally didn't mix my redbull!

[samwapp]

I haven't drank soda in a month. Feels so great.

[bharry07]

My house is the WORST for snacks, I don't keep ANYTHING in the house that you don't have to make to eat. So when I want to snack...I have to make a salad.

Our pantries are polar opposites

[GreenWagen]

How's it been going OP?

I was the worst with sodas, and what's worse is that I would always want to eat something (unhealthy) while drinking it. I can say that I honestly had a mildly serious addiction to Mt. Dew and to those of you that think you can't be addicted to sodas, your wrong. There were times when I would search for replacements with diet sodas, diet gatorade, flavored waters, etc. In the end all they would do is make me want Dew more. I got it in my mind to stop and just gave it up cold turkey, never buy it or have it in the house, and occasionally have a coke if eating out. I drink 99% water now. Down 20lbs and counting and i feel much better.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 2

[CO Boy]

I very rarely drink soda. I keep gingerale in the house for the tummy, maybe a glass or two a week.

[corradokreep]

Is it seriously that hard to give up pop? I stopped drinking it when I was 15 after realizing that the 3 orange crushes I drank during an hour TV program were terribly bad for me.

Mind over matter people, it's not that hard.

[CO Boy]

Is it seriously that hard to give up pop? I stopped drinking it when I was 15 after realizing that the 3 orange crushes I drank during an hour TV program were terribly bad for me.

Mind over matter people, it's not that hard.

Actually, yes. In one study sugar was more additive than cocaine. We eat so much sugar we don't even know realize it.

[GodSquadMandrake]

Actually, yes. In one study sugar was more additive than cocaine. We eat so much sugar we don't even know realize it.

Cocaine's not that hard to quit either. Now percoset is a different story....

[ssmuff]

I used to drink maybe one pop a day at lunch. I gave all that up when I started training for my half/full marathon. I went from pop, to Gatorade/juice to water. I drink water or milk most of the time now for lunch. I will still drink some pop but it is mixed with whiskey of rum. Once you break the habit it is so awesome!

[cramerica]

Just today decided I'm giving up pop. Since I don't like coffee or tea, the caffeine withdrawal might be difficult.

[Steveo989]

I'm trying to kick my pop habit, too. I picked up a new Brita Pitcher to aid in drinking more water since I prefer it chilled, and the water in this old, victorian house has old pipes that makes the water taste funky. I did have huge Zerowater reservoir in my fridge, but it was such a hassle to refill that I didn't want to deal with it so I would open another pop or whatever.

I spend so much on pop it isn't even funny. I would probably say I spend at least $100+ a month of pop either in cans, fast food, 20oz'ers, etc.

For me it's my morning coffee, and it's a comfort drink while I'm working on stressful stuff. I kept drinking pop like crazy even while I was training for a couple ironmans, sometimes consuming 6 cans or more in a day! I'm going to see how it goes. I feel pretty run down the few times I have quit, so I might see a doc to check my insulin sensitivity if I continue to crash after quitting.

Tips are encouraged. I think I'm going to switch to tea/coffee, then slowly reduce the daily caffeine intake.

[Shawn O]

I quit drinking Diet Mountain Dew by switching to water....with Crystal Light. There is even a Crystal Light flavor with caffeine.

[PiSSAT4motion]

Soda was easy for me to give up. Sweet Tea on the other hand...

[cramerica]

Just today decided I'm giving up pop. Since I don't like coffee or tea, the caffeine withdrawal might be difficult.

Well, it's been over two weeks since my last pop. It was actually a lot easier than I expected, considering how much pop I had been drinking. The only difficult time I had was the terrible headache on the fourth day. Since then, I've had no side effects and only a very few cravings.

[WOB24v]

i found that removing sugar from my diet all together was easyer than cutting out one thing at a time.

[psod]

Give it up cold turkey. Don't keep it in the house - then you only have to worry about eating out. Most people automatically just order a pop when they eat fast food or at a restaurant. Either (a) stop eating at fast food restaurants, or (b) start asking for water instead. It's not that hard. When you're at a nicer restaurant order a club soda at first ... overtime just start ordering water instead.

Seriously though - off all the dietary changes to make, pop should be one of the easier ones.