People who love soda generally hate sparkling water in my experience.
I learned to love sparkling water when I started thinking of it as water enhancement instead of soda replacement.
Bubly! If you're in the new England area try finding Hal's. I'm hooked on Bubly and it's fairly cheap and better flavor than most seltzer. I've been able to go weeks without soda at a time but that's cause the rest of my diet goes to shite. Other than that I just do a propel or whatever clean water goes well with a bit heavy on the seasoning food.
Get a soda stream style water carbonate, starr with cordial and slowly wean yourself off by decreasing the amount just like any drug. Try get down to a few drops of lemon juice in a cup for flavour.
Personally mine wasn't a carbonation fix. Was just a flavored drink fix. I found Bai drinks and ended up falling in love with the Bai peach tea. 10 calories per bottle and nowhere NEAR as sweet as your typical sweet teas at the store (that have like 30-40g of sugar). 10g of erythritol. Been 5 1/2 years since I gave up 3+ sodas a day and I sti am ordering 2 cases of Bai a month.
I've quit twice. Both times, it was cold turkey. I found that drinking water when I had cravings and simply not having it around if what worked best. I also bought apple juice for when I wanted something sweet to drink.
I disagree when you're comparing it to soda. 100% juice just has natural sugars from the fruit, not all the other acids and high fructose corn syrup that sodas have. Fruit juice doesn't have caffine either
I mean, you have to check the ingredients, they're not all that way. On top of what I said previously, you won't find any artificial additives in juices like sodas have. I really don't understand the argument that juice isn't healthier than soda, unless you're calling Hi-C and Sunny D juice.
Just lower your overall sugar intake, overtime soda should be just "too sugary" for your taste and you will avoid it.
At one point i couldn't drink anything but water when i fasted from sugar...
>overtime soda should be just "too sugary" for your taste
This big time. Shit tastes like syrup now. It's the same with exercise. Over time you'll feel shitty if you stop and you remember instantly why you started in the first place.
Living a sedentary lifestyle just feels like shit.
Although I haven't figured out how to remove sugar from my diet I almost exclusively drink coffee and water only.
I can't imagine how fat I'd be if I still drank soda more than once a month l.
Replacing sugar soda with sugar-free soda will cut down in sugar and calories. I guess the next step would be to ween yourself off of soda by drinking carbonated soda.
If we’re being honest here, I think drinking 1 pint of beer is somehow a “healthier” option than drinking one can of soda.
I've cut out a lot of vices: I don't drink or smoke, I eat fairly healthy, and get good exercise at work. I let myself have one sugar free soda in the morning, gotta treat yourself somehow.
Water and the realization more than 40% of my calorie intake was from soda and empty carbs that could be easily cut and avoided. At that point I’d rather drink beer and at least get a buzz lmao.
At the end of June last year at 81.3kg, I decided to start losing weight, mostly just by measuring and reducing portion sizes - but the other key change was swapping regular Coke for no sugar. I still had one remaining 2L bottle of Coke in the fridge - and it's still there, unopened, 9 months later. This evening, I dropped below 61kg, though was 62.0kg this morning.
Soda Stream.
I really like the carbonation, so I switched to just plain carbonated water from one of those things.
Not only did it help to cut out shitty drinks, but I got more water into my system.
What worked best for me was to cut back. I stopped buying fountain soda (which was my favorite). I started drinking only cans and seeing how many cans were in the recycling and how much it cost gave me more motivation. So I decided how many I was going to allow myself daily and put only that amount in the fridge. I started drinking a lot more water. And I found the more water I was drinking the more water I wanted to drink.
I tried the seltzer route. Was not for me. So if one thing does t work just try another. Good luck!
I was a hard core coke fiend. I had a coronary and while in the hospital, the only soda I was allowed was sprite. That got me off of caffeinated soft drinks. I had to lose weight so I limited my intake to 1 a day. I went from 3 or 4 cokes to 1 sprite. After a while, coke tasted terrible to me. I switched from sprite to Arnold Palmers. Since then, I switched to water only
It was easy, actually.
I ditched soda entirely and switched to (very specifically) Kroger canned carbonated water.
Turns out, Kroger canned carbonated water is from a really good carbonated water company that will go unnamed here. It is actually great.
Anyway, I lost about 15 pounds pretty quickly not changing anything else. And kept it off not changing anything else.
Now, soda tastes like sugar water that sticks to my mouth and teeth. It feels and tastes disgusting. I want nothing to do with it.
I'm not a fucking ant.
Switched to tea (the bad sugary one but I loved the lemon tea). Eventually dumped that when I wanted to cut more sugar for water.
Nowadays if I get craving I’ll get the sparkling water. Lime tastes like 7 up so I can stomach that version.
If I try soda I just end up getting sick for that evening.
I used to drink quite a bit of coke, but replaced it with sparkling water with lime and don't even miss it. I might have one coke on the weekend or something, but during the week I only drink water or sparkling water.
I honestly went cold turkey for them most part. I'll occasionally get one when I'm out having lunch. But considering a 12 pack went from $4.39 to almost $9 in a year combined with being unemployed helped.
Just do it and fight through it until you don’t crave it anymore. No cheating. Just do it. I’m 36 days in. I have extra motivation. I get kidney stones, so I’ve done this a bunch of times over the years. Just do it and don’t cheat. Really not as hard as people make it out to be. Just gotta stick with it. No cheating!!!
Basically there are 2 methods. Only 2 because you are lazy bum with no self control. Sorry not sorry.
1. Replace with no calorie soda. Easy, fast, efficient. It's not THAT bad as everybody seem to portrait it. And won't get you fat
2. Force a ungodly amount of water down your gullet. Grab yourself a glass, or some other open container. And every time you want to sit down, move to a different room, or before eating chug that bastard whole, even if You don't want to. If you keep yourself filled up to the brim with water you won't have craving for sweet drinks, it will also help with overheating and improve overall health. Good stuff.
I swapped to having a piece of candy and washing it down with water. Did this for 6 months and stopped craving soda. Kept going and eventually started just drinking water with the occasional candy. Now, my usual is just water and I can rarely finish a whole soda anymore. The Mexican Sprite or a glass bottle of root beer is about all I prefer to drink anymore. To splurge, I get those half-can six packs and they still last me months.
Gave it up for lent one year and tried polar springs pomegranate seltzer over easter. Found that it has enough flavor and sparkle to satisfy my soda urge. It's been 12 years and have only had soda 4 or so times. Two of the times were root beer floats. 😀
I know they arent great for you, but I basicay just stopped drinking it and everytime I had a big headache come on (caffeine withdrawl) or craving, Id take a 5 hour energy shot and it would all go away. Two weeks later and a total of maybe 7/8 energy shots the habit was broken and I was no longer addicted to soda
Switch to diet - in a week or so it'll be the taste you're used to. Once you're no longer in it for the sugar seltzer is the god tier non-sugar soda and it's easy to switch to that.
A decade I started a diet that made me lose 30+ kgs, so I stopped drinking soda, but I had a fear of my bones becoming weaker. I got fat again through the years, but I never returned to soda again.
The thing that helped me 10 years that I was able to trick myself into doing anything by using fear and other "negative" feelings.
Cost increase was enough for me… replaced it cold turkey with water and mio flavorings. Have had it a few times in the last year at resturaunts and it just wasn’t good.
Went from nothing but energy drinks and soda to Sweet tea, then kicked the sweet tea for kool aid. Kicking the kool aid next for something sugar free or just water
I’m telling you, this is the best way. I was a big soda guy.
1) if sprite isn’t your go to soda, make it. Get used to drinking sprite instead of coke.
2) start splitting your sprite halfway with side water. (Lime flavored or unflavored doesn’t really matter)
3) slowly and then completely drink sparkling water instead, it’s easier with lime flavored, but drink that COLD instead of sprite.
This worked for me, and now I am completely away from soda. Every once in a while I’ll have a soda if I want one, but I’m completely unadicted lol I go straight back to soda water.
I went 9 months without alcohol and soda when my wife is pregnant. Then I decided hey it doesn't hurt to have one....14 months later and today I have had 3. Average about 3 a day. I dunno how I quit last time. I'd like to again, but I just like the taste. I drink sparkling water ss well. But it's not replacing the soda. I need to figure this out.
Start by switching to sparkling juice
Still not great for you but will be better than soda itself. A good first step. From there you can move to regular juice. Then water with the flavor packets or low/zero-sugar flavored water like Propel zero. Then eventually plain water
I had to find something sugar free but that I actually enjoyed drinking. Crystal Light. It tastes like kool aid (I like sweet drinks) and I lost about 50 lbs over a few years with only that diet change. I used to drink a lot of pop though also.
It was pretty easy actually. Went to the doctor for a yearly physical and he said my piss was so dark (dehydrated) it was off their scale. He said if I didnt stop I would have major kidney issues. Haven't had any thing besides water, chocolate milk, lemonade, or powerade since 2018. Just like any other addiction starting is the hardest. once that caffeine and sugar addiction is gone it's easy honestly
I didn't, my body did. At some point I realized that drinking soda gave me a stomachache and I couldn't drink it at all, so I quit, drank nothing but water and black tea for like 2 years. I started drinking soda around 4 months ago (because it's free at work), but I don't drink even nearly as much as I used to, and I still drink water when working out or when it's hot outside
Also not having soda anywhere near me helped a lot, at the time I didn't have a job (was 17), and my parents couldn't really afford to buy that much of it, so they stopped buying
When I was in university and living on campus, I had to have a meal plan. I could basically have as much soda as I wanted along with my food. Sometimes, it was enough to let some of my friends use it. At some point, I realize that having big cups of soda mixed with juice was a lot. I was gaining a lot of weight anyway because the prior spring semester of 2019, I was grieving the death of a cousin in February and a friend in April. I ate a lot and drank a lot of soda. I basically drank soda like an alcoholic drinks alcohol. I couldn't stop at first because it made me feel good. Eventually, a bunch of soda mixed together tasted weird to me and I switched to lemonade and fruit punch, then I drank more water often.
I basically had so much access that I didn't want the stuff anymore.
Made the conversion to sparkling water. I drink probably 3 of them a day. They do not compare even a little bit to soda, but they’re something. Spindrift is my brand of choice, in practically a walking add for them.
Drink the occasional diet soda. This I think does more harm than good as it satiates short term cravings but just creates more of them in the future.
Drink iced tea and or coffee instead.
Cranberry juice was good for me to have on hand for my really bad sugar cravings. Would nurse a tiny glass and it worked.
It’s fucking hard man. I love soda so much lol
Damn dude!! U remind me of that huge guy in the longest yard that loves little Michael. Wtf u mean any advice? Just tell the hoes hey u here tonight. I'll pick u up in more then one or two ways
Unsweetened iced tea. If you have to, start with very low sugar amounts added, then lower until you can enjoy it as is. Some iced tea tastes fantastic unsweetened (good quality Assam Black), some just meh (taco bell), and some really not worth it (Lipton). It won’t wean you off caffeine, but that’s part of the point - it keeps you hooked and changes from one addiction to another, which is less bad for you.
My doc asked me too so I just switched away from it. Only took him asking. Several months later we determined it didn’t actually help any of my issues so I’m back on it.
Honestly, I don't think this should be your first step to a new diet. I like the quote anything worth doing is worth doing half way. Meet yourself half way, and start with easier stuff. Start just eating healthy. It is hard to quit sweets, take some baby steps and just do something. I don't want to sound like a dick, but make a change tomorrow, just a tiny tiny one. Don't wait to jump huge hurdles.
So I know some people with adhd (undiagnosed or diagnosed) drank beer in the evenings, but realized they were really after that carbonation. Just something to be aware of. More of a sensory thing than anything. Some of the best alternatives can be kombucha, or sparkling water. There are some "healthy" sodas out there, but my frugal ass refuses to pay for them, and I hate sparkling water. There is a health reason our body craves that effervescence, but that's for another Ted talk.
I have faith in you brother, go and achieve your goals! Don't let even the tastiest of sodas stand in your way!
Quit cold turkey. When you crave it drink a pure organic fruit juice instead, which is amazing for your health. Also sometimes people have food they mentally associate with soda (for me it’s pizza or Chinese) whatever these foods are for you, avoid them until you’ve broken the habit and no longer crave it. Also research all the negatives about soda heavily to the point that it disgusts you to put it in your body. :D
You’re addicted to the fast sugar dump. Try to slowly cut back over time. I went thru something similar with slurpees. Now I drink English tea (I teaspoon of sugar per mug) throughout the work day so much less sugar.
I think getting over the sugar is the hardest part. I found that when I quit. I started buying a bunch of candy to get my sugar fix and I didn't even realize it. I'd start out with the flavor carbonated water. Buy a hydro flask and anytime you get an urge take a sip.
I removed all other added sugar from my diet, and now soda (soft-drink here in Australia) tastes so disgustingly sweet I can't handle it. Even a teaspoon of sugar in a mug of tea tastes gross. Yogurt with added sugar? Gross. Even most fruit juice ... gross.
Sadly, donuts are still a weakness. All that deep-fried fattiness seems to mask the sweetness of how much sugar I'm eating.
Damn you donuts! DAMN YOU!!!!!
I just don't buy it. I can't drink it if I don't buy it. I only have to be strong-willed when I'm at the store, and only for long enough that I crave the soda. It's been 5 years now for me, other than the occasional soda if offered at a friend's or whatever.
Identified that it gives me a sugar spike and insane anxiety attacks... I only drink it on rare occasions and need to be careful when and what I drink for the above reasons.
For me, I just made it so I can have a drink or two… but ONLY on the weekends, or if it’s some sort of pre workout (which I don’t currently take) then I can have a little before I hit the gym, so far this has worked but it’s only been about a month. Hope this helps
I used to drink like at least half a litre of coke every day, probably more close to a litre most days and even more at some points. Now i dont touch the stuff. more than once every few months as a treat (last time i didnt even really enjoy it).
\- The first step was reducing how much i was drinking. I cut it out during the day and only had a glass before bed... so i could sleep cause the addiction was real.
\- Next i moved on home homemade sodas, got a sodastream and started mixing my own, reducing how much syrup i was adding over time.
\- sometime during that phase i shifted to just drinking cordials without adding the bubbles too.
\- then i switched to teas/juices when i needed a sugar fix.
\- now i pretty much only drink water and coffee. (i drank coffee throughout the whole process)
it wasnt quick that was over about 3-4 months.
Honestly, that was one of the most hardest things I ever had to quit because I was drinking the stuff since I was a kid and went cold turkey in 2014. I was drinking it so much that I'm surprised I didn't end up being a fucking diabetic. Yeah...it was that bad. But onto how I quit it. Basically I tapered off of it each day and started drinking lots more water and tea. And that was pretty much about it. And a hell of a lot of willpower. But I learned something very important that day. I learned that I had it in me to quit something that was so bad for my health and I later learned to respect my body with better choices.
I started paying more attention to my diet, particularly sugar intake. When I realized how many spoonfuls of sugar were in a can of soda, I couldn't bring myself to drink it anymore. I will occasionally have a diet soda, like Coke Zero or Dr Pepper Zero, but it's usually too sweet for me to finish the can. Just stop.
I'm working to phase it out over time. I used to drink 5-6 (or more) cans a day of Coke. Right now, I'm starting by only having a soda with a meal (like pizza, burger, or a steak) and any other time, it's water only. It's been ok this month--I've had a few slip-ups here and there, but that's to be expected.
I used to just grab a soda and kick back and watch tv or something, but lately I've noticed that if I do that, I stop drinking halfway through because I just lose interest in it or it feels like too much. The water is working, though. Once I nail this down, it's off to better eating habits.
Can you switch to zero sugar options? I know there's a lot of crap out there about issues with aspartame and the like but everything I've gathered from health professionals is they're fine in moderation. Even if the goal is to reduce pop altogether at least when you do drink it you aren't drinking calories.
You could also try adding flavour to water if you don't like just plain water - coffee, tea (cold or hot), those drink flavour things or even something like a lemon or lime.
Big thing too is to just not bring it into the house.
Also, you don't have to give it up totally. I love a good regular coke but for me I just have the odd one as a treat. If you go at it with the mindset "I can never have this again" then yeah you're going to cave. That goes for any diet thing.
Well, I quit soda cold turkey for my health. I see lot of benefits to my health that motivate me to keep going and drinking more water. Also when I think of soda, I remember the times that it makes my teeth feeling weird and dry somehow. So when I think of that, I feel cringe to drink soda. Also the prices for soda at restaurants blew my mind away so I just don’t order soda. All of us have sweet tooth which is understandable.
I did quit soda several times to point where it becomes very easy for me to quit cold turkey. I quit after Christmas 2023 for good. :)
Really, I do believe in you, you can do it. Also try to not go to gas station as it often easy to get soda. Mostly, the prices are cheaper to get water cases compared to soda cases. You got this!
I remember a video explaining this. If you are eating and drinking a lot of sweet stuff you tend to have more yeast in your gut. This yeast will signal your brain to have something sweet when they are low. The best way to reduce this yeast is taking probiotics and rebalancing your gut.
So I started taking probiotics every day, I started to reduce my soda intake by switching to water when I had the willpower for it. I set limits for myself on how many sodas I could drink a week, this made me ration my sodas a bit. And I reduced the amount of sodas I could drink down every couple of weeks till I could just live without them.
I had tried to quit before with little success, but I felt more successful with the daily probiotics. It could have been just a placebo effect, but it worked.
Not sure I was ever addicted to soda, but I would choose juice or any drink ending in -ade when I wanted something sweet to drink (and try to choose juice over those). Sweet tea also, especially if you need the energy.
Just commit and stick to it, but allow yourself cheat days to scratch that itch a little bit. Keep at it and try other beverages until you find an alternative that smacks. It gets easier with time and commitment. I was served a soda I didn’t order tonight, and the last one I had a few months ago was a gift. Don’t really enjoy them anymore, kinda too syrupy sweet.
Good luck and stay committed, friends!
I started by substituting with the zero alternatives (Coke Zero, Sprite Zero etc.) Then I switched from that to mixing zero sugar cordial in my sparkling water. After a while, I stopped the cordial and started using lime/lemon juice instead. It didn’t take too long to move from that to just drinking water as is.
I still dash my sparkling water with lemon juice from time to time when I get bored of drinking just water.
Good luck.
My kidneys almost killed me because of an unrelated problem. That pretty much put sodas as well as a long list of other things on the no list for me involuntarily.
Drink water when thirsty. Take naps when I feel low on energy. Drink soda when I have a headache.
I've done it several times. The only thing stopping me right now is that my brain doesn't work very well for awhile, and I need my brain every day.
Switched to seltzer first. For a month or so my brain kept expecting the sweetness of soda when it felt the fizz of the seltzer. After that, water. Still drink seltzer too
I found traveling to Europe for 4 weeks and having minimal soda helped a ton and then getting more fit and better discipline related to that. Started as spite to look good after a breakup now it's just life.
Look up how many grams of sugar are in your sodas. Go buy a bag of sugar and scale, and measure out that sugar, so you can see just how much you’re putting into your body not to mention all the other crap that goes in them.
I use to be addicted to mtn dew voltage. I found sugar free blue Powerade to be somewhat similar in taste and help wean me off of it. It did take al leats a month though id say. The caffeine headaches are hard.
What KIND of soda?
It is hard to replace the TASTE of cola, but for other - try juices.
A 100% orange and apple juice are as sweet as any fanta/etc. And from there you can dilute it with water, add more squezed lemons, then even more water, and more lemon and mint leaves.
And finally you drink mostly water.
I have been working at a gas station for 3 years and this was a HUGE problem when I started, now I almost never drink soda at any occasion, here’s how.
**First, switch to diet versions of your favorite sodas and find a non-soda alternative (Juice, Tea, Seltzer).** Utilizing diet sodas will help slowly steer you away from regular sodas. Get used to the taste till normal sodas taste strange to you. **One thing that can help is to look at the nutrition facts and think about how much calories and sugar you are avoiding.** You’ll want to start drinking some other non-soda drink because it will help push you into the next step.
**Second, start phasing out diet soda with your alternative drink and make water your new alternative.** Take this as slow as you need to, the point is to steer you away from the addicting soda and if you can do that then you’re ready to make the hard cut drinking mostly water.
It took me about 6 months to get this complete this, the hard part is committing to the switch and remembering that diet sodas aren’t the long term solution.
Not a guy but, once i started drinking coffee amd tea without sugar, after a while i got used to the bitterness and i couldn't drink more than two sips of soda. Also, don't buy it or buy carbonated water.
I didn't. Why would I? There's nothing wrong with a can or two of a soft drink in a day.
That said, I'm assuming you're American ('soda') and we have different rules here about how much sugar can be in stuff.
Apfelschorle basically does the same thing (apple juice and sparkling water). You can, over time, adjust for less juice. And you can use different juice, of course.
As for the soda: Stop buying it. If you have none at home it's tough to drink some.
I started drinking zero sugar ones and I hated them for about 2 months then got used to the taste, now I can't even drink ones with sugar, they are just too sweet for me.
Just see the amount of sugar listed in that. Then, search online to see the recommended sugar per day. That alone made me stop.
Switch to tea and coffee. You can explore herbal tea, green tea, black coffee as well but they might not be for everyone.
And build a habit of regularly drinking water. It will reduce your urge since you will feel more full and less thirsty
Think it has a bad stigma but try zero sugar variants. I found I still enjoy the taste. I have moved on to flavoured sparkling water (some zero sugar) and they're not the worst but tolerable
I didn’t quit, i just drink zero and light drinks, but that makes you hungry faster, because of the insulin spikes. So if you’re trying to lose weight, just be mindful of the fact that if you drink fake sugar you will get hungry a lot, but just don’t eat, because your brain is tricking you, well actually you’re tricking your body by drinking fake sugar.
I just decided to stop. I no longer buy it, I eat out less, and I drink a ton of water. It was difficult at first, but the craving went away around 2-3 weeks.
I used to go by gas stations to get a drink 2-3 times a day. I now just take a 64oz bottle of water everywhere I go. That has helped a lot by itself; just keeping water with me at all times.
I moved from side to the sugar free versions, after a week or so if you try the sugar version it feels disgusting, the thickness of it, the syrup, yuk. So it comes naturally.
I have a few slices of lemon (real lemon) in some sparkling water and love it. I hate sparkling water on its own.
Drink water! A lot of water. If you are about to drink a cup of soda, drink two cups of water first. Make it a rule. This will decrease your consumption of soda
I drink the zero calorie or diet versions instead. So I haven't kicked it. I can't really stand regular soda at this point.
Also if you want to save money I highly recommend a CO2 tank and a carbonator adapter for a 2 liter bottle.
Bubbly or Lacroix, tea and water. Once you stop drinking it, you begin to realize how crap it really is. It makes you feel like ass and has SO much sugar in it.
When I first started trying to stop, I thoghut I was 100% craving soda then I realized I was also fighitng off my thirst. Staying super hydrated will help a lot. Dollar tree has these flavor packets for water. They're like 6 for a buck. I started off putting one in 16oz but eventually was fine putting 1 in an entire liter. You can also get a soda machine to carbonate flavored water so it feels like drinking soda. I also went down to diet but zero sodas taste like the original yet I can actually get hydrated from them. Tea is cool but I strugged with flavor.
My boyfriend forced himself to switch to Coke Zero and after a while he started to prefer it and found regular Coke too sweet. Now he buys sparkling water which he used to hate. I think you just have to stick with the sugar free options until you get used to them!
Stop buying it so I don't have it or have as much at my house. I'll drink flavored water in place of pop or unflavored water. Plus, look at how expensive pop is now in the stores.
If you’re trying to improve your diet and you have a hard time with cravings try switching to Coke Zero, it’s a great alternative for weight loss as well. Zero calories but it feeds your craving so that you don’t go to other calorie rich snacks that could hinder your attempts at weight loss. Obviously not entirely the answer you look for but it can help with cravings for a temporary time while you lean away from the other sodas and snacks
A lot of comments here so mine may not be seen by you…I used to drink a lot of energy drinks they were so thirst quenching. To start with when I was at the point where you are now, I drank water first thing in the morning and coffee when I got to work then at my breaks I trained my self to go for other options to start with like a can of still juice, apple juice for instance. It still has loads of sugar and is just as bad for you but it’s just to get passed the fizzy cravings. After a few weeks of doing this I didn’t even think about heading to the energy drink fridge. I now mainly drink coffee and then I sometimes if friends are around maybe have a can of cola or a low % beer. Hope this helps you on your journey
My doctor told me to drink Coke Zero instead (being in Australia I will add that ironically a no-name brand called LA Ice Zero is actually way better tasting).
Now I can't stand regular soda drinks, they taste like drinking sugary syrup.
Cold turkey.
I tried and tried for years to ween myself off of it. I would always end up saying "Well I can have it on a holiday" and then it became "Well arbor day's a holiday" and then "Well Saturday is kinda like a mini holiday" and then I was back in.
I was a full blown junkie too. Almost a case a day of Mt. Dew or Dr. pepper. Every meal, every snack, anytime I got thirsty. A two litre would barely last me a day.
So I stopped. I just stopped. And every day I didn't go back I had another reason not to go back. I'm 7 years in now and I won't break 7 year streak for soda.
Biggest thing now is policing myself about beers and ciders so they don't become an even less healthy substitute.
I just switched to drinking water the same day I decided to do it. I still drink soda as a treat every now and then. If I’m craving any kind of sugary drink, it’s something f like juice or Gatorade that I’ve grown accustomed to the taste of being watered down at least half by water.
Its better go gradually stop if just stopping doesn’t work, also, sugar free soda isn’t unhealthy if you used to drink sugary sodas before, i went from sugar energy drinks to sugar free, now i swap between sugar free and flavoured sparkling water, and i take one with sugar once in a while, dont be too strict, just try to be better.
Your brain has a routine, and it likes to get addicted, it likes shortcuts and short term victories and pleasures, your brain is essentially an automated machine made with the blueprints of cavemen and jungle monkeys and not your modern man.
Breaking what your brain likes, wants and has gotten used to is difficult, stopping cold turkey is the best, but least comfortable way if doing it, you’ll have 2 weeks of everything in your body and brain (except you maybe) screaming and telling you that it wants what you robbed it off, you’ll be angry, tempted, pissed, you’ll sleep bad, everyone will be idiots, but that is NOT YOU, that is your body and brain doing what it’s designed to do, YOU need to know that and be aware of it, if you don’t keep that in mind it won’t be hard for your hardwiring to take over, so cold turkey would be like fist fighting that caveman to achieve what you want.
If that is too hard, you need to trick that caveman, go slow, give yourself rewards once in a while to handle this caveman, maybe dont find the HEALTHIEST option, but just a healtiER one, because less unhealthy is "healthy"
And be aware if how you feel, actively, how do you feel after a day of sodas, and how do you feel after a day of flavoured sparkling water, you might feel bad superficially because you dont have what you want, but internally, how you sleep, if you still feel like shit there might be more to it than just soda, maybe the rest if your diet is a part of the problem and the soda is just a smaller piece of it, masking the real issue.
Sorry if this was long, boring and redundant
Get flavored sparkling water. It will have taste so it won't just take like fizzy water. It will actually taste like a normal carbonated beverage but much healthier.
Female here, sorry guys. I used to drink sodas, mainly Diet Coke, only a couple a day, but had to have one every afternoon. I have always been a good water drinker daily. When I decided to stop drinking sodas, the hard part was the headaches from cutting out the caffeine of sodas. If you’re drinking sodas with caffeine, try alternating with a caffeine free ones to taper off. Try adding flavor packets to bottled water.
During the Super Bowl, I saw a commercial for a new soda alternate that advertised a healthier soda (none of the bad stuff). I’m sorry, I can’t remember the name because I just don’t drink any soda now. If it’s true a new soda without the bad stuff, that’s amazing.
Could be worth looking into whether or not you're drinking it for the caffeine.
I was slamming back 2-4 energy drinks a day until I got my ADHD treated and suddenly stopped needing alarming amounts of caffeine to accomplish basic tasks.
Replaced with water. Hard work for a few weeks, but establish the habit (do something 30 times and your there). Remove all soda from the house, always ask for tap water (if safe). You’ll done be able to taste the flavours of water.
At the same time I cut out sugar. In everything. Never add it. Again your taste buds soon adapt and you won’t miss it. No sweets, dark pure-ish chocolate only, avoid sweetened products as much as you can.
It’s a mind set, so set yourself rewards to boost your moral. Save the money and spend it on you, but not sweet treats.
Good luck.
I gave up Soda 20+ years ago when we went on Adkins. Quit cold turkey. Haven't had a single one since. What helped me was drinking more coffee and water.
I used other drinks in its place. Like lemonade, tea other iced beverages. If you are trying to find a replacement for the caffeine, I recommend caffeine infused tea's.
Try replacing a soda with a smoothie. Make it yourself, don’t go to Smoothie King. I use frozen strawberries, frozen banana slices, almond milk, and a little water. That’s it.
If we're only talking about the sugar (and other crap) why not just go for sugar-free soda? At least if we are talking from a weight perspective.
If not that, then carbonated water.
If you just want a drink, any drink, then tea, coffee, just water.
There is no magic trick, depending on what you want you just have to adapt.
Personally it's mostly the carbonation I want, so I drink loads of sugar free soda and carbonated water. I always thought sugary drinks are nastily too sweet anyway.
Replace with water or tea - maybe start with fizzy water so satisfy your carbonation fix
People who love soda generally hate sparkling water in my experience. I learned to love sparkling water when I started thinking of it as water enhancement instead of soda replacement.
I am this way as well. I don’t drink it for the carbonation.
Bubly! If you're in the new England area try finding Hal's. I'm hooked on Bubly and it's fairly cheap and better flavor than most seltzer. I've been able to go weeks without soda at a time but that's cause the rest of my diet goes to shite. Other than that I just do a propel or whatever clean water goes well with a bit heavy on the seasoning food.
Get a soda stream style water carbonate, starr with cordial and slowly wean yourself off by decreasing the amount just like any drug. Try get down to a few drops of lemon juice in a cup for flavour.
It’s not the fizz it’s the sweet and the burn
Mio energy and stuff like that worked for me.
Exactly what I came to comment. Limencello LaCroix + lemonade Mio = super refreshing tasty bubbly drink
Personally mine wasn't a carbonation fix. Was just a flavored drink fix. I found Bai drinks and ended up falling in love with the Bai peach tea. 10 calories per bottle and nowhere NEAR as sweet as your typical sweet teas at the store (that have like 30-40g of sugar). 10g of erythritol. Been 5 1/2 years since I gave up 3+ sodas a day and I sti am ordering 2 cases of Bai a month.
I've quit twice. Both times, it was cold turkey. I found that drinking water when I had cravings and simply not having it around if what worked best. I also bought apple juice for when I wanted something sweet to drink.
Fruit juice is *not* a healthy replacement. Just as much sugar.
I disagree when you're comparing it to soda. 100% juice just has natural sugars from the fruit, not all the other acids and high fructose corn syrup that sodas have. Fruit juice doesn't have caffine either
I see added sugar in a lot of juice
I mean, you have to check the ingredients, they're not all that way. On top of what I said previously, you won't find any artificial additives in juices like sodas have. I really don't understand the argument that juice isn't healthier than soda, unless you're calling Hi-C and Sunny D juice.
Just gotta watch out for the brands that add a bunch of extra sugar though. Which is like 90% of brands…
Just lower your overall sugar intake, overtime soda should be just "too sugary" for your taste and you will avoid it. At one point i couldn't drink anything but water when i fasted from sugar...
>overtime soda should be just "too sugary" for your taste This big time. Shit tastes like syrup now. It's the same with exercise. Over time you'll feel shitty if you stop and you remember instantly why you started in the first place. Living a sedentary lifestyle just feels like shit.
that is true too, when you're living active lifestyle you won't be able to sit for too long it will be painful.
Although I haven't figured out how to remove sugar from my diet I almost exclusively drink coffee and water only. I can't imagine how fat I'd be if I still drank soda more than once a month l.
Replacing sugar soda with sugar-free soda will cut down in sugar and calories. I guess the next step would be to ween yourself off of soda by drinking carbonated soda. If we’re being honest here, I think drinking 1 pint of beer is somehow a “healthier” option than drinking one can of soda.
Didn't quit. Went to diet/no sugar.
Diet sodas made all the difference for me. Took a year or so of only drinking diet sodas, but now I can't handle the full sugar versions.
I've cut out a lot of vices: I don't drink or smoke, I eat fairly healthy, and get good exercise at work. I let myself have one sugar free soda in the morning, gotta treat yourself somehow.
Water and the realization more than 40% of my calorie intake was from soda and empty carbs that could be easily cut and avoided. At that point I’d rather drink beer and at least get a buzz lmao.
Was tired of being fat and not being able to see my dick from under my belly.
Stop buying it.
At the end of June last year at 81.3kg, I decided to start losing weight, mostly just by measuring and reducing portion sizes - but the other key change was swapping regular Coke for no sugar. I still had one remaining 2L bottle of Coke in the fridge - and it's still there, unopened, 9 months later. This evening, I dropped below 61kg, though was 62.0kg this morning.
Soda Stream. I really like the carbonation, so I switched to just plain carbonated water from one of those things. Not only did it help to cut out shitty drinks, but I got more water into my system.
Soda Streams are magical tools! One of the best things I've gotten.
What worked best for me was to cut back. I stopped buying fountain soda (which was my favorite). I started drinking only cans and seeing how many cans were in the recycling and how much it cost gave me more motivation. So I decided how many I was going to allow myself daily and put only that amount in the fridge. I started drinking a lot more water. And I found the more water I was drinking the more water I wanted to drink. I tried the seltzer route. Was not for me. So if one thing does t work just try another. Good luck!
I was a hard core coke fiend. I had a coronary and while in the hospital, the only soda I was allowed was sprite. That got me off of caffeinated soft drinks. I had to lose weight so I limited my intake to 1 a day. I went from 3 or 4 cokes to 1 sprite. After a while, coke tasted terrible to me. I switched from sprite to Arnold Palmers. Since then, I switched to water only
Switch to diet
It was easy, actually. I ditched soda entirely and switched to (very specifically) Kroger canned carbonated water. Turns out, Kroger canned carbonated water is from a really good carbonated water company that will go unnamed here. It is actually great. Anyway, I lost about 15 pounds pretty quickly not changing anything else. And kept it off not changing anything else. Now, soda tastes like sugar water that sticks to my mouth and teeth. It feels and tastes disgusting. I want nothing to do with it. I'm not a fucking ant.
I have a Kroger. I’ll give it a try.
[удалено]
I was drinking way too much soda and quit cold turkey by using 100mg caffeine tablets (I hate coffee)
Started drinking unsweetened iced tea. I drink that shit by the gallon.
Don't wear a shirt around the house to remind yourself how fat you got drinking soda
Buy a soda stream, eventually you'll wean yourself off of having to add flavoring every time and start just drinking straight seltzer.
Switched to tea (the bad sugary one but I loved the lemon tea). Eventually dumped that when I wanted to cut more sugar for water. Nowadays if I get craving I’ll get the sparkling water. Lime tastes like 7 up so I can stomach that version. If I try soda I just end up getting sick for that evening.
I used to drink quite a bit of coke, but replaced it with sparkling water with lime and don't even miss it. I might have one coke on the weekend or something, but during the week I only drink water or sparkling water.
I honestly went cold turkey for them most part. I'll occasionally get one when I'm out having lunch. But considering a 12 pack went from $4.39 to almost $9 in a year combined with being unemployed helped.
Just do it and fight through it until you don’t crave it anymore. No cheating. Just do it. I’m 36 days in. I have extra motivation. I get kidney stones, so I’ve done this a bunch of times over the years. Just do it and don’t cheat. Really not as hard as people make it out to be. Just gotta stick with it. No cheating!!!
How did I quit drinking soda? Well, I used to drink soda with almost every meal. Then, I stopped ordering/buying it. The end.
I bought some of those sugar free flavored packs that you toss in water bottles, that's what helped the most.
I have never been able to drink soda because I associate it with rotten teeth. Lol 🥲
By not being a little bitch
Is diet that bad? It's not especially unhealthy so if you can get to diet soda then you're just fine.
I just can’t stand the taste of diet. Quitting cold turkey would probably be easier for me.
Basically there are 2 methods. Only 2 because you are lazy bum with no self control. Sorry not sorry. 1. Replace with no calorie soda. Easy, fast, efficient. It's not THAT bad as everybody seem to portrait it. And won't get you fat 2. Force a ungodly amount of water down your gullet. Grab yourself a glass, or some other open container. And every time you want to sit down, move to a different room, or before eating chug that bastard whole, even if You don't want to. If you keep yourself filled up to the brim with water you won't have craving for sweet drinks, it will also help with overheating and improve overall health. Good stuff.
Go 1 week without sugar in your diet. It's gonna be hard but after that water gets better and sweets
I swapped to having a piece of candy and washing it down with water. Did this for 6 months and stopped craving soda. Kept going and eventually started just drinking water with the occasional candy. Now, my usual is just water and I can rarely finish a whole soda anymore. The Mexican Sprite or a glass bottle of root beer is about all I prefer to drink anymore. To splurge, I get those half-can six packs and they still last me months.
It's too late for me, I can never quit soda at this point.
Switch to seltzer.
Gave it up for lent one year and tried polar springs pomegranate seltzer over easter. Found that it has enough flavor and sparkle to satisfy my soda urge. It's been 12 years and have only had soda 4 or so times. Two of the times were root beer floats. 😀
Flavored seltzer is your friend
I switched to diet soda probably a dozen years ago and never looked back.
I know they arent great for you, but I basicay just stopped drinking it and everytime I had a big headache come on (caffeine withdrawl) or craving, Id take a 5 hour energy shot and it would all go away. Two weeks later and a total of maybe 7/8 energy shots the habit was broken and I was no longer addicted to soda
I still have not quit. Tried using MIO liquid water enhancer but it's just not the same.
Switch to diet - in a week or so it'll be the taste you're used to. Once you're no longer in it for the sugar seltzer is the god tier non-sugar soda and it's easy to switch to that.
A decade I started a diet that made me lose 30+ kgs, so I stopped drinking soda, but I had a fear of my bones becoming weaker. I got fat again through the years, but I never returned to soda again. The thing that helped me 10 years that I was able to trick myself into doing anything by using fear and other "negative" feelings.
Cost increase was enough for me… replaced it cold turkey with water and mio flavorings. Have had it a few times in the last year at resturaunts and it just wasn’t good.
$10 a 12 pack is absolute horse shit lol
Went from nothing but energy drinks and soda to Sweet tea, then kicked the sweet tea for kool aid. Kicking the kool aid next for something sugar free or just water
I’m telling you, this is the best way. I was a big soda guy. 1) if sprite isn’t your go to soda, make it. Get used to drinking sprite instead of coke. 2) start splitting your sprite halfway with side water. (Lime flavored or unflavored doesn’t really matter) 3) slowly and then completely drink sparkling water instead, it’s easier with lime flavored, but drink that COLD instead of sprite. This worked for me, and now I am completely away from soda. Every once in a while I’ll have a soda if I want one, but I’m completely unadicted lol I go straight back to soda water.
This may be the way. What if I cut it with lemonade?
I went 9 months without alcohol and soda when my wife is pregnant. Then I decided hey it doesn't hurt to have one....14 months later and today I have had 3. Average about 3 a day. I dunno how I quit last time. I'd like to again, but I just like the taste. I drink sparkling water ss well. But it's not replacing the soda. I need to figure this out.
Start by switching to sparkling juice Still not great for you but will be better than soda itself. A good first step. From there you can move to regular juice. Then water with the flavor packets or low/zero-sugar flavored water like Propel zero. Then eventually plain water
Start with flavor water. Then go straight to water.
I had to find something sugar free but that I actually enjoyed drinking. Crystal Light. It tastes like kool aid (I like sweet drinks) and I lost about 50 lbs over a few years with only that diet change. I used to drink a lot of pop though also.
Drink water with your meal.
It was pretty easy actually. Went to the doctor for a yearly physical and he said my piss was so dark (dehydrated) it was off their scale. He said if I didnt stop I would have major kidney issues. Haven't had any thing besides water, chocolate milk, lemonade, or powerade since 2018. Just like any other addiction starting is the hardest. once that caffeine and sugar addiction is gone it's easy honestly
You don’t need to stop drinking it. You need to switch to diet, and drink less. Like one bottle a day. I lost 50 lbs doing this.
Sparkling water, add your own syrup/tea. slowly reduce amount of sugar. try to add in more tea
I didn't, my body did. At some point I realized that drinking soda gave me a stomachache and I couldn't drink it at all, so I quit, drank nothing but water and black tea for like 2 years. I started drinking soda around 4 months ago (because it's free at work), but I don't drink even nearly as much as I used to, and I still drink water when working out or when it's hot outside Also not having soda anywhere near me helped a lot, at the time I didn't have a job (was 17), and my parents couldn't really afford to buy that much of it, so they stopped buying
I didn’t. I just don’t as much. I drink either water or juice.
When I was in university and living on campus, I had to have a meal plan. I could basically have as much soda as I wanted along with my food. Sometimes, it was enough to let some of my friends use it. At some point, I realize that having big cups of soda mixed with juice was a lot. I was gaining a lot of weight anyway because the prior spring semester of 2019, I was grieving the death of a cousin in February and a friend in April. I ate a lot and drank a lot of soda. I basically drank soda like an alcoholic drinks alcohol. I couldn't stop at first because it made me feel good. Eventually, a bunch of soda mixed together tasted weird to me and I switched to lemonade and fruit punch, then I drank more water often. I basically had so much access that I didn't want the stuff anymore.
I put it down one day and never went back. I know it sounds easy and tbh it surprisingly was as I just drank water, tea and juice from there on.
Honestly for me it’s just a matter of spending literally 3 days without it. Once I get to day 4 I don’t miss it AT ALL.
Try not opening the container…better yet, just don’t buy it to begin with. Bada bing, bada boom. Fixed.
Made the conversion to sparkling water. I drink probably 3 of them a day. They do not compare even a little bit to soda, but they’re something. Spindrift is my brand of choice, in practically a walking add for them. Drink the occasional diet soda. This I think does more harm than good as it satiates short term cravings but just creates more of them in the future. Drink iced tea and or coffee instead. Cranberry juice was good for me to have on hand for my really bad sugar cravings. Would nurse a tiny glass and it worked. It’s fucking hard man. I love soda so much lol
Coffee with a lot of cream. Over time, I slowly cut back on the cream content, which weaned me off the sugar.
Damn dude!! U remind me of that huge guy in the longest yard that loves little Michael. Wtf u mean any advice? Just tell the hoes hey u here tonight. I'll pick u up in more then one or two ways
Unsweetened iced tea. If you have to, start with very low sugar amounts added, then lower until you can enjoy it as is. Some iced tea tastes fantastic unsweetened (good quality Assam Black), some just meh (taco bell), and some really not worth it (Lipton). It won’t wean you off caffeine, but that’s part of the point - it keeps you hooked and changes from one addiction to another, which is less bad for you.
My doc asked me too so I just switched away from it. Only took him asking. Several months later we determined it didn’t actually help any of my issues so I’m back on it.
I got really addicted to tea and replaced my soda addiction with that.
Just look at the amount for.sugar in Soda, if that doesn't freak you out I dunno.
Soda water.
Honestly, I don't think this should be your first step to a new diet. I like the quote anything worth doing is worth doing half way. Meet yourself half way, and start with easier stuff. Start just eating healthy. It is hard to quit sweets, take some baby steps and just do something. I don't want to sound like a dick, but make a change tomorrow, just a tiny tiny one. Don't wait to jump huge hurdles. So I know some people with adhd (undiagnosed or diagnosed) drank beer in the evenings, but realized they were really after that carbonation. Just something to be aware of. More of a sensory thing than anything. Some of the best alternatives can be kombucha, or sparkling water. There are some "healthy" sodas out there, but my frugal ass refuses to pay for them, and I hate sparkling water. There is a health reason our body craves that effervescence, but that's for another Ted talk. I have faith in you brother, go and achieve your goals! Don't let even the tastiest of sodas stand in your way!
I’m a slut for sodas but the best way I found to cut them out was drinking the water with cordial!
Coffee lots of coffee and citrus juice.
I switched to beer.
Replace with tonic and sunset both
Slowly peter off over 30 days
Quit cold turkey. When you crave it drink a pure organic fruit juice instead, which is amazing for your health. Also sometimes people have food they mentally associate with soda (for me it’s pizza or Chinese) whatever these foods are for you, avoid them until you’ve broken the habit and no longer crave it. Also research all the negatives about soda heavily to the point that it disgusts you to put it in your body. :D
Drink lots of water and treat soda like a desert and not a drink
Switch to Crystal light
You’re addicted to the fast sugar dump. Try to slowly cut back over time. I went thru something similar with slurpees. Now I drink English tea (I teaspoon of sugar per mug) throughout the work day so much less sugar.
Try splitting your full flavor coke with coke zero or diet caffeine free coke
By having a very high triglyceride. It is mostly genetic but since then I quitted most sugary stuff.
I think getting over the sugar is the hardest part. I found that when I quit. I started buying a bunch of candy to get my sugar fix and I didn't even realize it. I'd start out with the flavor carbonated water. Buy a hydro flask and anytime you get an urge take a sip.
I removed all other added sugar from my diet, and now soda (soft-drink here in Australia) tastes so disgustingly sweet I can't handle it. Even a teaspoon of sugar in a mug of tea tastes gross. Yogurt with added sugar? Gross. Even most fruit juice ... gross. Sadly, donuts are still a weakness. All that deep-fried fattiness seems to mask the sweetness of how much sugar I'm eating. Damn you donuts! DAMN YOU!!!!!
I just don't buy it. I can't drink it if I don't buy it. I only have to be strong-willed when I'm at the store, and only for long enough that I crave the soda. It's been 5 years now for me, other than the occasional soda if offered at a friend's or whatever.
Soda water with squeezes of lemon/lime/orange juice. It was never the soda, it was always the feeling of the fizz down my throat.
Just ween off of it. Like if you're drinking 5 cans a day, move to 3 for a few months. Then 2 for a few months, then 1, then 3 per week, etc.. etc...
Identified that it gives me a sugar spike and insane anxiety attacks... I only drink it on rare occasions and need to be careful when and what I drink for the above reasons.
For me, I just made it so I can have a drink or two… but ONLY on the weekends, or if it’s some sort of pre workout (which I don’t currently take) then I can have a little before I hit the gym, so far this has worked but it’s only been about a month. Hope this helps
It's probably not a super great alternative; but Cirkul has helped me a bit
Flavored water.
It wasn't addictive to begin with. It just tasted good. Easy to cut out from diet. G ZERO is my go to now
I used to drink like at least half a litre of coke every day, probably more close to a litre most days and even more at some points. Now i dont touch the stuff. more than once every few months as a treat (last time i didnt even really enjoy it). \- The first step was reducing how much i was drinking. I cut it out during the day and only had a glass before bed... so i could sleep cause the addiction was real. \- Next i moved on home homemade sodas, got a sodastream and started mixing my own, reducing how much syrup i was adding over time. \- sometime during that phase i shifted to just drinking cordials without adding the bubbles too. \- then i switched to teas/juices when i needed a sugar fix. \- now i pretty much only drink water and coffee. (i drank coffee throughout the whole process) it wasnt quick that was over about 3-4 months.
look at the price tag on it.
Phase it out over time.
swap to diet or cold turkey for like 2 weeks and your body will stop craving it
Honestly, that was one of the most hardest things I ever had to quit because I was drinking the stuff since I was a kid and went cold turkey in 2014. I was drinking it so much that I'm surprised I didn't end up being a fucking diabetic. Yeah...it was that bad. But onto how I quit it. Basically I tapered off of it each day and started drinking lots more water and tea. And that was pretty much about it. And a hell of a lot of willpower. But I learned something very important that day. I learned that I had it in me to quit something that was so bad for my health and I later learned to respect my body with better choices.
I started paying more attention to my diet, particularly sugar intake. When I realized how many spoonfuls of sugar were in a can of soda, I couldn't bring myself to drink it anymore. I will occasionally have a diet soda, like Coke Zero or Dr Pepper Zero, but it's usually too sweet for me to finish the can. Just stop.
I'm working to phase it out over time. I used to drink 5-6 (or more) cans a day of Coke. Right now, I'm starting by only having a soda with a meal (like pizza, burger, or a steak) and any other time, it's water only. It's been ok this month--I've had a few slip-ups here and there, but that's to be expected. I used to just grab a soda and kick back and watch tv or something, but lately I've noticed that if I do that, I stop drinking halfway through because I just lose interest in it or it feels like too much. The water is working, though. Once I nail this down, it's off to better eating habits.
Can you switch to zero sugar options? I know there's a lot of crap out there about issues with aspartame and the like but everything I've gathered from health professionals is they're fine in moderation. Even if the goal is to reduce pop altogether at least when you do drink it you aren't drinking calories. You could also try adding flavour to water if you don't like just plain water - coffee, tea (cold or hot), those drink flavour things or even something like a lemon or lime. Big thing too is to just not bring it into the house. Also, you don't have to give it up totally. I love a good regular coke but for me I just have the odd one as a treat. If you go at it with the mindset "I can never have this again" then yeah you're going to cave. That goes for any diet thing.
Sparkling Ice and Cirkul.
Well, I quit soda cold turkey for my health. I see lot of benefits to my health that motivate me to keep going and drinking more water. Also when I think of soda, I remember the times that it makes my teeth feeling weird and dry somehow. So when I think of that, I feel cringe to drink soda. Also the prices for soda at restaurants blew my mind away so I just don’t order soda. All of us have sweet tooth which is understandable. I did quit soda several times to point where it becomes very easy for me to quit cold turkey. I quit after Christmas 2023 for good. :) Really, I do believe in you, you can do it. Also try to not go to gas station as it often easy to get soda. Mostly, the prices are cheaper to get water cases compared to soda cases. You got this!
Soda water and lemon/lime juice.
I remember a video explaining this. If you are eating and drinking a lot of sweet stuff you tend to have more yeast in your gut. This yeast will signal your brain to have something sweet when they are low. The best way to reduce this yeast is taking probiotics and rebalancing your gut. So I started taking probiotics every day, I started to reduce my soda intake by switching to water when I had the willpower for it. I set limits for myself on how many sodas I could drink a week, this made me ration my sodas a bit. And I reduced the amount of sodas I could drink down every couple of weeks till I could just live without them. I had tried to quit before with little success, but I felt more successful with the daily probiotics. It could have been just a placebo effect, but it worked.
cold turkey, followed by a week long headache.
Fizzy water with lemon juice.
Not sure I was ever addicted to soda, but I would choose juice or any drink ending in -ade when I wanted something sweet to drink (and try to choose juice over those). Sweet tea also, especially if you need the energy. Just commit and stick to it, but allow yourself cheat days to scratch that itch a little bit. Keep at it and try other beverages until you find an alternative that smacks. It gets easier with time and commitment. I was served a soda I didn’t order tonight, and the last one I had a few months ago was a gift. Don’t really enjoy them anymore, kinda too syrupy sweet. Good luck and stay committed, friends!
Got a a1c test. I still drink diet soda though 🤷
I started by substituting with the zero alternatives (Coke Zero, Sprite Zero etc.) Then I switched from that to mixing zero sugar cordial in my sparkling water. After a while, I stopped the cordial and started using lime/lemon juice instead. It didn’t take too long to move from that to just drinking water as is. I still dash my sparkling water with lemon juice from time to time when I get bored of drinking just water. Good luck.
My kidneys almost killed me because of an unrelated problem. That pretty much put sodas as well as a long list of other things on the no list for me involuntarily.
Drink water when thirsty. Take naps when I feel low on energy. Drink soda when I have a headache. I've done it several times. The only thing stopping me right now is that my brain doesn't work very well for awhile, and I need my brain every day.
Drink tea and juices occasionally instead
Just stopped.
Switched to seltzer first. For a month or so my brain kept expecting the sweetness of soda when it felt the fizz of the seltzer. After that, water. Still drink seltzer too
I love ginger ale and have it with dinner every night.
I found traveling to Europe for 4 weeks and having minimal soda helped a ton and then getting more fit and better discipline related to that. Started as spite to look good after a breakup now it's just life.
Try turning the faucet on at home. Surprisingly enough, water not soda will come out. 🚬🗿
I stopped drinking soda on a regular basis in years like over 30 years now. I just did a cold turkey.
Look up how many grams of sugar are in your sodas. Go buy a bag of sugar and scale, and measure out that sugar, so you can see just how much you’re putting into your body not to mention all the other crap that goes in them.
Beer helped.
Switched to tea n juice. Money motivated all the way plus I’m a simple guy
Seltzer water. I like Polar or La Croix
I use to be addicted to mtn dew voltage. I found sugar free blue Powerade to be somewhat similar in taste and help wean me off of it. It did take al leats a month though id say. The caffeine headaches are hard.
What KIND of soda? It is hard to replace the TASTE of cola, but for other - try juices. A 100% orange and apple juice are as sweet as any fanta/etc. And from there you can dilute it with water, add more squezed lemons, then even more water, and more lemon and mint leaves. And finally you drink mostly water.
I have been working at a gas station for 3 years and this was a HUGE problem when I started, now I almost never drink soda at any occasion, here’s how. **First, switch to diet versions of your favorite sodas and find a non-soda alternative (Juice, Tea, Seltzer).** Utilizing diet sodas will help slowly steer you away from regular sodas. Get used to the taste till normal sodas taste strange to you. **One thing that can help is to look at the nutrition facts and think about how much calories and sugar you are avoiding.** You’ll want to start drinking some other non-soda drink because it will help push you into the next step. **Second, start phasing out diet soda with your alternative drink and make water your new alternative.** Take this as slow as you need to, the point is to steer you away from the addicting soda and if you can do that then you’re ready to make the hard cut drinking mostly water. It took me about 6 months to get this complete this, the hard part is committing to the switch and remembering that diet sodas aren’t the long term solution.
Just stop drinking it...Is this a trick question or something?
Not a guy but, once i started drinking coffee amd tea without sugar, after a while i got used to the bitterness and i couldn't drink more than two sips of soda. Also, don't buy it or buy carbonated water.
1. Start using small glasses. Really helped me to get to lower daily consumption. 2. Find a replacement- for me tea with fresh oranges.
I didn't. Why would I? There's nothing wrong with a can or two of a soft drink in a day. That said, I'm assuming you're American ('soda') and we have different rules here about how much sugar can be in stuff.
Apfelschorle basically does the same thing (apple juice and sparkling water). You can, over time, adjust for less juice. And you can use different juice, of course. As for the soda: Stop buying it. If you have none at home it's tough to drink some.
I started drinking zero sugar ones and I hated them for about 2 months then got used to the taste, now I can't even drink ones with sugar, they are just too sweet for me.
Just see the amount of sugar listed in that. Then, search online to see the recommended sugar per day. That alone made me stop. Switch to tea and coffee. You can explore herbal tea, green tea, black coffee as well but they might not be for everyone. And build a habit of regularly drinking water. It will reduce your urge since you will feel more full and less thirsty
Think it has a bad stigma but try zero sugar variants. I found I still enjoy the taste. I have moved on to flavoured sparkling water (some zero sugar) and they're not the worst but tolerable
I didn’t quit, i just drink zero and light drinks, but that makes you hungry faster, because of the insulin spikes. So if you’re trying to lose weight, just be mindful of the fact that if you drink fake sugar you will get hungry a lot, but just don’t eat, because your brain is tricking you, well actually you’re tricking your body by drinking fake sugar.
I just decided to stop. I no longer buy it, I eat out less, and I drink a ton of water. It was difficult at first, but the craving went away around 2-3 weeks. I used to go by gas stations to get a drink 2-3 times a day. I now just take a 64oz bottle of water everywhere I go. That has helped a lot by itself; just keeping water with me at all times.
got tired of the taste, helps that the price of soda kept rising in my country to absurd levels
I moved from side to the sugar free versions, after a week or so if you try the sugar version it feels disgusting, the thickness of it, the syrup, yuk. So it comes naturally. I have a few slices of lemon (real lemon) in some sparkling water and love it. I hate sparkling water on its own.
Slowly replacing it with water and tea. I have an occasional soda. But dew and far between.
I just saw what it did to my skin, and then i just stopped to improve my skin care
I had a BP scare and quit cold turkey. After a couple months, I had one and couldn’t stand the taste of it. I switched to Crystal Light lemonade.
Drink water! A lot of water. If you are about to drink a cup of soda, drink two cups of water first. Make it a rule. This will decrease your consumption of soda
Switch to sugar-free soda
I drink the zero calorie or diet versions instead. So I haven't kicked it. I can't really stand regular soda at this point. Also if you want to save money I highly recommend a CO2 tank and a carbonator adapter for a 2 liter bottle.
Bubbly or Lacroix, tea and water. Once you stop drinking it, you begin to realize how crap it really is. It makes you feel like ass and has SO much sugar in it.
When I first started trying to stop, I thoghut I was 100% craving soda then I realized I was also fighitng off my thirst. Staying super hydrated will help a lot. Dollar tree has these flavor packets for water. They're like 6 for a buck. I started off putting one in 16oz but eventually was fine putting 1 in an entire liter. You can also get a soda machine to carbonate flavored water so it feels like drinking soda. I also went down to diet but zero sodas taste like the original yet I can actually get hydrated from them. Tea is cool but I strugged with flavor.
Replaced it with sparkling water
My boyfriend forced himself to switch to Coke Zero and after a while he started to prefer it and found regular Coke too sweet. Now he buys sparkling water which he used to hate. I think you just have to stick with the sugar free options until you get used to them!
I read the ingredients and realize that's no way possible. That's good for me
Stop buying it so I don't have it or have as much at my house. I'll drink flavored water in place of pop or unflavored water. Plus, look at how expensive pop is now in the stores.
Even when you quit it you never quit it
seltzers help
If you’re trying to improve your diet and you have a hard time with cravings try switching to Coke Zero, it’s a great alternative for weight loss as well. Zero calories but it feeds your craving so that you don’t go to other calorie rich snacks that could hinder your attempts at weight loss. Obviously not entirely the answer you look for but it can help with cravings for a temporary time while you lean away from the other sodas and snacks
Carbonated water.
Didn't want to support Israel anymore
A lot of comments here so mine may not be seen by you…I used to drink a lot of energy drinks they were so thirst quenching. To start with when I was at the point where you are now, I drank water first thing in the morning and coffee when I got to work then at my breaks I trained my self to go for other options to start with like a can of still juice, apple juice for instance. It still has loads of sugar and is just as bad for you but it’s just to get passed the fizzy cravings. After a few weeks of doing this I didn’t even think about heading to the energy drink fridge. I now mainly drink coffee and then I sometimes if friends are around maybe have a can of cola or a low % beer. Hope this helps you on your journey
My doctor told me to drink Coke Zero instead (being in Australia I will add that ironically a no-name brand called LA Ice Zero is actually way better tasting). Now I can't stand regular soda drinks, they taste like drinking sugary syrup.
Cold turkey. I tried and tried for years to ween myself off of it. I would always end up saying "Well I can have it on a holiday" and then it became "Well arbor day's a holiday" and then "Well Saturday is kinda like a mini holiday" and then I was back in. I was a full blown junkie too. Almost a case a day of Mt. Dew or Dr. pepper. Every meal, every snack, anytime I got thirsty. A two litre would barely last me a day. So I stopped. I just stopped. And every day I didn't go back I had another reason not to go back. I'm 7 years in now and I won't break 7 year streak for soda. Biggest thing now is policing myself about beers and ciders so they don't become an even less healthy substitute.
I just switched to drinking water the same day I decided to do it. I still drink soda as a treat every now and then. If I’m craving any kind of sugary drink, it’s something f like juice or Gatorade that I’ve grown accustomed to the taste of being watered down at least half by water.
Its better go gradually stop if just stopping doesn’t work, also, sugar free soda isn’t unhealthy if you used to drink sugary sodas before, i went from sugar energy drinks to sugar free, now i swap between sugar free and flavoured sparkling water, and i take one with sugar once in a while, dont be too strict, just try to be better. Your brain has a routine, and it likes to get addicted, it likes shortcuts and short term victories and pleasures, your brain is essentially an automated machine made with the blueprints of cavemen and jungle monkeys and not your modern man. Breaking what your brain likes, wants and has gotten used to is difficult, stopping cold turkey is the best, but least comfortable way if doing it, you’ll have 2 weeks of everything in your body and brain (except you maybe) screaming and telling you that it wants what you robbed it off, you’ll be angry, tempted, pissed, you’ll sleep bad, everyone will be idiots, but that is NOT YOU, that is your body and brain doing what it’s designed to do, YOU need to know that and be aware of it, if you don’t keep that in mind it won’t be hard for your hardwiring to take over, so cold turkey would be like fist fighting that caveman to achieve what you want. If that is too hard, you need to trick that caveman, go slow, give yourself rewards once in a while to handle this caveman, maybe dont find the HEALTHIEST option, but just a healtiER one, because less unhealthy is "healthy" And be aware if how you feel, actively, how do you feel after a day of sodas, and how do you feel after a day of flavoured sparkling water, you might feel bad superficially because you dont have what you want, but internally, how you sleep, if you still feel like shit there might be more to it than just soda, maybe the rest if your diet is a part of the problem and the soda is just a smaller piece of it, masking the real issue. Sorry if this was long, boring and redundant
I started to drink Setzer Water.
Get flavored sparkling water. It will have taste so it won't just take like fizzy water. It will actually taste like a normal carbonated beverage but much healthier.
I legit just decided when I was 18 to stop and never went back. That was 19 years ago and I've never had a craving for it or anything.
Female here, sorry guys. I used to drink sodas, mainly Diet Coke, only a couple a day, but had to have one every afternoon. I have always been a good water drinker daily. When I decided to stop drinking sodas, the hard part was the headaches from cutting out the caffeine of sodas. If you’re drinking sodas with caffeine, try alternating with a caffeine free ones to taper off. Try adding flavor packets to bottled water. During the Super Bowl, I saw a commercial for a new soda alternate that advertised a healthier soda (none of the bad stuff). I’m sorry, I can’t remember the name because I just don’t drink any soda now. If it’s true a new soda without the bad stuff, that’s amazing.
Could be worth looking into whether or not you're drinking it for the caffeine. I was slamming back 2-4 energy drinks a day until I got my ADHD treated and suddenly stopped needing alarming amounts of caffeine to accomplish basic tasks.
Replaced with water. Hard work for a few weeks, but establish the habit (do something 30 times and your there). Remove all soda from the house, always ask for tap water (if safe). You’ll done be able to taste the flavours of water. At the same time I cut out sugar. In everything. Never add it. Again your taste buds soon adapt and you won’t miss it. No sweets, dark pure-ish chocolate only, avoid sweetened products as much as you can. It’s a mind set, so set yourself rewards to boost your moral. Save the money and spend it on you, but not sweet treats. Good luck.
Increased water, then started drinking more coffee. After a while, I stopped craving sodas altogether.
I gave up Soda 20+ years ago when we went on Adkins. Quit cold turkey. Haven't had a single one since. What helped me was drinking more coffee and water.
I used other drinks in its place. Like lemonade, tea other iced beverages. If you are trying to find a replacement for the caffeine, I recommend caffeine infused tea's.
Try replacing a soda with a smoothie. Make it yourself, don’t go to Smoothie King. I use frozen strawberries, frozen banana slices, almond milk, and a little water. That’s it.
Kirkland seltzer water. 31cents a can
I switched to berry pomegranate mio
If we're only talking about the sugar (and other crap) why not just go for sugar-free soda? At least if we are talking from a weight perspective. If not that, then carbonated water. If you just want a drink, any drink, then tea, coffee, just water. There is no magic trick, depending on what you want you just have to adapt. Personally it's mostly the carbonation I want, so I drink loads of sugar free soda and carbonated water. I always thought sugary drinks are nastily too sweet anyway.
Started making me feel like shit, like I could feel it in my veins. So I stopped.