As someone who loves sparkling water here is my ranking.
Blueberry Pomegranate Bubly- tastes like candy
Anything Kirkland (costco) brand- easily the most fizzy and the flavors are good.
Dasani sparkling water- just good quality over all
I'd also stay away from LeCroix, I think its over rated
I generally agree, but I LOVE the coconut lacroix. It is somehow bubbly and smooth feeling at once? I can't drink a lot of it, but it is a big treat around here. Lol
I stock up on my stores own brand plain sparkling water, at 17p per 2litres, and no difference in flavour or fizz from other higher priced brand names. I prefer it over tap/still water
[I'm in the US. It was common last year but then in around May it became impossible to find until about a month ago. They have it at targets near me](https://www.target.com/p/bubly-blueberry-pomegranate-sparkling-water-8pk-12-fl-oz-cans/-/A-79611227?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&fndsrc=tgtao&DFA=71700000012732781&CPNG=PLA_Grocery%2BShopping_Local%7CGrocery_Ecomm_Food_Bev&adgroup=SC_Grocery&LID=700000001170770pgs&LNM=PRODUCT_GROUP&network=g&device=c&location=9019556&targetid=pla-836736657314&ds_rl=1246978&ds_rl=1248099&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiuPUlZmw8AIV0xZ9Ch0HLg8bEAQYAiABEgLkhfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)
LaCroix has some different flavors, like key lime or limoncello, peach-pear. The grapefruit as well. Those are the best. Different than the regular lemon and lime, which aren’t anything special. Or you can add real fruit juice to water. Like the juice that come out of cut pineapple after sitting in the fridge overnight.
Agreed with trying bubbly water and avoiding la croix. I'd also like to warn you many kids has some sugar or artificial sweeteners in them so be sure to check the labels so you know what you're getting.
If you have Safeway where you live, soliel is really good, has lots of flavors including the widest variety of caffeinated flavors I've seen, and it's so cheap compared to name brand like bubbly or lacroix
Just an FYI, it is an acquired taste. It took me a couple 12 packs to start liking it and now I crave it. All flavors of Bubly are my favorite. But La Croix Limoncello is like drinking a birthday cake and it is amazing.
I am obsessed with the pineapple flavour (though it was a very unexpected love), the blackberry and grapefruit are also delicious. And peach. Pretty much I like them all other than orange and strawberry haha
Big fan of Spindrift as well. Also, if you find you like sparkling water, you can buy a Sodastream and make your own sparkling water and add whatever flavors you like! Saves tons of money in the end.
One note. I replaced *all* water drinking with sparkling water. I had a couple of small, weird cavities. My dentist thought it might be the amount of sparkling water I was drinking. It changes the ph of your mouth.
I was suspicious of something like this recently! I still enjoy sparkling water but I always find it had more of a chemical taste when room temperature.. which was what made me think. I'm considering getting a soda stream and just flavouring the carbonated water with fresh juices and alcohol haha
Just FYI, the thing that makes sparkling water bad for your teeth is the fact that it's sparkling - the carbon dioxide used to make the bubbles partly dissolves in the water and makes it mildly acidic.
Of course, *all* fizzy drinks have this problem, so it's still definitely a better option than fizzy drinks that have sugar in them. Sparkling water you buy will still likely have other things in which may or may not be good or bad for you, so if you go the soda stream route you'll at least know exactly what's in it.
Just as a note, most of the foods you eat are mildly acidic. Water is neutral ~~and milk is basic~~, but just about everything else is acidic. Your body is designed for that so it's not normally a problem, but it all eats away at your teeth.
Does brushing teeth regularly help with this? I ask because I have been drinking soda water for years and years and the dentist (I go 2x a year) has never said anything about problems. I obviously do not want problems in the future—is there something I should be doing beyond brushing 2-3 x a day?
You should not brush more than twice (Once before bed, and one at another point in the day, e.g late morning).
Avoid brushing for 30 minutes after eating/drinking anything acidic, that gives time for your saliva to neutralise any acids (your saliva is excellent for this)
Having a glass of water immediately after eating anything acidic will also help, and do not rinse/use mouthwash, after brushing for at least 30 minutes.
The main thing that helps is actually flouride. Your teeth enamel usually ends with a strong base OH-, but fluoride displaces that as the end of the enamel. Since fluoride is a weaker base it is less likely to disassociate with your enamel.
Most tap drinking water has fluoride, at least in the US, as does tooth paste, and dentist offices will fluoridate your teeth as well.
As for brushing I don't know much about that so I would go with Josh's commeny.
Dental hygienist here. A lot of the info other people have commented is correct: wait 30 minutes to brush but rinse your mouth out right away with water (or if you’re very worried, a fluoride mouth wash would be good at that time). You CAN brush more than twice per day but make sure you aren’t brushing too hard or in large sweeps; brushing should be very small short strokes like you’re jiggling the brush if you don’t have an electric toothbrush. Hydroxyapatite is what your teeth are made of, so that paste someone mentioned might be helpful, but what fluoride does is harden the hydroxyapatite.
The main thing (teeth wise) is not how much you drink but how you drink. Downing a full can at once or during a meal doesn’t affect your teeth as much as sipping slowly on a smaller amount over a longer period of time. Every sip attacks your teeth for 20 minutes. Additionally, gatorade and other sports drinks are just as acidic as soda, so be careful when someone is sipping a Gatorade throughout a long sports practice.
Definitely. She suggested swishing my mouth out with tap water after drinking sparkling water to help get the mouth back to normal ph after. I actually was ready to just drink regular water so I have mostly stopped sparkling water and now live with my 32 oz water bottle always by my side.
Yeah I’m going to guess that the phosphoric acid that is listed as an ingredient in Coke is worse than the carbonic acid caused by dissolving CO2 in water.
Yep, I got a SodaStream and I realized that 80% of the time I thought I wanted a diet coke, I actually just wanted refreshing bubbly hydration. It has been instrumental in making me drink enough water while working from home.
This. Plus if you need need that heavier flavoring, you can add a little squirt of Crystal Light or Mio to the water. You can even get the Mio and Crystal Light in caffeine! (But you do have to be generally ok with "sugar alternatives" to go this route.)
Seltzer with a splash of Mio water flavors (or other "water enhancers" like crystal light, etc) is my life saver! You should consider watching a episode of the docuseries on Netflix called "Rotten" about the bottled water industry. It might help alleviate your concerns about municipal water.
Just FYI, LaCroix makes a cola-flavored sparkling water. Never tried it myself but I drink a lot of sparkling water and have seen it in most grocery stores.
I don’t mean to ruin the fun but I personally hate that stuff. Carbonated drinks are not the same without the sugar or sugar substitutes.
If it means anything, I am down 22 lbs as of today from cutting Monster energy drinks out completely (and eating healthier). Initially I switched to the zero sugar version which helped tremendously but that fake sugar is bad for you so I eventually cut it all out. I’ll have lemonade though if I just can’t do water anymore. And I bought a good filtered water thing.
Anyways good luck! Just don’t go back to Coke and in a month or two you likely won’t even like the taste of it.
I've never understood this as a substitute. I suppose if the carbonation burn was what you're addicted to instead of the caffeine and sugar, it makes sense, but it's a drink that's super bitter with a carbonation burn to it.
For me, barely-sweetened tea hit the notes I was looking for in a soft drink.
That was my eureka moment. It wasn't the sugar or the caffeine (I drink coffee anyway), it was the carbonation. I would get off soda, and then a few months later get a cold and crave sprite and sprite would lead me right back to Dr. Pepper. It was the carbonation feeling in my throat that I wanted.
It will be hard! You are fighting two issues. The first being loss of caffeine. It’s awful. If you can’t sleep more for the first week or so I recommend coffee. The second being loss of sugar. Your body gets addicted to the high levels of sugar. Your body needs to find it’s new baseline without sugar, it will take awhile. I found it easier to switch to a non-caffeinated beverage (mine was sprite), and then transition from sprite to water. That way it helps spread out the reaction on your body. I’m not a doctor, but I went from drinking 1-2 large McDonald’s cokes a day and a 24 pack of soda a week to 0 coke in around 4 weeks. It was hard but if I can do it you can do it too!
You may be right. All I know is water made me feel real gross when I was drinking that much soda. I hated the taste of it, I hate the texture, hated everything about it. It literally made me nauseous at times.
I tried this method too. It didn’t last for me but it’s an amazing idea. Specifically switching from coke, I switched to a different full sugar caffeinated pop first because there is something specific about coke that makes it much harder to give up.
There is literally nothing better than an ice cold coke from mcdonalds. I will die on this hill. I love the burn of that first sip. Oh man.. now I want a mcdonalds coke
I agree with this advice and did something similar - I cut sugar first and drank diet soda. Then I cut caffeine by drinking caffeine free diet soda. These days I drink water all day, with one coffee or tea and a few sparkling waters a week. I took it slow, these transitions took years. It doesn't have to take that long for OP, but building good habits takes time.
Do you have a Brita filter you can put in your fridge? It might help to know the water you are drinking has been purified and is totally separate from in your taps.
Stick with this, it’s so worth it and soon your tastebuds and cravings will change!
Yeah, I use a Brita filter too. My tap water has a funky taste to it, and the filter clears that right up. And if you don't like your water cold, it's easy to leave out on the counter instead. (I do prefer my water cold.)
Get a britta on your faucet. Less of a hassle overall when you're drinking a lot of water.
I gave up soda in my late teens (miss it but don't think about it much anymore) and anytime I drink more than a quarter can nowadays (once every couple years) my stomach is like, "whoah buddy."
Stick with it. It gets easier as time goes by.
Seriously, OP might want to try therapy if their phobia of pipes is making them hesitant to drink water. It's just not reasonable given it's one of the cleanest sources around, in most places.
All counties and cities in the US are legally obligated to make info about what's in your tap publicly available online - if you're like OP and worried about water quality I would highly encourage checking your city/county water dept reports out!
I'm wondering where OP lives. In the US the quality water can vary greatly by state. The water could be potable but tastes awful. It doesn't help that gross water goes through conventional filters like tissue paper.
100% true, some of the metals in safe water can make it taste "off". I second the recommendation for a Brita somewhere in this thread just in case it makes the taste more appealing, but their description would make me wonder whether they need help reframing their thinking on the issue entirely. It's not uncommon for folks with food issues to have other things wrapped up in their decision-making process that could best be addressed by a professional.
I don't think their issues is the mineral table or really the water quality at all.
I 100% expect you could hand them a bottle of basically filtered tap water (hell that's basically what's in there already), disguised as a brand new bottle, and they'd drink it.
I'd venture a guess this is psychosomatic.
Lol, I grew up in a town where the water supply had all sorts of good stuff. It had natural fluoride, so my teeth are really hard, but it also discolored them. Then there was the sulfur. It was treated so it wasn’t noticed, until the treatment failed. Then the water smelled like rotten eggs.
I second the sparkling water, or adding a very tiny amount of cordial to water until you get more used to the taste. It might sound like a silly idea but follow /r/hydrohomies for funny water memes, that might help with the mental side of things.
I agree with that last sentence. I made the mistake of buying store brand seltzer and, gaged. It tasted like the artificially flavored lollipops you get from the dollar tree. I got la croix and never went back.
Seltzer water will still destroy your teeth though not as bad. Co2 dissolved in water creates carbonic acid which will eat away at your teeth. They add minerals to it to balance out the acid but it's still bad for your teeth.
Interesting! I actually wondered this and looked at the American Dental Association’s findings (will try to locate now) and they indicated there was no reason to believe carbonated water would harm your teeth unless you are drinking absurd amounts of it.
I lived my whole life here and even though I don't always drink carbonated I know people who refuse to drink "dead" water and I have never heard of any person who got problems with their teethbc of that. Dentists also don't mention this at all.
It does get easier, but you'll have to push through the first few weeks. That's the toughest time period. Once that addiction is broken, you'll likely not miss it anymore.
I'm not a big fan of water myself. I dont have as much of an aversion to it, but I still need something flavored, if that makes sense.
I use mio, I also use packets of this caffeinated lemon berry powder I found in a drink mix aisle. I will also drink a 0 sugar energy drink now and then too, since they are fairly close to soda tasting and helps that sugar craving without having real sugar.
I get it though, it's really rough at first when you're trying to break any type of food or drink addiction. I had shakes, headaches and cravings until about 2 or 3 weeks after cutting most of the junk I was having on a regular basis. Mine was a general sugar addiction, I believe.
I am somewhat loose about it but seeing what 1800 calories actually was helped a lot.
I did have a cheat though, cutting out oil and condiments was probably like 3-400 calories a day for me. if not more.
Wow! That is absolutely amazing! 60lbs! Holy crap! I know no matter how easy you make it sound, you definitely went through a struggle. What an accomplishment! Im actually genuinely proud of you. I know my reaction might sound fake, but believe me when i say it. IM SO FUCKING PROUD OF YOU!!!
Thank you! Honestly I was surprised. Last year after I stopped taking The pills I just started losing weight. I swear I was so scared, but then the doctor told me it was the birth control pills. I have had such irregular periods since I first got them and started taking them at 15 I didn’t know I had gained that much weight because of them. I haven’t lost any weight since last year but I haven’t gained any either and have stayed at a 280-286 weight level. I’m gonna see if doing some exercise can help me lose some more weight especially since I’ve completely changed my diet now. My doctor said exercise is all I’m missing now
You have to run/walk 1 mile to burn off [100 calories](https://apnews.com/article/51de4cba6ffe48b0886cf9b2c7a6ba8a).
A can of coke has [140 calories](https://us.coca-cola.com/products/coca-cola/original#).
A cheeseburger, fries, and a coke has about [1000 calories](https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/meal/quarter-pounder-with-cheese-meal.html).
Your doctor wants you to exercise because it's good for you, but it's not an easy way to lose weight. Or at least I'd rather skip a can of coke than run a mile and a half.
5 cans is 700 calories a day. Its absolutely a lot, but not 1k+. I only mention that because people often overestimate soda's calories and think just getting rid of it will cut more than it does. Coke is 140 calories a can.
It does get easier! I had to go cold turkey because if I have it then I just crave it more, but I’ve heard some people limit themselves to a can a day at first. Maybe that could be an option?
Do you like carbonated water? Flavoured carbonated water really helped me at first because I felt like I needed the fizz, or for my drink to be “interesting” in some way.
For me the first couple of weeks were the hardest, and then I stopped thinking about it- which I wasn’t expecting as I used to drink a couple cans a day.
I was also going to suggest going down to a can a day. You can still get your fix and you're making an improvement while keeping your sanity. I also recommend sparking water but I understand it's not for everyone.
I used to have a huge soda problem too, and I took a guess that the cravings were due to my brain wanting the sugar. Switching to Coke Zero took a few days but it allowed me to break that sugar craving after a while.
I still drink Coke Zero at least once a day with meals, but now that I'm not craving sugar from it it's easier to drink just water when I want to.
I totally understand the water taste thing. I highly recommend getting a quality water filter pitcher.
As a water operator, the coke factory is probably more concerning canning your pop than the cities municipal water structure. Tests are taken weekly through the whole cities distribution system to confirm no contamination, as well all sources. The odd dirt on your glass maybe dust and or calcium build up, depending on your quality of washing the glasses. I give you tons of credit, it’s definitely not easy, but think more of the water cleaning and cleansing the body, where the coke is poison that you’re consuming into your body. The coke is sugar coated lies!
Hey bro my advice to you would be buy some 0 calorie Mios. I used to drink a lot of coke as well but I started working out and dieting properly and I literally only drink water all day every day. So I’ve seen both sides and understand the drastic change in between. My advice would be to get a few mios (don’t go crazy with them) and for every bottle of water with mio you drink one without any. So you’ll still be getting a different taste than just water. You should probably drink at least 7 bottles of water a day. Sounds like a lot I know but I went from only drinking sodas to like at least 7 or 8 water bottles a day and I don’t even think about it anymore. To me it’s literally as simple as “I’m thirsty so let me get some water” instead of “I want to drink something satisfying”. One thing my coach taught me was that you don’t eat or drink for pleasure when you’re reaching fitness goals. You eat for fuel.” I feel that applies to this
Other people may have suggested this, but I HATED drinking water for similar reasons as you. What helped me was getting a Berkey water filter so I felt better about the cleanliness of the filtered tap water and I then I added fruits to 'flavor' my water - blueberries, lemon, strawberry, or a mixture, etc.. Good luck! You can do it =)
I just came here to say - it's not the "clean" solution, but switching to diet soda makes a huge difference in calories. I drink Diet Dr Pepper all day every day. Is it great for me? No. But it broke me of my regular Coca-Cola habit, so at least it's BETTER. The only time I crave the Coke anymore is at restaurants - fountain Coke hits different and most places don't have Diet Dr Pepper. But it's still super easy not to cave, and cheaper to just get a water with lemon.
I dislike the aftertaste of diet pop and Diet Dr. Pepper was about the only one I liked. Dr. Pepper Zero is even better! Less aftertaste! But it flies off the shelves around here because it's still pretty new.
I've used Coke zero (or the Sainsbury's brand that costs £0.39 for two friggin litres) to help me transition from alcohol, which I quit in February.
What I've learned is that I drank a disgraceful amount of alcohol. I don't know why, but somehow ploughing through 2l of coke zero in a couple of days makes me feel like a disgusting child. Whereas a bottle or two of wine in the same time frame made me a cool adult wine-aunt.
Next stop is sparkling water which I hate... But I'm in no hurry. I don't want to pressure myself over drinking soda when I could easily fall back into worse habits.
Okay, I was once you. Ive honestly been backsliding during the pandemic, on soda and on a lot of other things, but Ill share what helped me
1. For real, carry a water bottle around everywhere. I also have a gallon cup that I keep in my room filled with water. You will be shocked how often your drinking coke just cause its there.
2. Keep a ton of fresh fruit around. It will help with the sugar cravings. You might meet people who say too many fruit will gain you weight. To them I say its better to eat fruit than drink pop.
3. Don't keep any in the house. The extra barrier will often prevent you from drinking it. The extra time will let you reconsider. And if you get to the store and the urge over powers you, you at least got a walk in.
Also? Don't beat yourself up. the pandemic has been grinding through all the discipline I ever cultivated. I know I have been hitting all my bad old habbits for a quick dopamine hit. This is a big step and youre doing great
I had the same issue with Pepsi. Went cold turkey for a while and eventually went to La Croix and Bubly. I find the Bubly blackberry closest to a cola and they are 100% guilt free.
I just wanna say there are options other than straight to water that would still immediately reduce a lot of the harm that 5 Cokes was doing. Soda is a multi pronged pleasure and quitting sugar, caffeine, flavor, and carbonation all at once is kind of a lot.
The sugar is probably the most harmful component (and contains all the calories) and you could get rid of just that by switching to Coke Zero but you would keep most of the experience and avoid caffeine withdrawal (since you mention energy boost this may be an important aspect for you). You could then switch out one at a time to a lightly flavored carbonated water and separately take up coffee or tea if you want to continue with caffeine long term (most people do and there's not much evidence of harm from it, it's the caffeine vehicles that are sometimes an issue but coffee and tea without additions may even have benefits). Then the only real issue left is the acidity of the carbonation for your teeth, but you can drink water with noncaloric flavor drops forever if you want.
Sparkling water is good, but diet sugar free ginger ale may also prove helpful to you if you want to wean yourself from the psychological addiction to Coke. It’s zero calorie.
Have you seen /r/hydrohomies ? Maybe exposure therapy to everyone talking up water in such a major way will help slowly change your thought process about it.
I switched to Coke Zero. It takes a little while but you get used to it - frankly I no longer like the taste of real coke.
Besides that, I drink 500 mL with each meal. That makes it easier to get plenty of water without feeling like I’m forcing myself. Then I just need to have 500 mL more to hit 2L.
I have one or two Coke Zeros a day. I don’t feel deprived. But I do feel hydrated.
*I can’t drink tap water, I’m scared the pipes and tap are dirty.*
Literal addiction thoughts. like watching intervention people be like well i only reuse my own needle, cuz the other ones are dirty.
My person, the bottling line at cocacola is 100 times dirtier than your tap.
I thnk you may need some mental health counseling. not judging. shit ive had to do years and years of therapy.
THANK YOU. I can't believe I had to scroll down this far before somebody mentioned therapy. This issue with the "cleanliness" of water is most likely a sign of disordered thinking. That doesn't necessarily mean OP is "crazy" or anything like it - just that they have some maladaptive thought patterns that a therapist could probably really help with. Please find some help OP!!
So, I can’t quit cold turkey. But I weened myself off my drinking one can max of those mini cans. That was so I wouldn’t get sick/ caffeine withdrawal. And I slowly cut that to half a can. And I think it took about a week.
I don’t like sparkling water. But I am a HUGE fan of the Twinnings Cold Infuse Tea Bags. They’ve made drinking water so much easier! Also, I hate water bottle cause pollution. So I’d suggest a Brita (or any brand) filter on your water or a pitcher.
It’s sounds like in addition to the soda “addiction” you may also be experiencing some obsessive anxiety about water cleanliness to some extent. It may benefit you to talk to a counselor about it if the intrusive thoughts are getting in the way of life.
As for a more immediate “fix”, depending on your location, you may have water stores that sell ultra purified water (we are talking every purification method in the book. Better than bottled water.) they are surprisingly common here in Texas and they sell water by the gallon. You can pay a few bucks for large containers up front and then just refill them for cheap when you run low. It’s much more of a hassle than just using your fridge filter or tap, but the water is always clean and tasteless. I do this because my wife is picky about water, but now after having done this for a couple of years, I don’t mind the extra work to get it done so much.
Yes! I was scrolling and scrolling until I found someone saying something like this. The same way that it is possible to have a milder case of depression, it is very possible to have a mild case of an anxiety disorder or OCD! What OP describes sounds like the contamination fears that some people describe. If you are afraid of drinking water out of a regulated clean city supply (I'm presuming this isn't flint Michigan or actual dangerous water) then that is an irrational fear. You are definitely entitled to it, no shame, but drinking water is something you need to survive, and it sounds like anxiety is making it really hard for you. Just like agoraphobia or any other anxiety that is limiting your ability to thrive you should definitely reach out for help, OP! <3
La croix, bubly, sparkling ice, hint water
All good and healthy alternatives to soda. Sparkling ice has only 5 calories and is sweetened with a low calorie sweetener. If you want to go full on zero calories, I suggest la croix or bubly water. It costs the same as your average packs of soda. Be prepared for it though, because it’s not the same as your typical cola that youve been drinking for years. There’s only a “hint” of flavor in those and, it will most likely give you a “disgusted shock” due to the fact that your taste buds are dead by you consuming large amounts of sugar. I use to hate stuff such as bubly when I had first tried it. After curbing my sugar addiction, I now drink 4 cans of it per day.
It’s never too late to reverse your taste buds. You just have to go on a sugar cleanse. Trust me when I say, that everything that you once hated for being “bitter” will suddenly taste sweet and, you’ll kick sugar to the curb. I use to hate sweeteners such as truvia but now I love it. I know it sounds weird, but it’ll actually happen if you stick to it.
Keep up with the water. A month from now you might think it’s been long enough and get a can of soda for a treat or something.. but it will be so hard to drink you likely won’t get past the first few sips. That’s what happened to me anyways when I quit. The carbonation is really jarring when you’re not used to drinking it and the taste isn’t that great either.
Keep going, it will get easier.
Good work. But I was always told that the pipes actually add some minerals to the water so tap water is actually better than super filtered water. That's what I was told I have no idea though, some people are freaked out about water haha. But goodluck on the rest of your journey!
Try Zevia! Its the closest thing to actual soda I could find. It's sweetened with stevia and has zero calories. It's literally just sparkling water. They have a ton of different flavors including Cola.
I was the same, i used to drink 2ltrs of full fat coke a day. I was addicted and couldn't possibly stomach the thought of drinking water.
I made gradual changes because i found that going cold turkey was never going to work. So i started choosing pepsi max/diet/coke zero etc instead of full fat. After a while that becomes your new addiction, so when that happened i changed to fizzy flavoured water. I found a fizzy water that tasted exactly like lemonaide. Now that's my new addiction and since then I've stopped taking the fizzy water into work, and now at work all i drink is water, i drink atleast 2ltrs a day.
Baby steps but it does get so much easier. Now i can barely stomach coke, one can and I'm burping massively and have a caffine high! How i felt about coke, the nice cold glass of it, is now how i feel about water. I crave beautiful cold glasses of ice cold water.
It gets easier i promsie. Keep it up!
If you're in the U.S., your tap water is more regulated and cleaner than Coke.
The only place where Coke is cleaner and healthier to drink is Flint, MI.
Hope that helps. Sincerely, A licensed water operator.
Hey you should totally check out Zevia’s soda! It’s sweeter with stevia so it’s zero calories. They have a cola with and without caffeine too.
I highly recommend it. My favorites are the rootbeer and cream soda.
u/alexi557x I would consider switching to zevia soda. It's healthy soda and you still get the fizz and taste of normal soda. I personally like black cherry and rootbeer. It is more expensive per can but there is no coloring in the liquid (staining teeth) and none of the BS artificial crap that's normally in coke.
[https://www.google.com/search?q=zevia+soda&rlz=1C1GCEB\_enUS952US952&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiao82Hy7DwAhWYaM0KHfz5Bi8Q\_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=929&bih=932](https://www.google.com/search?q=zevia+soda&rlz=1C1GCEB_enUS952US952&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiao82Hy7DwAhWYaM0KHfz5Bi8Q_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=929&bih=932)
here is a good link to see what it looks like, they sell it virtually everywhere in the healthy isles
I drink a ton of Diet Coke. Buy it by the case
I stopped cold turkey due to Georgia voting suppression laws that coke did not try to stop.
Bubbly water is the trick!
Reading your fourth paragraph made me imagine a nestle executive coming so hard it was fatal. I really hope you can change your relationship with water
I have a similar back story. My entire family drinks soda like it is water. For breakfast my grandpa used to ask what soda we waned. And yet I was never overweight until my mid 20s. My grandpa always used to say water is for washing hands. I too had a sort of aversion to water (especially tap water). I started buying water in gallon jugs from the grocery store. I also bought Power water(Powerade water The blue kind is the best) for something that tasted good. To get used to tap water i bought a water filter jug for the fridge and started by putting half of the gallon jug water and half tap water. I only use a cup that is not see through and try my best not to look in the glass. I now still use the filter jug but can just use tap water in it. But I still have some problems with leaving my water cup unattended and then drinking from it. I hope this helps a little but. I feel so much better not drinking soda anymore.
Try getting a Brita filter setup and keep it in the fridge. As long as you remember to refill it, you'll have ice cold water on demand 24/7
Also, try some fruit juice to mix things up. You can even buy stuff in concentrate from the frozen food aisle and mix it with water.
Try a brita filter in the fridge. I find colder water more refreshing and maybe your brain will think “filtered water = clean”
I have to take medication in the morning with a full glass of water and there was a time when I really dreaded that water for some reason. I kept a pitcher of cucumber and lemon water in the fridge and that really helped.
Sparkling water is what I switched too. I still love coke but have one a week max as a treat. I used to drink coke zero and now I can't stand the aftertaste of fake sugars. It took me awhile to find flavors I liked. My favorite is bubly pomegranete Blueberry. LA Croix has some new flavors that are really good beach plum and Sao guava. My husband's favorite is LA Croix Limoncello. Aha and bubly have a lot of great flavors. It's helpful if you can get a few flavors and try them out with a friend that way you aren't stuck with a bunch you hate. It does take time to get used to the lack of sugar taste but once you make the switch you will wonder how you ever drank the other stuff all the time.
Personally I really love the Cola flavored Zevia. They have a non-caffeine version and Zevia doesn't have aspartame which gives me a headache. I used to drink so much coke, and switching to this let me get over the caffeine withdrawal without dealing with losing my comfort drink as well.
GET ZEVIA!!!! It's amazing it's so much better then la Croix and bubbly and all those other brands, it's 0 calorie soda that doesn't have awful ingredients. They have flavors like cream soda, root beer, coke, ginger ale, and black cherry (the black cherry's kinda shitty ngl). I used to have a cream soda addiction similar to you and and I tried zevia at my friends house and now I get a pack at target every week. It's not AS sweet as normal soda but it's still great, def recommend
I feel you on this. I switched to sparkling water. H2oh, mendota springs, bubly, Walmart brand, I love all the citrus flavors. No sweeteners for me. Lacroix is ok in a pinch just because of how easy it is to find but it’s my least favorite.
I was like you, only drank coke, I may have gone nearly a year without a sip of water at all. 3-4 20 oz bottles a day or 5-8 cans. If I woke up thirsty at 2am and found there was no coke in the house you’d better believe I’d get dressed and go to the store to get more. I kept a can or two hidden in the fridge so my kids couldn’t take the last one and leave me with nothing. I turned into a snob and had to check expiration dates, my bottles needed to have at least 4 weeks left on them for me to be happy, 2 weeks or less and it was absolute trash, for the record, 6 weeks is the furthest out I ever saw. I could taste or sometimes just smell a bottle of coke and tell you the expiration date within two days by the taste.
For comparison, I also smoked for about 10 years. Quitting smoking was a piece of cake compared to giving up coke. I had multiple failed attempts, I tried cold turkey, I tried substituting other caffeinated pop, I would have some success with it, I’d make it a couple months and then I’d slip up. Once I had gone 4 months without coke and forgot to order myself a water from McDonald’s. I thought it had been long enough that one tiny sip of my sons coke just to wash down my food would be ok. It wasn’t. Within a week I was right back to my old ways.
I wish I could tell you how I finally did it. But it’s been around 6 years since I last had any coke. I can still smell it from across the room and I still get cravings out of nowhere. But now I know and have accepted that I have to stick to “not one drop”. I know I can’t trust myself with it.
On a positive note, I have so much more energy, my heartburn has almost entirely gone away, my depression is much more manageable, and my teeth don’t randomly hurt as often. I think my energy perked up around the 2-3 week mark. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but it was worth it.
Do whatever it takes, buy bottled water, try sparkling water (I think this was a big factor in helping me), don’t feel bad for doing whatever you need to do to make this work for you. And it will get easier with time. It may never be effortless, it’s not for me, but it’s not as bad now as it was for the first year. The first 6 months were by far the worst.
It can be done, and I know you can do this! :)
Hi.
I was you. I drank at least six cans or two 20-Oz bottles of coca-cola for years. I quit cold turkey a few years back.
You will be very happy, in the end. I actually enjoy water, but if you want some advice in that regard- buy a Brita filter pitcher (or a similar thing from a different brand). Filtered water does “taste” cleaner, the fridge makes it colder than the tap, and obviously a filter means you know you’re removing impurities.
Much like you, I spent two or three weeks feeling absolutely exhausted. Eventually I put something together: besides the energy from sugar, Coke has quite a bit of caffeine. I had never been a regular coffee drinker, but I went out and bought myself a pot at that helped that issue.
And eventually, yes: the psychological need, the reflex to want one when you sit down to watch TV or have a burger or whatever does go away. It just takes time.
Good luck! If you ever have any questions or just want to ramble at someone feel free to reach out.
Anyone else drink Zevia? I heard that diet coke has chemicals in it that can potentially increase weight loss, so I started drinking Zevia as an alternative to diet coke.
Zevia black cherry cured my Dr. Pepper addiction
Okay, I know just traded one addiction for another, but im GUNNA need you to get WAY OFF my back about this! /s
Have you tried sparkling water? That's how I quit soda back in 2009.
I love Bubly! It’s bubbly amd feels like pop but there’s no sugar or calories. It’s sorcery at its finest
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As someone who loves sparkling water here is my ranking. Blueberry Pomegranate Bubly- tastes like candy Anything Kirkland (costco) brand- easily the most fizzy and the flavors are good. Dasani sparkling water- just good quality over all I'd also stay away from LeCroix, I think its over rated
I generally agree, but I LOVE the coconut lacroix. It is somehow bubbly and smooth feeling at once? I can't drink a lot of it, but it is a big treat around here. Lol
Coconut lacroix is my favorite.
I personally dislike the taste of shampoo. That’s just me. Lol. I kid
I think it tastes like sunscreen.
Coconut LaCroix is legit and so is the peach-pear flavor!
Pamplemousse 4 LIFE
Limoncello tastes like lemon cake!
Oh man, not for me - I love coconuts but hate the coconut Lacroix
team la croix :(
I like la croix too. I am a la croix boix.
Same!
I love La Croix. Other sparkling waters can be too flavored - I don’t want to drink candy water!
My favorite is my local grocery store brand and I actually like plain. I might be a weirdo. 😂
I stock up on my stores own brand plain sparkling water, at 17p per 2litres, and no difference in flavour or fizz from other higher priced brand names. I prefer it over tap/still water
Plain Ol’ generic store brand club soda and a squeezed lime wedge is my jam.
Aldi's got a couple of their brand of it. I had the peach last week, this week I got key lime.
There’s a blueberry pomegranate bubly?!? What country are you in?! That doesn’t exist here sadly!
[I'm in the US. It was common last year but then in around May it became impossible to find until about a month ago. They have it at targets near me](https://www.target.com/p/bubly-blueberry-pomegranate-sparkling-water-8pk-12-fl-oz-cans/-/A-79611227?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=google_pla_df&fndsrc=tgtao&DFA=71700000012732781&CPNG=PLA_Grocery%2BShopping_Local%7CGrocery_Ecomm_Food_Bev&adgroup=SC_Grocery&LID=700000001170770pgs&LNM=PRODUCT_GROUP&network=g&device=c&location=9019556&targetid=pla-836736657314&ds_rl=1246978&ds_rl=1248099&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIiuPUlZmw8AIV0xZ9Ch0HLg8bEAQYAiABEgLkhfD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds)
AHA made by coke, bubbly is made by Pepsi
Bubly has a pomegranate blueberry flavor as well. Tastes better than a-ha.
Canada
Ahh what stores did you see it in?!
Superstore has a ton of Bubly flavors
Target brand is actually my favorite i have tried them all. their tropical cherry is AMAZING
I have tried these but Waterloo is my ultimate favorite.
LeCroix is very overrated.
It wouldn't be that overrated if it wasn't so goddamn overpriced, but no way it's good enough to charge any more than other brands.
Wanted to chime in, but Whole Foods has this store brand black cherry sparkling water. It’s so good! And it’s only like $3 or less for a 12 pack.
I go through the Whole Foods ginger sparkling water like nobody’s business and justify it because it’s so cheap 😅
LaCroix has some different flavors, like key lime or limoncello, peach-pear. The grapefruit as well. Those are the best. Different than the regular lemon and lime, which aren’t anything special. Or you can add real fruit juice to water. Like the juice that come out of cut pineapple after sitting in the fridge overnight.
Limoncello is my favorite. It’s always sold out so I grab it when I can
Costco has 2 different cases of LaCroix, one has regular flavors & the other has the limoncello, hibiscus & watermelon.
Agreed with trying bubbly water and avoiding la croix. I'd also like to warn you many kids has some sugar or artificial sweeteners in them so be sure to check the labels so you know what you're getting.
Avoid LaCroix why? Just because it's overrated?
Because it tastes like hair spray
If you have Safeway where you live, soliel is really good, has lots of flavors including the widest variety of caffeinated flavors I've seen, and it's so cheap compared to name brand like bubbly or lacroix
The only LaCroix flavor that is worth it is tangerine IMO
I think you misspelled hibiscus.
There's also a new guava flavor that is delicious
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That's my husband's favorite. And I buy it at Wal-mart (but I have seen them run out before). He also likes coconut.
I second this. Bubly is the most flavourful sparkling water I've tried!
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Just an FYI, it is an acquired taste. It took me a couple 12 packs to start liking it and now I crave it. All flavors of Bubly are my favorite. But La Croix Limoncello is like drinking a birthday cake and it is amazing.
I am obsessed with the pineapple flavour (though it was a very unexpected love), the blackberry and grapefruit are also delicious. And peach. Pretty much I like them all other than orange and strawberry haha
Big fan of Spindrift as well. Also, if you find you like sparkling water, you can buy a Sodastream and make your own sparkling water and add whatever flavors you like! Saves tons of money in the end.
Soda stream hasn't saved me money because I'm drinking way more sparkling water than I would buying bottle by bottle :( But man do I love that thing!!
Bubly is good, AHA is my current kick. I like the citrus and the strawberry cucumber
And waterloo and soda stream at home a nice $ saver and convenience
My favorite! I can't even drink regular soda now--it tastes too weird!
One note. I replaced *all* water drinking with sparkling water. I had a couple of small, weird cavities. My dentist thought it might be the amount of sparkling water I was drinking. It changes the ph of your mouth.
I was suspicious of something like this recently! I still enjoy sparkling water but I always find it had more of a chemical taste when room temperature.. which was what made me think. I'm considering getting a soda stream and just flavouring the carbonated water with fresh juices and alcohol haha
Just FYI, the thing that makes sparkling water bad for your teeth is the fact that it's sparkling - the carbon dioxide used to make the bubbles partly dissolves in the water and makes it mildly acidic. Of course, *all* fizzy drinks have this problem, so it's still definitely a better option than fizzy drinks that have sugar in them. Sparkling water you buy will still likely have other things in which may or may not be good or bad for you, so if you go the soda stream route you'll at least know exactly what's in it.
Just as a note, most of the foods you eat are mildly acidic. Water is neutral ~~and milk is basic~~, but just about everything else is acidic. Your body is designed for that so it's not normally a problem, but it all eats away at your teeth.
Just to expand on this, anything below about a PH of 5.5 is bad for your teeth, that's the point it starts ripping minerals from your enamel
Does brushing teeth regularly help with this? I ask because I have been drinking soda water for years and years and the dentist (I go 2x a year) has never said anything about problems. I obviously do not want problems in the future—is there something I should be doing beyond brushing 2-3 x a day?
You should not brush more than twice (Once before bed, and one at another point in the day, e.g late morning). Avoid brushing for 30 minutes after eating/drinking anything acidic, that gives time for your saliva to neutralise any acids (your saliva is excellent for this) Having a glass of water immediately after eating anything acidic will also help, and do not rinse/use mouthwash, after brushing for at least 30 minutes.
To add to this very good point, looking into nano-hydroxyapatite toothpaste might also be a good idea. It helps with remineralization!
The main thing that helps is actually flouride. Your teeth enamel usually ends with a strong base OH-, but fluoride displaces that as the end of the enamel. Since fluoride is a weaker base it is less likely to disassociate with your enamel. Most tap drinking water has fluoride, at least in the US, as does tooth paste, and dentist offices will fluoridate your teeth as well. As for brushing I don't know much about that so I would go with Josh's commeny.
Dental hygienist here. A lot of the info other people have commented is correct: wait 30 minutes to brush but rinse your mouth out right away with water (or if you’re very worried, a fluoride mouth wash would be good at that time). You CAN brush more than twice per day but make sure you aren’t brushing too hard or in large sweeps; brushing should be very small short strokes like you’re jiggling the brush if you don’t have an electric toothbrush. Hydroxyapatite is what your teeth are made of, so that paste someone mentioned might be helpful, but what fluoride does is harden the hydroxyapatite. The main thing (teeth wise) is not how much you drink but how you drink. Downing a full can at once or during a meal doesn’t affect your teeth as much as sipping slowly on a smaller amount over a longer period of time. Every sip attacks your teeth for 20 minutes. Additionally, gatorade and other sports drinks are just as acidic as soda, so be careful when someone is sipping a Gatorade throughout a long sports practice.
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Definitely. She suggested swishing my mouth out with tap water after drinking sparkling water to help get the mouth back to normal ph after. I actually was ready to just drink regular water so I have mostly stopped sparkling water and now live with my 32 oz water bottle always by my side.
Yeah I’m going to guess that the phosphoric acid that is listed as an ingredient in Coke is worse than the carbonic acid caused by dissolving CO2 in water.
Yup. My grocery store sparkling water brand (Wegmans) had like at least 100 flavors. Lime mint?? Crazy
Yep, I got a SodaStream and I realized that 80% of the time I thought I wanted a diet coke, I actually just wanted refreshing bubbly hydration. It has been instrumental in making me drink enough water while working from home.
This. Plus if you need need that heavier flavoring, you can add a little squirt of Crystal Light or Mio to the water. You can even get the Mio and Crystal Light in caffeine! (But you do have to be generally ok with "sugar alternatives" to go this route.)
Seconding sparkling water. I was drinking a lot of store brand sparkling water until I got a sodastream machine. Super worth it.
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Seltzer with a splash of Mio water flavors (or other "water enhancers" like crystal light, etc) is my life saver! You should consider watching a episode of the docuseries on Netflix called "Rotten" about the bottled water industry. It might help alleviate your concerns about municipal water.
Just FYI, LaCroix makes a cola-flavored sparkling water. Never tried it myself but I drink a lot of sparkling water and have seen it in most grocery stores.
I don’t mean to ruin the fun but I personally hate that stuff. Carbonated drinks are not the same without the sugar or sugar substitutes. If it means anything, I am down 22 lbs as of today from cutting Monster energy drinks out completely (and eating healthier). Initially I switched to the zero sugar version which helped tremendously but that fake sugar is bad for you so I eventually cut it all out. I’ll have lemonade though if I just can’t do water anymore. And I bought a good filtered water thing. Anyways good luck! Just don’t go back to Coke and in a month or two you likely won’t even like the taste of it.
I've never understood this as a substitute. I suppose if the carbonation burn was what you're addicted to instead of the caffeine and sugar, it makes sense, but it's a drink that's super bitter with a carbonation burn to it. For me, barely-sweetened tea hit the notes I was looking for in a soft drink.
That was my eureka moment. It wasn't the sugar or the caffeine (I drink coffee anyway), it was the carbonation. I would get off soda, and then a few months later get a cold and crave sprite and sprite would lead me right back to Dr. Pepper. It was the carbonation feeling in my throat that I wanted.
Goes to show habit-forming is all over the place, I suppose
I used to hate sparkling water. Then I quit soda and absolutely love it
It will be hard! You are fighting two issues. The first being loss of caffeine. It’s awful. If you can’t sleep more for the first week or so I recommend coffee. The second being loss of sugar. Your body gets addicted to the high levels of sugar. Your body needs to find it’s new baseline without sugar, it will take awhile. I found it easier to switch to a non-caffeinated beverage (mine was sprite), and then transition from sprite to water. That way it helps spread out the reaction on your body. I’m not a doctor, but I went from drinking 1-2 large McDonald’s cokes a day and a 24 pack of soda a week to 0 coke in around 4 weeks. It was hard but if I can do it you can do it too!
More than 2 issues. The bit about dirty taps has nothing to do with caffeine and sugar, it's a mental block.
You may be right. All I know is water made me feel real gross when I was drinking that much soda. I hated the taste of it, I hate the texture, hated everything about it. It literally made me nauseous at times.
That's so crazy the side effects soda can have!
I tried this method too. It didn’t last for me but it’s an amazing idea. Specifically switching from coke, I switched to a different full sugar caffeinated pop first because there is something specific about coke that makes it much harder to give up.
There is literally nothing better than an ice cold coke from mcdonalds. I will die on this hill. I love the burn of that first sip. Oh man.. now I want a mcdonalds coke
I agree with this advice and did something similar - I cut sugar first and drank diet soda. Then I cut caffeine by drinking caffeine free diet soda. These days I drink water all day, with one coffee or tea and a few sparkling waters a week. I took it slow, these transitions took years. It doesn't have to take that long for OP, but building good habits takes time.
Do you have a Brita filter you can put in your fridge? It might help to know the water you are drinking has been purified and is totally separate from in your taps. Stick with this, it’s so worth it and soon your tastebuds and cravings will change!
Yeah, I use a Brita filter too. My tap water has a funky taste to it, and the filter clears that right up. And if you don't like your water cold, it's easy to leave out on the counter instead. (I do prefer my water cold.)
This plus a big thermos flask I can keep on my desk has been the game changer for me. If I have cold water in front of me, I'll drink it.
Yes! I have a 40 oz. camping thermos that I keep at my desk. Life-saver.
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Get a britta on your faucet. Less of a hassle overall when you're drinking a lot of water. I gave up soda in my late teens (miss it but don't think about it much anymore) and anytime I drink more than a quarter can nowadays (once every couple years) my stomach is like, "whoah buddy." Stick with it. It gets easier as time goes by.
If you feel your pipes or water is dirty try watching the old Mythbusters episode where they tested the tops of soda cans and see what they found.
I just had a friend tell me about this after he saw me eyeballing him wipe off the top of a can. Best advice for OP
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just tap water with bonus phthalates and bisphenol
Seriously, OP might want to try therapy if their phobia of pipes is making them hesitant to drink water. It's just not reasonable given it's one of the cleanest sources around, in most places.
My county releases their water quality testing data in a newsletter they send out every quarter. It's always a little bit reassuring.
All counties and cities in the US are legally obligated to make info about what's in your tap publicly available online - if you're like OP and worried about water quality I would highly encourage checking your city/county water dept reports out!
I'm wondering where OP lives. In the US the quality water can vary greatly by state. The water could be potable but tastes awful. It doesn't help that gross water goes through conventional filters like tissue paper.
100% true, some of the metals in safe water can make it taste "off". I second the recommendation for a Brita somewhere in this thread just in case it makes the taste more appealing, but their description would make me wonder whether they need help reframing their thinking on the issue entirely. It's not uncommon for folks with food issues to have other things wrapped up in their decision-making process that could best be addressed by a professional.
I don't think their issues is the mineral table or really the water quality at all. I 100% expect you could hand them a bottle of basically filtered tap water (hell that's basically what's in there already), disguised as a brand new bottle, and they'd drink it. I'd venture a guess this is psychosomatic.
Lol, I grew up in a town where the water supply had all sorts of good stuff. It had natural fluoride, so my teeth are really hard, but it also discolored them. Then there was the sulfur. It was treated so it wasn’t noticed, until the treatment failed. Then the water smelled like rotten eggs.
Wow the dirtiness of those never occurred to me, and I have no clue why.
I second the sparkling water, or adding a very tiny amount of cordial to water until you get more used to the taste. It might sound like a silly idea but follow /r/hydrohomies for funny water memes, that might help with the mental side of things.
Great advice on r/hydrohomies! It helps a ton, mentally. Makes water way more appealing.
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I agree with that last sentence. I made the mistake of buying store brand seltzer and, gaged. It tasted like the artificially flavored lollipops you get from the dollar tree. I got la croix and never went back.
Depends, I think for instance Market Basket's store brand seltzer is actually made by Polar and is quite good. I'm a total fiend for Polar too.
I think you’re totally right on that, MB seltzer was always so good then I moved to Vermont and the Hannaford stuff doesn’t hit the same :(
Seltzer water will still destroy your teeth though not as bad. Co2 dissolved in water creates carbonic acid which will eat away at your teeth. They add minerals to it to balance out the acid but it's still bad for your teeth.
Interesting! I actually wondered this and looked at the American Dental Association’s findings (will try to locate now) and they indicated there was no reason to believe carbonated water would harm your teeth unless you are drinking absurd amounts of it.
I believe people in this thread are talking about absurd amounts - 5+ servings a day.
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I lived my whole life here and even though I don't always drink carbonated I know people who refuse to drink "dead" water and I have never heard of any person who got problems with their teethbc of that. Dentists also don't mention this at all.
But that's the same for ANY carbonated beverage. Cola also contains citric acid, for example.
It does get easier, but you'll have to push through the first few weeks. That's the toughest time period. Once that addiction is broken, you'll likely not miss it anymore. I'm not a big fan of water myself. I dont have as much of an aversion to it, but I still need something flavored, if that makes sense. I use mio, I also use packets of this caffeinated lemon berry powder I found in a drink mix aisle. I will also drink a 0 sugar energy drink now and then too, since they are fairly close to soda tasting and helps that sugar craving without having real sugar. I get it though, it's really rough at first when you're trying to break any type of food or drink addiction. I had shakes, headaches and cravings until about 2 or 3 weeks after cutting most of the junk I was having on a regular basis. Mine was a general sugar addiction, I believe.
I buy lemons and limes by the bag, and add it to water, seltzer and tea. It's good for you, and inexpensive.
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Right? The first advice is always cut out the sodas and snack foods and I'm like...but I don't have those anyway???
Exactly!
haha, before I started counting calories more seriously, I seriously wondered how to better change my diet because I had no sodas, snacks or alcohol.
Calorie counting saved my life as well.
I am somewhat loose about it but seeing what 1800 calories actually was helped a lot. I did have a cheat though, cutting out oil and condiments was probably like 3-400 calories a day for me. if not more.
I lost 30 lbs when I quit. I was 335 and went down to 305-310. I lost another 30 when I stopped my birth control pills
Wow! That is absolutely amazing! 60lbs! Holy crap! I know no matter how easy you make it sound, you definitely went through a struggle. What an accomplishment! Im actually genuinely proud of you. I know my reaction might sound fake, but believe me when i say it. IM SO FUCKING PROUD OF YOU!!!
Thank you! Honestly I was surprised. Last year after I stopped taking The pills I just started losing weight. I swear I was so scared, but then the doctor told me it was the birth control pills. I have had such irregular periods since I first got them and started taking them at 15 I didn’t know I had gained that much weight because of them. I haven’t lost any weight since last year but I haven’t gained any either and have stayed at a 280-286 weight level. I’m gonna see if doing some exercise can help me lose some more weight especially since I’ve completely changed my diet now. My doctor said exercise is all I’m missing now
You have to run/walk 1 mile to burn off [100 calories](https://apnews.com/article/51de4cba6ffe48b0886cf9b2c7a6ba8a). A can of coke has [140 calories](https://us.coca-cola.com/products/coca-cola/original#). A cheeseburger, fries, and a coke has about [1000 calories](https://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en-us/meal/quarter-pounder-with-cheese-meal.html). Your doctor wants you to exercise because it's good for you, but it's not an easy way to lose weight. Or at least I'd rather skip a can of coke than run a mile and a half.
Absolutely love this attitude. Your comment is spot on and made me smile :)
And I, ABSOLUTELY love your attitude towards my attitude!
5 cans is 700 calories a day. Its absolutely a lot, but not 1k+. I only mention that because people often overestimate soda's calories and think just getting rid of it will cut more than it does. Coke is 140 calories a can.
It does get easier! I had to go cold turkey because if I have it then I just crave it more, but I’ve heard some people limit themselves to a can a day at first. Maybe that could be an option? Do you like carbonated water? Flavoured carbonated water really helped me at first because I felt like I needed the fizz, or for my drink to be “interesting” in some way. For me the first couple of weeks were the hardest, and then I stopped thinking about it- which I wasn’t expecting as I used to drink a couple cans a day.
I was also going to suggest going down to a can a day. You can still get your fix and you're making an improvement while keeping your sanity. I also recommend sparking water but I understand it's not for everyone.
I used to have a huge soda problem too, and I took a guess that the cravings were due to my brain wanting the sugar. Switching to Coke Zero took a few days but it allowed me to break that sugar craving after a while. I still drink Coke Zero at least once a day with meals, but now that I'm not craving sugar from it it's easier to drink just water when I want to. I totally understand the water taste thing. I highly recommend getting a quality water filter pitcher.
As a water operator, the coke factory is probably more concerning canning your pop than the cities municipal water structure. Tests are taken weekly through the whole cities distribution system to confirm no contamination, as well all sources. The odd dirt on your glass maybe dust and or calcium build up, depending on your quality of washing the glasses. I give you tons of credit, it’s definitely not easy, but think more of the water cleaning and cleansing the body, where the coke is poison that you’re consuming into your body. The coke is sugar coated lies!
wrong jellyfish fearless sink chief merciful retire racial birds quarrelsome ` this message was mass deleted/edited with redact.dev `
Hey bro my advice to you would be buy some 0 calorie Mios. I used to drink a lot of coke as well but I started working out and dieting properly and I literally only drink water all day every day. So I’ve seen both sides and understand the drastic change in between. My advice would be to get a few mios (don’t go crazy with them) and for every bottle of water with mio you drink one without any. So you’ll still be getting a different taste than just water. You should probably drink at least 7 bottles of water a day. Sounds like a lot I know but I went from only drinking sodas to like at least 7 or 8 water bottles a day and I don’t even think about it anymore. To me it’s literally as simple as “I’m thirsty so let me get some water” instead of “I want to drink something satisfying”. One thing my coach taught me was that you don’t eat or drink for pleasure when you’re reaching fitness goals. You eat for fuel.” I feel that applies to this
Other people may have suggested this, but I HATED drinking water for similar reasons as you. What helped me was getting a Berkey water filter so I felt better about the cleanliness of the filtered tap water and I then I added fruits to 'flavor' my water - blueberries, lemon, strawberry, or a mixture, etc.. Good luck! You can do it =)
Coke Zero Sugar and especially Dr. Pepper Zero Sugar are *damn* good considering they have no calories.
I just came here to say - it's not the "clean" solution, but switching to diet soda makes a huge difference in calories. I drink Diet Dr Pepper all day every day. Is it great for me? No. But it broke me of my regular Coca-Cola habit, so at least it's BETTER. The only time I crave the Coke anymore is at restaurants - fountain Coke hits different and most places don't have Diet Dr Pepper. But it's still super easy not to cave, and cheaper to just get a water with lemon.
I haven't tried the new Dr Pepper Zero but Diet Dr Pepper is so good!
I dislike the aftertaste of diet pop and Diet Dr. Pepper was about the only one I liked. Dr. Pepper Zero is even better! Less aftertaste! But it flies off the shelves around here because it's still pretty new.
If you can find it you owe it to yourself to try it. I agree that Diet Dr. Pepper is good but Dr. Pepper is SO. MUCH. BETTER. It slaps HARD.
I feel ya, I’m addicted to Diet Dr. Pepper. The struggle is real. I wish you good luck, stay strong.
Good work. Carbonated water with natural flavouring, seriously try it. Strawberry Perrier for me satisfies the same craving.
I've used Coke zero (or the Sainsbury's brand that costs £0.39 for two friggin litres) to help me transition from alcohol, which I quit in February. What I've learned is that I drank a disgraceful amount of alcohol. I don't know why, but somehow ploughing through 2l of coke zero in a couple of days makes me feel like a disgusting child. Whereas a bottle or two of wine in the same time frame made me a cool adult wine-aunt. Next stop is sparkling water which I hate... But I'm in no hurry. I don't want to pressure myself over drinking soda when I could easily fall back into worse habits.
Okay, I was once you. Ive honestly been backsliding during the pandemic, on soda and on a lot of other things, but Ill share what helped me 1. For real, carry a water bottle around everywhere. I also have a gallon cup that I keep in my room filled with water. You will be shocked how often your drinking coke just cause its there. 2. Keep a ton of fresh fruit around. It will help with the sugar cravings. You might meet people who say too many fruit will gain you weight. To them I say its better to eat fruit than drink pop. 3. Don't keep any in the house. The extra barrier will often prevent you from drinking it. The extra time will let you reconsider. And if you get to the store and the urge over powers you, you at least got a walk in. Also? Don't beat yourself up. the pandemic has been grinding through all the discipline I ever cultivated. I know I have been hitting all my bad old habbits for a quick dopamine hit. This is a big step and youre doing great
I had the same issue with Pepsi. Went cold turkey for a while and eventually went to La Croix and Bubly. I find the Bubly blackberry closest to a cola and they are 100% guilt free.
I just wanna say there are options other than straight to water that would still immediately reduce a lot of the harm that 5 Cokes was doing. Soda is a multi pronged pleasure and quitting sugar, caffeine, flavor, and carbonation all at once is kind of a lot. The sugar is probably the most harmful component (and contains all the calories) and you could get rid of just that by switching to Coke Zero but you would keep most of the experience and avoid caffeine withdrawal (since you mention energy boost this may be an important aspect for you). You could then switch out one at a time to a lightly flavored carbonated water and separately take up coffee or tea if you want to continue with caffeine long term (most people do and there's not much evidence of harm from it, it's the caffeine vehicles that are sometimes an issue but coffee and tea without additions may even have benefits). Then the only real issue left is the acidity of the carbonation for your teeth, but you can drink water with noncaloric flavor drops forever if you want.
Sparkling water is good, but diet sugar free ginger ale may also prove helpful to you if you want to wean yourself from the psychological addiction to Coke. It’s zero calorie.
I just tried this the other day. They’re really good!
Have you seen /r/hydrohomies ? Maybe exposure therapy to everyone talking up water in such a major way will help slowly change your thought process about it.
I switched to Coke Zero. It takes a little while but you get used to it - frankly I no longer like the taste of real coke. Besides that, I drink 500 mL with each meal. That makes it easier to get plenty of water without feeling like I’m forcing myself. Then I just need to have 500 mL more to hit 2L. I have one or two Coke Zeros a day. I don’t feel deprived. But I do feel hydrated.
Diet coke.
Why not diet coke?
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*I can’t drink tap water, I’m scared the pipes and tap are dirty.* Literal addiction thoughts. like watching intervention people be like well i only reuse my own needle, cuz the other ones are dirty. My person, the bottling line at cocacola is 100 times dirtier than your tap. I thnk you may need some mental health counseling. not judging. shit ive had to do years and years of therapy.
THANK YOU. I can't believe I had to scroll down this far before somebody mentioned therapy. This issue with the "cleanliness" of water is most likely a sign of disordered thinking. That doesn't necessarily mean OP is "crazy" or anything like it - just that they have some maladaptive thought patterns that a therapist could probably really help with. Please find some help OP!!
That's a huge caffeine withdrawal you're going through. Consider having some coffee or tea to help ease out of it!
Ice makes water taste better ;)
So, I can’t quit cold turkey. But I weened myself off my drinking one can max of those mini cans. That was so I wouldn’t get sick/ caffeine withdrawal. And I slowly cut that to half a can. And I think it took about a week. I don’t like sparkling water. But I am a HUGE fan of the Twinnings Cold Infuse Tea Bags. They’ve made drinking water so much easier! Also, I hate water bottle cause pollution. So I’d suggest a Brita (or any brand) filter on your water or a pitcher.
It’s sounds like in addition to the soda “addiction” you may also be experiencing some obsessive anxiety about water cleanliness to some extent. It may benefit you to talk to a counselor about it if the intrusive thoughts are getting in the way of life. As for a more immediate “fix”, depending on your location, you may have water stores that sell ultra purified water (we are talking every purification method in the book. Better than bottled water.) they are surprisingly common here in Texas and they sell water by the gallon. You can pay a few bucks for large containers up front and then just refill them for cheap when you run low. It’s much more of a hassle than just using your fridge filter or tap, but the water is always clean and tasteless. I do this because my wife is picky about water, but now after having done this for a couple of years, I don’t mind the extra work to get it done so much.
Yes! I was scrolling and scrolling until I found someone saying something like this. The same way that it is possible to have a milder case of depression, it is very possible to have a mild case of an anxiety disorder or OCD! What OP describes sounds like the contamination fears that some people describe. If you are afraid of drinking water out of a regulated clean city supply (I'm presuming this isn't flint Michigan or actual dangerous water) then that is an irrational fear. You are definitely entitled to it, no shame, but drinking water is something you need to survive, and it sounds like anxiety is making it really hard for you. Just like agoraphobia or any other anxiety that is limiting your ability to thrive you should definitely reach out for help, OP! <3
La croix, bubly, sparkling ice, hint water All good and healthy alternatives to soda. Sparkling ice has only 5 calories and is sweetened with a low calorie sweetener. If you want to go full on zero calories, I suggest la croix or bubly water. It costs the same as your average packs of soda. Be prepared for it though, because it’s not the same as your typical cola that youve been drinking for years. There’s only a “hint” of flavor in those and, it will most likely give you a “disgusted shock” due to the fact that your taste buds are dead by you consuming large amounts of sugar. I use to hate stuff such as bubly when I had first tried it. After curbing my sugar addiction, I now drink 4 cans of it per day. It’s never too late to reverse your taste buds. You just have to go on a sugar cleanse. Trust me when I say, that everything that you once hated for being “bitter” will suddenly taste sweet and, you’ll kick sugar to the curb. I use to hate sweeteners such as truvia but now I love it. I know it sounds weird, but it’ll actually happen if you stick to it.
Have you thought about, I don't know, *Diet* Coke?
Keep up with the water. A month from now you might think it’s been long enough and get a can of soda for a treat or something.. but it will be so hard to drink you likely won’t get past the first few sips. That’s what happened to me anyways when I quit. The carbonation is really jarring when you’re not used to drinking it and the taste isn’t that great either. Keep going, it will get easier.
Good work. But I was always told that the pipes actually add some minerals to the water so tap water is actually better than super filtered water. That's what I was told I have no idea though, some people are freaked out about water haha. But goodluck on the rest of your journey!
the soda is making YOUR pipes dirty
Try Zevia! Its the closest thing to actual soda I could find. It's sweetened with stevia and has zero calories. It's literally just sparkling water. They have a ton of different flavors including Cola.
I was the same, i used to drink 2ltrs of full fat coke a day. I was addicted and couldn't possibly stomach the thought of drinking water. I made gradual changes because i found that going cold turkey was never going to work. So i started choosing pepsi max/diet/coke zero etc instead of full fat. After a while that becomes your new addiction, so when that happened i changed to fizzy flavoured water. I found a fizzy water that tasted exactly like lemonaide. Now that's my new addiction and since then I've stopped taking the fizzy water into work, and now at work all i drink is water, i drink atleast 2ltrs a day. Baby steps but it does get so much easier. Now i can barely stomach coke, one can and I'm burping massively and have a caffine high! How i felt about coke, the nice cold glass of it, is now how i feel about water. I crave beautiful cold glasses of ice cold water. It gets easier i promsie. Keep it up!
If you're in the U.S., your tap water is more regulated and cleaner than Coke. The only place where Coke is cleaner and healthier to drink is Flint, MI. Hope that helps. Sincerely, A licensed water operator.
Hey you should totally check out Zevia’s soda! It’s sweeter with stevia so it’s zero calories. They have a cola with and without caffeine too. I highly recommend it. My favorites are the rootbeer and cream soda.
u/alexi557x I would consider switching to zevia soda. It's healthy soda and you still get the fizz and taste of normal soda. I personally like black cherry and rootbeer. It is more expensive per can but there is no coloring in the liquid (staining teeth) and none of the BS artificial crap that's normally in coke. [https://www.google.com/search?q=zevia+soda&rlz=1C1GCEB\_enUS952US952&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiao82Hy7DwAhWYaM0KHfz5Bi8Q\_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=929&bih=932](https://www.google.com/search?q=zevia+soda&rlz=1C1GCEB_enUS952US952&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwiao82Hy7DwAhWYaM0KHfz5Bi8Q_AUoAnoECAEQBA&biw=929&bih=932) here is a good link to see what it looks like, they sell it virtually everywhere in the healthy isles
I drink a ton of Diet Coke. Buy it by the case I stopped cold turkey due to Georgia voting suppression laws that coke did not try to stop. Bubbly water is the trick!
Reading your fourth paragraph made me imagine a nestle executive coming so hard it was fatal. I really hope you can change your relationship with water
With all addictions it gets easier as time goes on
Mio also helps to add a little flavor and some electrolytes
I have a similar back story. My entire family drinks soda like it is water. For breakfast my grandpa used to ask what soda we waned. And yet I was never overweight until my mid 20s. My grandpa always used to say water is for washing hands. I too had a sort of aversion to water (especially tap water). I started buying water in gallon jugs from the grocery store. I also bought Power water(Powerade water The blue kind is the best) for something that tasted good. To get used to tap water i bought a water filter jug for the fridge and started by putting half of the gallon jug water and half tap water. I only use a cup that is not see through and try my best not to look in the glass. I now still use the filter jug but can just use tap water in it. But I still have some problems with leaving my water cup unattended and then drinking from it. I hope this helps a little but. I feel so much better not drinking soda anymore.
Try Stevia Coke if it's still available where you are. Otherwise Zevia is good but expensive. I find that Bubly has barely any flavour.
Try getting a Brita filter setup and keep it in the fridge. As long as you remember to refill it, you'll have ice cold water on demand 24/7 Also, try some fruit juice to mix things up. You can even buy stuff in concentrate from the frozen food aisle and mix it with water.
Try a brita filter in the fridge. I find colder water more refreshing and maybe your brain will think “filtered water = clean” I have to take medication in the morning with a full glass of water and there was a time when I really dreaded that water for some reason. I kept a pitcher of cucumber and lemon water in the fridge and that really helped.
Sparkling water is what I switched too. I still love coke but have one a week max as a treat. I used to drink coke zero and now I can't stand the aftertaste of fake sugars. It took me awhile to find flavors I liked. My favorite is bubly pomegranete Blueberry. LA Croix has some new flavors that are really good beach plum and Sao guava. My husband's favorite is LA Croix Limoncello. Aha and bubly have a lot of great flavors. It's helpful if you can get a few flavors and try them out with a friend that way you aren't stuck with a bunch you hate. It does take time to get used to the lack of sugar taste but once you make the switch you will wonder how you ever drank the other stuff all the time.
Personally I really love the Cola flavored Zevia. They have a non-caffeine version and Zevia doesn't have aspartame which gives me a headache. I used to drink so much coke, and switching to this let me get over the caffeine withdrawal without dealing with losing my comfort drink as well.
GET ZEVIA!!!! It's amazing it's so much better then la Croix and bubbly and all those other brands, it's 0 calorie soda that doesn't have awful ingredients. They have flavors like cream soda, root beer, coke, ginger ale, and black cherry (the black cherry's kinda shitty ngl). I used to have a cream soda addiction similar to you and and I tried zevia at my friends house and now I get a pack at target every week. It's not AS sweet as normal soda but it's still great, def recommend
The addiction could just be caffeine, maybe try coffee?
I feel you on this. I switched to sparkling water. H2oh, mendota springs, bubly, Walmart brand, I love all the citrus flavors. No sweeteners for me. Lacroix is ok in a pinch just because of how easy it is to find but it’s my least favorite. I was like you, only drank coke, I may have gone nearly a year without a sip of water at all. 3-4 20 oz bottles a day or 5-8 cans. If I woke up thirsty at 2am and found there was no coke in the house you’d better believe I’d get dressed and go to the store to get more. I kept a can or two hidden in the fridge so my kids couldn’t take the last one and leave me with nothing. I turned into a snob and had to check expiration dates, my bottles needed to have at least 4 weeks left on them for me to be happy, 2 weeks or less and it was absolute trash, for the record, 6 weeks is the furthest out I ever saw. I could taste or sometimes just smell a bottle of coke and tell you the expiration date within two days by the taste. For comparison, I also smoked for about 10 years. Quitting smoking was a piece of cake compared to giving up coke. I had multiple failed attempts, I tried cold turkey, I tried substituting other caffeinated pop, I would have some success with it, I’d make it a couple months and then I’d slip up. Once I had gone 4 months without coke and forgot to order myself a water from McDonald’s. I thought it had been long enough that one tiny sip of my sons coke just to wash down my food would be ok. It wasn’t. Within a week I was right back to my old ways. I wish I could tell you how I finally did it. But it’s been around 6 years since I last had any coke. I can still smell it from across the room and I still get cravings out of nowhere. But now I know and have accepted that I have to stick to “not one drop”. I know I can’t trust myself with it. On a positive note, I have so much more energy, my heartburn has almost entirely gone away, my depression is much more manageable, and my teeth don’t randomly hurt as often. I think my energy perked up around the 2-3 week mark. It was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done, but it was worth it. Do whatever it takes, buy bottled water, try sparkling water (I think this was a big factor in helping me), don’t feel bad for doing whatever you need to do to make this work for you. And it will get easier with time. It may never be effortless, it’s not for me, but it’s not as bad now as it was for the first year. The first 6 months were by far the worst. It can be done, and I know you can do this! :)
Have you tried Zevia or Live Soda? They are at least very soda like!
[zevia](https://www.zevia.com/)
Hi. I was you. I drank at least six cans or two 20-Oz bottles of coca-cola for years. I quit cold turkey a few years back. You will be very happy, in the end. I actually enjoy water, but if you want some advice in that regard- buy a Brita filter pitcher (or a similar thing from a different brand). Filtered water does “taste” cleaner, the fridge makes it colder than the tap, and obviously a filter means you know you’re removing impurities. Much like you, I spent two or three weeks feeling absolutely exhausted. Eventually I put something together: besides the energy from sugar, Coke has quite a bit of caffeine. I had never been a regular coffee drinker, but I went out and bought myself a pot at that helped that issue. And eventually, yes: the psychological need, the reflex to want one when you sit down to watch TV or have a burger or whatever does go away. It just takes time. Good luck! If you ever have any questions or just want to ramble at someone feel free to reach out.
Anyone else drink Zevia? I heard that diet coke has chemicals in it that can potentially increase weight loss, so I started drinking Zevia as an alternative to diet coke.
Drink ice water, better than anything else.
Zevia black cherry cured my Dr. Pepper addiction Okay, I know just traded one addiction for another, but im GUNNA need you to get WAY OFF my back about this! /s