Five Years Without Soda!

In December 2006, I made one of the best decisions to positively influence my health. I stopped drinking soda completely.  It was a rocky road in the beginning, but every step of that journey was well worth the effort.

My Name Is Twinkie, And I’m A Soda Addict

It all started at an early age. When I was growing up, I only had soda “every once in a while”, such as special occasions like birthdays or holidays. Not all that bad, really, but as I got older, in middle school and high school, I started to drink soda on the weekends. I didn’t stop there.

I remember getting my first job working at a bank and I had access to cheap (sometimes free!) soda thanks to the gas station within walking distance. I started drinking soda every single day, and drank more soda than water. Some days, I don’t think I even drank any water at all! Whenever I was thirsty, I didn’t drink water, I would just drink my soda. I remember waking up in the morning and having a soda. It was a bad path that I was going on and I was spiraling down quickly.

Side Note: In addition to drinking soda, I also ate junk food and I definitely wasn’t working out. Not a good combo, I know…

All of the junk food I was putting into my body eventually caught up with me, and my skinny 5’9″ frame started to faulter and was skinny no more. After about a year into my new bad habits, this nice older gentlemen asked me nicely if I were expecting. Ouch. Double Ouch. I didn’t think I gained that much weight. Apparently, I did. This was the moment when I finally realized that I had a problem. I was addicted to soda, and it needed to stop.

A Brighter Future

I desperately wanted to change my soda drinking habits, so I tried to just cut back. For years I tried to drink soda only “every once in awhile”, but I was always dealing with the intense cravings to have a soda more often than not. I know that soda addiction probably shouldn’t be compared to an alcohol addiction, but you can’t just expect an alcoholic to just drink on the weekend or just have one drink. It just doesn’t work like that. I understood that more than anyone when it came to my soda.

In early 2006 when I was engaged to my husband, I ended up quitting cold turkey. I made that decision because I didn’t want to continue this awful habit and I knew I didn’t want my future kids to be asking for soda and have this awful habit just like me. It was honestly embarrassing how much soda I would drink.

I ended up not drinking any soda for about four months or so. This was a huge feat! In December 2006, I was at a family get together and decided to have a sip of soda for the first time in about four months. It was disgusting! I had my husband try a sip of the same drink and I asked him if it was flat or if something was wrong with it. Nope, there was nothing wrong with the soda. I just didn’t like the taste any more. It tasted like watered down corn syrup, which was something I couldn’t crave. Thank goodness!

I finally decided that I just didn’t want soda anymore and I haven’t had a single sip of soda since December 2006, and I don’t plan on ever drinking it again! Why would I? Soda isn’t healthy and has zero nutritional value.

I swapped my soda for water and began my journey to a much healthier me. It’s amazing how much better I feel since I have stopped drinking soda (and energy drinks, by the way!).

I didn’t realize how unhealthy I was until I became healthy.

Never Too Late To Stop

I am sure that a lot of you can relate to me with my (soda) drinking story. Soda can be quite addicting, since it’s loaded with sugar or artificial sweeteners that keep you hooked for as long as you are willing to be.

If you are willing to make the choice to stop drinking soda, you can overcome the addiction. Look at the nutrition label of the soda. You are putting toxins into your body every time you drink soda, which will eventually have negative effects on your body, if it hasn’t already.

In addition to knowing how bad soda was for me, I had a personal look at what soda can cause. Soda is known to cause serious health issues to the kidneys, and this was a huge wake up call when I made that connection. I had a grand parent die of kidney failure. It might not have been from drinking soda, but I decided I wanted to change my own fate for the better. You can too.

It’s never too late to stop drinking soda, and I encourage you to cut back and eventually stop drinking soda completely. Trust me, your body will thank you for it.

How To Stop Drinking Soda in Ten Weeks or Less

Whenever you are thirsty or craving soda, drink water! If you need to add some flavor, just squeeze a slice of lemon or lime into your water for a refreshing beverage.

For me, I had to stop drinking soda cold turkey. If that doesn’t work for you, start cutting your soda habits in half each week until you no longer need or want to drink it.

For example, if you drink four sodas a day…

Week 1: Drink two sodas a day

Week 2: Drink one soda a day

Week 3: Drink one soda every other day

Week 4: Drink one soda twice a week

Week 5 and 6: Drink one soda just once a week

Week 7, 8, 9, and 10: Drink one soda every other week

Week 11: Congratulations! You are no longer drinking soda!

By week 11,  you shouldn’t feel the intense cravings to continue drinking soda anymore, and I suggest never starting the habit again!

If you still drink soda, what is going to motivate you to quit the habit? If you have already stopped drinking soda, what inspired you to make the change?

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