Soda-less

When I was writing up this year's 2011 list, I tried to think of a couple of things that would challenge me personally. I thought about giving something up that I knew would be a hard sell and came up with soda. Coke. Pepsi. Whatever you call it in your neck of the woods.

Now, I have never been a soda addict like some people I know. I love a nice cold Coke as much as anyone but its not that have to have with every meal type of deal that some people have. Of course there are some things you just have to drink coke with. Like chips and dip. I drink soda probably 3 or 4 times a week. So did I take the easy road? Yeah kind of but I saw it as working up to giving up something I really can't live without: Sweet Tea. Something I drink with every meal. Yee haw.

At any rate, I actually found it harder to give up soda than I thought it would be. I knew that I would be better health wise at the very least. Soda is horrible for your health. It is bad for your teeth, your bones, your liver, your everything. With all the artifcial sugar and flavors and BPA lined cans, its kind of amazing that any of us can still stomach it knowing what it is doing to our bodies.

Drink it we do though. Thing is, it really is something you reach for without really thinking about. Those clever marketing folk make us think we need it. Think we need it to stay awake or to go with certain things. Like chips and dip. Hey... gotcha.

So, one day at the end of Summer, I got a bee in my bonnet about not drinking any more soda for the rest of the year. I knew I had made it a goal to not drink any for at least three months as part of the List so I figured if I was going to make it stick, I had better give myself time to slip up and start over. Once I set my mind to something, I mean to do it. This was no exception.

Even though I had given myself time to slip up, I am proud to say I made it the whole three months without so much as looking at a carbonated beverage. I thought about it from time to time and there were certain times where it really would have been nice to have a nice cold Coke.

Thing is though, the longer I went, the less I thought about it. The less I craved it even with certain things. Like chips and dip. I started noticing that I was feeling better after meals. Especially the meals I would have eaten with a nice cold soda. I wasn't as bloated and uncomfortable. I didn't have that crazy sugar crash a few hours later.

I felt.. weird. Good weird.

Not run a marathon good but noticeable nonetheless. I suppose that is what I was looking for though, huh? So, there you have it. Experiment passed. Will I go back to soda? Probably. Lets be real here but will I go back to drinking it even semi- regularly? Probably not. Why would I?

I would encourage you to try to give something though. Something you might not even realize you think you need. Caffeine in general is always a good one to give up. I did for several years before I had kids. You can't beat that high with all the Red Bull in the world. Thing is, you don't realize how much something is holding you down until you give it up.

So, what is something you would like to give up?