By Michelle Kruse
Sometime this month (I’m not sure of the exact date); I’ll celebrate a major anniversary. Okay, so it’s not the kind of thing most people think of as a cause for celebration, but it’s something I never would have thought could happen. I drank my last sip of pop (soda to non-Midwesterners), sometime last August. I didn’t really plan to quit drinking it completely. In fact, I’d weaned myself to so little that it wasn’t until last October that I realized I hadn’t had one or wanted one in over two months. This may not seem too amazing until I tell you that I used to drink at least six cans of diet soda a day. In college, I’m not sure I had water except when brushing my teeth. I used to hate working out and would cramp-up every time I tried to run. Needless to say, I never considered myself athletic, surely in some part due to dehydration. I never drank water. In fact, I used to crack a soda after swim practice in high school. No wonder I always felt crappy – and could it be a reason I never had perfectly clear skin?
So how did I do it? When I first started training for and running in triathlons, I realized I performed better when my diet was better (duh). I also took Joan’s advice and stopped drinking caffeine past noon. My sleep quality instantly improved (no more insomnia) and I didn’t have the time for soda. Eventually I was down to not being able to drink a whole can and having one every other day at most. I also started to feel like every time I sipped a diet coke my insides were corroding. Probably true. Then, I just stopped craving it altogether.
I was discussing my milestone with Joan yesterday and she brought up a fascinating study. Note, this study was conducted on rats, not humans, but still: The study actually linked lung cancer to phosphate intake. Diet pop and lung cancer. Scary stuff.
Life without soda is far from all-water boring. I drink a variety of teas (green was an acquired taste – now I love it), a CardioWhey mixed with skim milk or almond milk every day and, of course, I get enough water. When you’re actually drinking the amount of water you should every day, you’re rarely thirsty for anything else.
