That’s right. I used drink 12 (or more) cans of coke and lucozade every day
Without a doubt, this was one of the worst habits I have ever developed in my life and was one of the hardest to break.
Like most habits, it started when I was a child and was consistently fed into as I grew older by working in bars and simply being un-educated about how to actually change it.
Simply put when you drink that much sugar on a daily basis you feel like shit.
Barely being able to get out of bed in the morning is one of the worst feeling possible
You got this horrible taste in your mouith that will only go away by drinking another fizzy drink
The headaches are horrendous. It’s like having a really bad hangover
The effect it has on your stomach is brutal- I ended up with gastritis which is one of the worst pains I’ve ever suffered
My torso was covered in a rash that made me look like a leopard with red spots- thankfully it’s now gone
All I wanted to do was sleep and stay in bed- worst energy slumps in the world were part of every day
Beside these problems, drinking that much sugar opens you up to nasty illnesses such as diabetes, migraines, obesity, etc.
Consuming a lot of sugar also creates an overly-acidic environment in your body which your body will do almost anything to avoid- including leaching minerals from your bones and teeth to create a more balanced environment. An open invitation to many things including osteoporosis.
Let’s be honest, it’s not nice stuff and it need to go.
I had tried many times to get on top of the problem.
Only have a fizzy drink with Sunday dinner- this soon turned into 2 fizzy drinks on Sunday, then 3, then 1 on Saturday as well and then back to square 1
You you’ve fallen into this trap you know how easy it is to do.
So how did I finally give them up?
I made their decision to do it. You might think I had made the decision to do it before and still failed so why was this time any different?
The simple answer is that I had never before actually made the decision to give them up. I had said it and tried but when you make a decision, and by that I mean a true decision, there is only one outcome and that’s success.
A decision to do something isn’t an attempt at it. Something you can give a shot at and when you fail tell yourself that at least you’ve tried.
A true decision removes all other possibilities except the one that you have chosen. In my case the only possibility was that I would never drink a fizzy drink again. I had tried the once a week thing and the only-on-cheat-days thing and for me it wasn’t a suitable option.
As I often say, if you have a trigger food, something you cannot control, then the only option is to completely remove it.
And that was it. I gave myself 6 months of focusing on nothing but avoiding fizzy drinks. Changing such a massive habit and making such a big improvement to the quality of my life became my number 1 priority and that’s where I focused 100% of my energy.
The more things you focus on, the less chance of success you have.
And the 1st week was absolutely horrible. Having such a drop in sugar levels leaves your body and mind screaming for more of it. You get the most intense headaches possible and you keep telling yourself to just have 1. But if I did I would be having 12 again in no time.
Plus, I had made a real decision so that wasn’t an option.
It is fairly tough but guess what? It passes and after 1 week the difference in your energy levels is phenomenal. You’ve more energy to train, to spend better quality time with your family and friends, to practice your hobbies, to focus on work, etc.
And then, like anything that you persist with, it becomes easier and easier and before you know it it’s no big deal anymore.
As I said earlier, the decision to do this and the 1st week of it were not the easiest things in the world. It was easier said than done but it still needed to be done and I have all the rewards of it for my efforts.
As you can see it’s not really the sexiest of stories but hopefully it will inspire you to make some important decisions in your life that are holding your back from where you say you want to be.
If you found this useful feel free to pass it onto anyone you think could benefit from it and we’ll chat again soon.
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