Healthy Drinking Month

August 3, 2012 at 11:17 am nathan118 10 comments

Last month I ran 20 miles, and got into a really good routine of lifting weights and doing sit ups. I want to continue this, but one area I really want to improve is what I drink. For the month of August I’m going to try:

No coffee
No soda
No alcohol

First, I don’t think any of the above are necessarily bad, I’m just not good at doing them in moderation. With coffee, I end up relying on it to wake up in the morning, and I end up having it everyday. I wish I could have it once in a while…but that always seems to turn into every day really quickly. Soda is similar. I promise myself to only drink sprite, but that quickly turns into Dr. Pepper and more caffeine. This all just makes me feel really out of balance. Super tired in the morning, then caffeine high, then crash. These are also totally worthless calories I don’t need.

Part of the battle is just breaking the cycle. If I can get off the caffeine, I’m usually OK. But without being able to rely on it in the morning means I need to get a good night’s sleep. If not, I can easily fall back into the coffee problem (especially when I have work.)

As for alcohol, I don’t really drink too much, but I don’t sleep very well when I have it. That means I usually wake up tired, and coffee sounds really good, and the vicious cycle starts all over.

So I want to get rid of all three of these for the month. It will save me thousands of calories, and even some money. I need a little break from water, so I’ll probably do milk in the mornings, and maybe some V8 Splash for a treat.

Otherwise, writing all this reminds me how important a good night’s sleep is in this whole equation. Don’t wake up tired, and you won’t be as tempted to have that coffee. For some reason I don’t like just going to bed. Sometimes I’ll watch TV, watch something on my phone…but I think the best thing I’ve found for helping me get to bed quick is reading.

So here’s to a whole month (or most of it…I just started today) of healthier drinking.

Misc none

http://profiles.google.com/froman118 Andrew Charlton

I might have soda once a week and when I do it is diet. Pretty much coffee every morning made at home with sucralose and milk. Enjoy a drink of something on most nights after work. So I save calories and money on the soda and coffee which ends up going towards booze. Being night owl’s must run in the family.
- nathan118
  
  I can’t do diet…if I’m going to drink a soda, I need the real thing. Usually soda isn’t a problem…but I bought a couple 12 packs the other week, so we had it in the house, and we’ve been eating out more, so it’s tempting when I’m out.
  
  I can be a night owl during the summer, but waking up at 5:45 am during the school year…no way. But the coffee and stuff totally messes with my sleep schedule. Instead of getting tired when I should be, I’m all messed up.I honestly can’t remember going a whole month without any of those, so I want to do another post in a month and see how I’m doing. It’s kinda disappointing to have a good run, then have a beer with dinner, and wake up feeling like garbage.
Judy

Yay for you for being so healthy. You can do it, I have no doubt! Funny how one thing affects another, which affects another, and so on. It’d be easier if there was only one thing to conquer.
- nathan118
  
  Trying to! And I know getting healthy and staying healthy NOW is much easier than waiting until I’m any older.
Denise

Healthy drinking = red wine instead of white. I too commit to this choice.
nathan118

Successfully avoided the Coronas staring at me last night when we had pizza, and refrained from the tasty beer at BJs tonight. I wanted SOMETHING though, so I got one of their Cream Sodas (no caffeine). It was funny though…as soon as I got it and tasted it…I wish I hadn’t. Not because I felt guilty, but because it just didn’t taste that good…like water would have made me just as happy (and $3 richer).
Shannon

Since starting to eat healthier several months ago and really counting calories I have become a master at drink substitutions. While I do on rare occasions have soda, i refuse to keep it in the house. I drink pretty much just plain water or water with crystal light or other flavor addins. This took some major getting used to. I still drink coffee in the morning but have never been one for more than one cup. Suggested alternative to fool your am self is to drink hot tea instead (decaf or course). This will come in handy on cold mornings! One thing I have learned to beware of is juice. Juice while healthier than soda is not really healthy. It’s loaded with extra sugar and can be just as high in calories as some soft drinks. Things like V8 and tomato juices and some other veggie mixes carry 1/2 a days sodium intake in just one glass. A good way to drink juice but cut back on all the extras is to add water or club soda to it. Keep up the good work and can’t wait to see you how u feel in your next post.
- nathan118
  
  V8 Splash is still a treat…but I figure it takes away that urge for a soda, while being a bit better for you. 70 calories per 8 oz compared to 100 per 8 oz of soda. Only 2% sodium, so that’s not bad. It’s got a ton of vitamin A and C in, so at least you get something good. But yeah, still has some sugar in it.
  - Shannon
    
    Are you still making your own protein shakes? My go to treat is chocolate milk. Full of protein, low in fat (I use 1% milk) and i get chocolate! Healthy and sweet, win win! I mix my own with milk and syrup, the premixed in the store add too much sugar.
    - nathan118
      
      I’m trying out a new protein shake. Only 2g of sugar, so super low calories. Since I’m actually doing some weight training type stuff, I figured I might as well pack on some protein to help with that…since building muscle has NEVER been something easy for me to do.
      
      http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Standard-Natural-Vanilla/dp/B000GIURM2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1345496379&sr=8-1&keywords=natural+whey

Healthy Drinking Month

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