I Like the Bubbles and the Taste: How do I Replace Soda?

Congratulations!

Why? Because you’re probably reading this after making the tough decision of replacing soda in your life. 

We no longer have to go through everything that makes soda bad—since those were probably the reasons why you want to move on from soda—but we do need to elaborate on how you can replicate these delicious yet unhealthy substances and find cleaner alternatives. 

Here, we find out all the healthy alternatives to soda that you didn’t think were possible. Aside from the obvious ones, we’ll include a few others you’ll probably make a staple in your life. 

But before that, let’s first get down to the real business of cutting soda out of your life.

The Go-Healthy Process of Cutting Soda

As much as you want to cut off soda from your life as soon as possible, experts do not recommend it. 

Those who surprise their bodies with the switch often go back to soda almost immediately or binge on some other sweeter, unhealthier food or beverage. 

Just to be clear, we don’t want that. 

That’s why here’s a step-by-step guide on how you can make that switch with guaranteed results.

First, cut your soda intake in half. Regardless if you drink every day, every other day, or whenever. For the first month of this transition, limit your intake and only consume half of what you used to. 

The next step is to replace the other half of your previous soda intake with healthier alternatives. Understandably, it’s never going to be the same taste and bubbly liquid, but you’ll get used to it—use the power of the mind. 

What are these alternatives, you might ask? We’ll give you more details in the next section. 

Third, every time you feel the need to drink soda, try choosing your preferred alternative instead. By letting your body get used to this, the transition phase will become more manageable, and you’ll get to move on to the next step much quicker. 

Lastly, once you notice that you no longer look for sodas as often as you did pre-switch, further cut your intake in half. 

Repeat the last step of the process until you feel nothing—nada—towards soda, just memories of how bad it is for your body. 

Healthy Alternatives to Soda

The process of replacing—or perhaps, removing—soda in your life can be one of the most difficult challenges you’ll ever face. 

Companies have marketed it to be the perfect pair to any fast food meals like burgers and friends, but don’t fret—it’s possible, just stick to the steps in the previous section.

Listed below are just some of the alternatives you can easily find in the market or make at home. Each one will need a phase of getting used to, but once you’ve gotten the hang of these alternatives, you can say bye-bye to soda forever. 

Hopefully, you won’t relapse, though. We trust you on that. 

So, without further ado, try out these alternatives:

Fruit Juice + Sparkling Water

The most notable things about soda are the bubbles and the taste, which are both pretty hard to overtake. But there’s a healthy hack to that. 

Get your favorite sparkling water and add some natural fruit juice to it. Make sure to get the sweet ones to replicate the sweetness of soda. However, don’t ever be tempted to either add any type of sweetener to these drinks as they defeat the very purpose you’re doing this.

Coconut Water

As one of the healthiest alternatives to soda, this should be on your list. Suppose you can get fresh coconut water, even better. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have fizz, but it has a sweetness that’s natural and refreshing. 

Plus, this drink has easy-to-digest carbohydrates and gives you more potassium than any other sports drink out there.

Kombucha 

This might be a hard bargain and will need much getting used to, but kombucha is a fermented drink packed with probiotics that aid digestion. It’s not the first choice of many, but it’s been proven to be good for the body. 

Having the same benefits as green tea will strengthen your immune system while still being an enjoyable drink.

Fruit Smoothies

Don’t like fruit juice? Try using the real fruit instead. Make homemade smoothies to get a natural sweet fix that your body just craves. Ideally, frozen fruits are more popular, but fresh ones with some ice are also pretty fantastic. 

If you want those bubbles, try adding a bit of seltzer water. Just make sure that you don’t dilute your smoothie with too much seltzer water—always have more fruits than water. 

Water

Of course, we wouldn’t forget the most basic yet healthiest alternative there is if you’re ever craving soda, gulp in water. Drinking eight glasses of water a day—as you may already know—improves your brain function, aids in weight loss, and alleviates constipation. 

Don’t forget to drink more water than anything else because this is the top-tier substance that should be permanent in anybody’s daily intake.

Takeaway

Props to you for making this decision. We’re sure it wasn’t an easy one. Just remember not to ambush your body, especially if you've been drinking it way more than you should. Go through the transition and stick to it. 

Check out the alternatives we’ve provided and see which ones you like. Give them all a try. Who knows, you might make them all a staple.