Soda can be the source of many empty calories. It can completely sabotage your diet efforts if you aren’t careful. Simply cutting out soda can help you lose ten, twenty or even more pounds. These’re some alternatives to soda with far few calories in them.
1 Water
Water is the best choice of beverage that you can choose. It’s completely calorie free and your body needs it. Most of us don’t drink enough water. If you switch your soda out for water then you’ll see more benefits than weight loss. You’ll feel better and your skin will have a lovely glow that no skincare or makeup product can accomplish.
Frequently asked questions
2 Hot or Iced Tea
I love water and it’s the main drink I choose. But there’re also times when you just want something different. Tea is a good alternative to water and is calorie free on it’s own. You can keep it low cal by choosing a sugar-free sweetener and skim milk. There’re so many varieties of teas to choose from that you could drink a different one each day and not repeat a flavor for at least a month, if not longer.
3 Hot or Iced Coffee
Coffee is the other beverage I sometimes choose when I want a change from water. I love coffee and would honestly drink more but too much coffee isn’t good for you. Coffee is another low calorie beverage to drink. It’s possible to add a lot of calories if you go crazy with creamer or milk and sugar but it’s easy enough to keep it light. A hot cup of coffee is perfect on a winter morning and there’s nothing better than iced coffee when the temperature is on the rise.
4 Low Calorie Hot Chocolate
Hot cocoa is an amazing treat but it can really deliver a punch of calories. That’s okay on occasion because we all need a day where we can throw caution to the wind but you don’t want to do that frequently. However, there’re low calorie hot chocolate mixes you can buy to have as a change of beverage. Some of them are as low as 25 calories. You can also find low calorie apple cider mixes, too.
5 Fizzy
A fizzy is something that I used to fix my children to give them a treat without turning them loose on soda. Mix half a glass of ice water with a forth a glass of apple or white grape juice and a forth a glass of soda. Yes, there’re still some calories here but they’re less than a full can of soda. When you’re really craving the fizz of soda then this can give you your fix. It has enough flavor to hit the spot.
6 Low Calorie Gatorade
Low calorie Gatorade is another option. It’s flavorful and something different if you don’t love water. It’s wonderful at keeping your body hydrated and is a good source of potassium. While it’s not as good for you as water, it has benefits. It’s certainly better for you than soda!
7 Crystal Light Packets
This’s a good way to up your water intake without drinking plain water. Crystal Light packets have around 5 calories in each packet so they’re very diet friendly. They’re also really good. I usually keep a box or two stashed around so they’re easy to grab. They’re great to throw in your purse or keep in your car to add to a bottle of water when you’re on the go.
8 Red Wine
If your drink of choice when going out is soda mixed with an alcohol (vodka sprite, rum and coke, etc) then skip the soda and order red wine. It has major health benefits-in moderation- and fewer calories than it's soda alternative.
9 Vegetable Juice
If you struggle with your daily fruit and veggie servings, than start juicing your healthy necessities and drinking that instead of a soda. There's tons of recipes online and tons of things you can add to spice it up, sweeten it up, and more!
10 Milk
Soy, almond, cashew, cow, coconut... Your options of milk are endless-and so are its health benefits! Skip the soda and grab a glass of sweet tasting milk. It's healthy, vitamin fortified, and whether you go for a dairy-free alternative or not, you can find it in a variety of flavors; all of which are healthier than soda.
These’re low calorie alternatives to soda. Which ones could work as a soda substitute for you? Have you been trying to give up your soda addiction?
