Month 4, Day 1: Still hanging in there

I gave up on blogging because even though I wasn't drinking soda, I also wasn't losing weight. Nothing was changing. In fact, I actually gained a couple of inches since the last time I blogged. It was massively discouraging to even talk about it.  However, that is the truth about giving up soda: it isn't a panacea that's going to magically fix everything.

That's just as important a finding as anything else. Drinking soda is being blamed for a lot of things, but if after 4 months of going without the pounds haven't magically melted away and I'm still not drinking any, then there must be another culprit at large. Something else that I have to fix to fix the problem.

It's not a lack of exercise on my part. I live in Elko, Nevada. I regularly walk a mile or more a day just in my effort to get to work. This isn't walking on flat, even land. This is walking up 30 and 45 degree angle hills, sometimes with 10-20 pounds worth of groceries. There's plenty of resistence built into my routine, and it's never the same amount or the same weight each day so I can eliminate the notion that it's my body getting used to what I'm doing and plateauing.

Eliminating soda has reduced my sugar tolerance. I used to take 3 tablespoons in everything. I have cut back to 2, so I've eliminated another source of sugar in my diet and there still hasn't been a positive change. In fact, as I said, I've actually put on some inches since the summer time.

Here are my current measurements:
waist: 39"
gut: 48"
hips: 46"
bust: 43"
neck: 14 1/2"
upper left arm: 15 1/4"
left wrist: 7"
left ankle: 10 1/2"
upper right arm: 15"
right wrist: 7"
right ankle: 10"

I do have a thought about what's going on. It would have to be tested and proven first, before I could call it more than just a thought, but here's what I'm thinking may have happened.

I used to be super skinny. 98 pounds worth of skinny, about 12 pounds underweight for someone 5' tall. It didn't matter what I ate, none of it stuck. Getting pregnant with my son changed that. I put on 44 1/2 pounds with him.

This indicates that there was already a problem with my thyroid, which regulates metabolism. It was cranked up into overdrive. The hormones in pregnancy altered that, bringing my thyroid back into line with what it should have been.

I drank a lot of soda back then, at least a super big gulp a day - roughly a 2 liter of soda a day. That's a lot of caffeeine intake. Caffeeine as we all know is a thyroid stimulant, cranking up the metabolism artificially. What most people don't tell you is that when you artificially begin stimulating the thyroid, the body will eventually stop doing it on its own. It doesn't want to waste resources that it could be using elsewhere doing something that you're just going to override anyway.

Add in a second factor - which is that I took a depo provera shot shortly after my son was born - and that massive dose of hormones escalated the situation. Sent it into overdrive. Years of heavy soda drinking and that combined to wear out the thyroid early. It's not functioning like it should be.

About 8 years ago I went to 3 or 4 doctors trying to figure out what was wrong. None of them were listening. All of them told me my hormone levels were "normal", despite the evidence I gave them that it wasn't normal for me. This is the problem with charts and graphs. What's normal for one person isn't always normal for every person. I'm pretty sure the results would be different now. However, I can't afford a doctor to verify this.

I think a long-term study needs to be done on the effects of soda on the thyroid, to see whether it causes the thyroid to burn out early as I'm guessing it does. Here are the symptoms of hypothyroidism in women:

• Weight gain, even though you are not eating more food
• Increased sensitivity to cold
• Constipation
• Muscle weakness
• Joint or muscle pain
• Depression
• Fatigue (feeling very tired)
• Pale dry skin
• A puffy face
• A hoarse voice
• Excessive menstrual bleeding

I have several of the symptoms on the list. 

Day 27: Almost through the first month

I find this thought incredible. I am almost through the first month without soda, and I don't miss it. I get the occasional moment where I look at or think about a drink, but I've learned a lot about what drives those and how to avoid putting myself in the way of temptation. Giving up soda isn't something I ever thought I would do, and here I am almost a whole month in without it.

I was listening to someone on a webinar this morning, and what struck me about his talk was that he said we are not afraid of situations. We are afraid of how we will feel about them.  I think giving up soda has taught me how true this is. I was afraid giving up soda would somehow be too hard, that I wouldn't be able to do it, that I wouldn't like doing it. I was afraid of missing soda too much. Then, I do it, and I find out that I don't really miss it at all.

Sometimes, when we set out to change our lives, we surprise ourselves. Things we thought were impossible or that would be extremely difficult prove almost effortless. It's about the right timing in our lives, about the right mindset, and the will to do it.  It helps knowing that there are people paying attention to what I do, and that I'm accountable for the failure if I choose to give in to temptation.  It helps, too, to have seen positive changes come from this small change in my life.

Day 22-25: Keeping It Up

I spent two days on the road, and yesterday recovering from that. I still haven't had any soda, which is actually somewhat miraculous.  On Saturday, we were up at 4 am to get out of the house by 6 and in the air by 8. Our train wasn't due to depart Salt Lake City until 12:20 am the morning of the 22nd, but by 10 pm we were told it was going to be two hours late and I was already exhausted. I needed energy, and the only drinks available in the vending machine that might have given me the boost I needed was Mountain Dew. My husband even suggested making an exception under the circumstances, but I held firm.

The next day was stressful as we dealt with issues at home that had been neglected in our absence and tried to find solutions. Fortunately I was too busy to be overly tempted by soda. Today, however, I found myself staring with some longing at my husband's soda and the 2 liter bottle they bought while I was sleeping last night.  Still, I resist because honestly it's not worth going backwards in my progress. A year's a long time, but I've done well so far and I want to keep it that way.

That's another life lesson: Victory comes through meeting little challenges every single time with the end in mind, and not giving in to the thought that it's just this once.  Sure, I can start over again if I have to, but the truth is that every time you give in it makes it that much harder the next time you have a battle against temptation.

Day 21: Precision Makes a Difference

As I said that I would, I decided to re-take my measurements. I'm going to ignore the other three measurements I took and re-start my comparisons based upon this set.  This is because I took time to be sure that I pinpointed exactly where the measuring line was to begin each time I measured.

Bust: 14" from shoulder, sans bra
Waist: 19.5" from shoulder
Gut: 5" from waist
Hips: 8" from waist

I re-measured myself at these points and here were the results in the areas that mattered most:

Bust: 44.5"
Waist: 40.5"
Gut: 47"
Hips: 45.5"

Now that I have baseline measurements and know precisely where I will be measuring to compare, I am also choosing to make it first thing in the morning when I awake as my measuring time. This assures me that a stuffed belly won't skew the results.

Life lesson learned: Being precise is important when trying to measure the results of any effort you make in life. A lack of precision can lead to two outcomes, neither of which is good. The first negative outcome is being falsely encouraged to continue on a path that may not actually be fruitful.  The second negative outcome is to become discouraged by a false reading, leading you to quit or give up when success was at hand. Either one is counter-productive.

Day 20: 2nd Measuring Day

It's hard to believe but it's been 10 days already since my last measuring day. The fit of my clothes hasn't really changed, so I knew not to expect much of a drop, but I wasn't expecting this. It's disappointing, but the results are in:
                                                                 September 8th             September 19th
Left & Right Wrist           7"                            7"                                 7"
Neck                               15"                         15 1/2"                            15"
Bust                                 44"                        43 1/4"                            45"
Waist                               40"                        40"                                  40"
Gut                                  48"                        43 1/2"                            48 1/2"
Hips                                 46 1/4"                 45 1/2"                            46"
Rt ankle                           10 1/2"                  10 1/2"                           10 1/4"
Lft ankle                          11"                         11"                                10 1/2"

I'm not sure what happened at all. It's possible I mis-measured last time. It's also possible that, as my husband suggests, I need to pick the same time of day every day to measure. I took the measurements right after eating, when I was full enough to practically pop which may have affected the size. It's also possible that hormones affect the measurements.

These are taken just a few days after finishing my period. It's also possible that where I am measuring each time is affecting the results. I'll have to develop a more precise method of measuring so that I can be consistent. I have made a decision to measure again in the morning before I eat to see if it makes a difference. That should allow me to eliminate the possibility that a full belly was distorting results.

On a more positive note, I did not have any soda today, and there were at least some decreases in my measurements. It wasn't what I wanted but it's still some change. I'm hoping that being back in Elko where I'll be walking more frequently and up steeper terrain will help to make a more radical difference. We'll see what happens in my next 10 days.

Lesson for today: Don't let discouraging results cause you to quit. Discouraging results aren't a reason to give up. They are a reason to re-evaluate what you are doing and how you are doing it so that you can make any needed improvements and get back on track.  

Day 19: Looking in the Mirror

I haven't ever been a huge fan of looking at myself in the mirror, but I became even less of one as I put on the pounds and became ashamed of what I saw there. I used to love having my picture taken, but the added weight made me ashamed of what I saw when I looked at the pictures. I didn't like what the camera and the mirror were telling me, but I wasn't ready to change. I wasn't ready to give up the things I knew I would have to give up to reclaim my self-image.

Today after showering, I was getting dressed and thought to myself - for the first time in I don't know how long - I wouldn't be ashamed of wearing a bikini looking like that. Yes, I still have a bit of a muffin-top, but it's not the six months pregnant belly I was sporting just a short time ago. I'm starting to see curves appear where they belong, and I'm proud of that.

If I've gained nothing else from this past 19 days, that alone is enough. Of course, it wouldn't be melting off so quickly if I weren't already in the habit of walking a lot already. Combining the two is what is having this powerful effect.  I wrote yesterday that I wasn't seeing a change in clothing sizes, and that's true, but I am reminded today that there are other changes taking place which are equally important.

As much as I liked my sodas, I like this feeling better. It is the feeling of reclaiming myself from underneath the layers of weight I was wearing like too much baggy, saggy clothing can hide an attractive figure. This is the unspoken reward of changes like this: the feeling of power over your life that comes with it. I am sure there will be a time when the weight loss isn't coming and the stubborn fat won't go, but that will just tell me that I'm ready to take the next step and make the next adjustment to my life.

I didn't expect this no soda challenge to teach me so much about life in general, but it has. When you've made a change in your life and you stop making progress forward in the direction you want to go, it's not a signal to give up on that change. It's a signal to see what else needs to change so you can get moving forward again.

Day 18: Still good

I really didn't know for sure if I would reach this point or not, but I'm proud to say that I have reached day 18 without any soda at all. Not so much as a sip. It's probably the longest period I've gone without it. I think I've tried doing it a few times during Lent, but I always allowed myself to have it on Sundays since technically you aren't supposed to fast on Sundays.

The feeling is good. Soda has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. When I was growing up, it wasn't allowed to be part of my daily life but it was often enough that we identified ourselves as a "Coke" household because that was the only brand we drank. I grew up and moved out on my own, and began drinking soda as often as I could afford it and as much as I wanted. I was a grown up, after all, and I could make my own choices.

It wasn't that I didn't know that soda wasn't good for me. It's that I knew and figured it wasn't that bad. There are so many things these days that you're told are bad for you, how do you sort through those things which are truly a threat and those things which are not? Part of it, too, was not wanting to believe it was that bad for me. I liked soda. I liked the way it tasted, and I didn't really want to give it up, so I downplayed the things I saw listing how bad it was for you.

I did frequently joke that it was nothing more than carbonated sugar water. I knew it was horrible for my teeth, and yet I clung to the behavior because it was something that I'd been raised doing. I'd tried giving it up for a time before, but always found myself craving it and looking forward to the end of my deprivation. I didn't want to give it up, so the reluctance drew me back to it as soon as there was no more excuse to keep me away from it.

This is yet another lesson learned about quitting something.  It's not enough to know that you need to do it, or that you should do it.  It's something you have to want for yourself. You have to want to quit, want to be free of that addiction, want to give it up.  You also need to be sure that you have someone or something holding you accountable for results. Knowing that someone is keeping track of your progress is plenty of incentive to do what you know you should be doing.

Day 14-17: Progress Report

I am 17 days into this challenge, and am proud to report that I am still soda free. Temptation has not really been as much of a problem as I expected.  Right now, it's even easier because I am staying with a family that does not drink soda at all.  They stick with water, tea, juice, or milk. 

This is another life lesson learned on the journey: it's much easier to stay away from something when you travel with like-minded people. If the people around you aren't doing it, you're less likely to find yourself wanting to do it. I think this is partly due to the subtle nature of social pressure.

As human beings, being likeable is an important component of success. Being different - radically different than your peers - makes you stand out and tends to also make you less likeable. Human beings especially dislike people who look like them but do not behave like them.  Instincts tell us, then, that blending in is best and we blend in best when we do what the people around us do.

So, when you're around a bunch of people drinking soda, you have an instinct that tells you to drink soda because that's what everyone else is doing.  When you're around people who aren't drinking soda, you'll also feel less compelled to drink it - in fact, you may find yourself feeling hesitant to drink it - because nobody else is drinking it.

One thing I did notice wasn't positive. When my monthly cycle came, it came with cramps. I was quite surprised by this because I have read so often that carbonated beverages like soda are giant culprits in causing them, and I haven't had a single bit of them in 17 days. I will have to investigate this further, and see if it happens again next month.

I am coming up on the 20 day mile marker, and when I do I will do my measurements again to see how much change has occurred between then and now. I'm not honestly expecting to see much more, because I haven't felt the changes in the way my clothes fit this time. We'll see. My activity level has been about the same, though, and I still take daily walks of about a mile or more.  

Day 13: Acceptable alternatives

I was thinking about why this no soda challenge hasn't been that much of a challenge for me, and I think it comes down to two words: acceptable alternatives. Rather than trying to deprive myself of everything, which is a recipe for failure, I gave myself acceptable alternatives. I can have flavored beverages as long as I pick things like tea, coffee, or juice. Life doesn't have to be bland as long as what I'm selecting isn't full of sugar and other things that aren't good for me.

Maybe this is an important life-lesson in general: If you want to kick some habit, give yourself acceptable alternatives. Don't try to change everything at once. Focus on one area at a time until you've got that area of your life conquered and move on to the next. The chances of success doing it this way are much greater than the chances of your success when you're trying to change everything all at once. I think that's one reason new diets fail so often: you're trying to change every habit you have rather than changing one habit at a time.

I think it's a natural tendency of human beings to focus our attention on the big results, and to want to get the big result fast. In fact, our tendency is to focus so narrowly on the big things that happen in life that we often overlook the small things and the little changes as being insignificant and unimportant. Yet it is the little changes we make that end up having a cumulative and more lasting effect over our lives. It's a scientific reality that is reflected in every day life: every big thing is made up of infinitely smaller particles coming together, working together, to create something powerful and far more lasting.

Day 11-12: Moving Forward

Today, I weighed myself. It was rather discouraging, depending on which scale I looked at. The first scale put me at 198 lbs. I want to believe that scale is a liar. It's probably more accurate.  The second scale put me at 160 lbs - still considerably more than what I'd like to be but closer to where I'd like to be than 198 lbs. Still, the fact that I'm at a size 16-18 tells me the first scale is probably more accurate.

It's a reminder to me of how important it is to keep up this soda challenge. I have got to get out from all the weight that I don't need. I have a goal of getting down to 120 lbs. At 5'0", that is a very healthy weight. That means I have 78 pounds to lose, and I won't lose them by drinking sodas every day.  After all, I don't just want to live to see my grandkids - I want to be healthy enough to enjoy them when they are growing up.

Perhaps the weighing in is good for me. It's a little discouraging after feeling so triumphant over my dramatic losses just a few days ago, but it's an important push to continue forward and not allow myself to get complacent. This challenge is about getting control over my life as much as it is about anything else, and this is one area I definitely have allowed to get out of control.

The nice thing is that I've talked to several other people who have read my blog and follow along. My sister-in-law is at 3 years successfully living without soda. My friend, Frank, has gone 9 years. Both my sister-in-law and my friend are living healthier lives, and it did begin with giving up soda.  I know the path ahead won't always be easy, but it is a better path to follow and the results will be worth it.

Day 10: Measuring Day

So, after 10 days, I find a measuring tape and am finally able to record the changes not drinking soda has made.  Some of them I have thought I felt, but wasn't sure. Now I know for certain just how much things have changed. I am a long way from being where I want to be, but I am making more progress in these last 10 days than I feel like I have in the entire year prior - and it feels good.


Measurements           August 30th       September 8th
Left & Right Wrist           7"                            7"
Neck                               15"                         15 1/2"
Bust                                 44"                        43 1/4"
Waist                               40"                        40"
Gut                                  48"                        43 1/2"
Hips                                 46 1/4"                 45 1/2"
Rt ankle                           10 1/2"                  10 1/2"
Lft ankle                          11"                         11"

That is an impressive amount of change for about a week and a half of going without soda. I've lost nearly 5 inches of gut, and 3/4 of an inch in the hip. Yes, I've lost a little bit of the bust, too, but not as much as I might have expected there.  The fact that the size of the neck went up might be due to the fact that I picked up a cold during my travels and its possible I have slightly swollen glands. We'll see how things check out in 10 more days.

I must say that I have heard plenty of people recommend getting off sodas if you are trying to lose weight, but I hardly thought it would have such dramatic results. It's still possible that it isn't the soda but the truth is I've actually decreased somewhat the amount of walking I do each day. I am currently in a place that's like a sauna though, so that might affect the results, too.

Days 8-9: Continuing Forward

I can proudly say that I am on day 9, and I have not really missed soda at all yet. I haven't really felt too tempted by it. I had been told when I was contemplating doing this that I could expect headaches and cravings.  I was expecting both. I got neither, but that may very well be because I have focused a great deal on drinking water regularly.

What I have noticed is that I get thirsty a lot, and need to drink water more often.  I wonder if perhaps the soda drinking I was doing was masking the signals for thirst and making me less aware of the need.  Either way, I'm drinking water far more often than I have been in the past and I think that is probably a really, really good thing for my body.

I'm not sure how long it takes to get the last of the soda out of your system. I have seen people say that it can take about a month or so. I've got, then, 21 days until I find out for sure whether I'll go without withdrawals.  However, I'm willing to wager that I'm probably in the clear in that regard.

Of course, it might be that I have restricted myself to just giving up soda at this point. I'm still drinking some caffeinated beverages such as tea and coffee.  I am simply making sure that the sugars I take in are greatly reduced and, for the most part, contained in fruits or fruit juices. I may someday choose to do a no-sugar for a year challenge (that would be a much tougher one, I think, because sugar is in everything), but not yet. One step at a time.

I think one of the things that people tend to do that causes them to fail when they try to break a life-long habit is try to do too much at once. Focus on one area and one area only and master that change before you make more changes.  At least that's my story for right now. It's subject to change without notice, honestly.

Day 6-7: Staying on the Straight and Narrow

Yesterday I spent enjoying time with my son and then on the road headed back home. No glitches, no hitches, and nothing much to write about this time. I knew my weak points and took pains to avoid falling into the traps. I made sure to choose drinks that wouldn't leave me feeling thirsty and got through the whole day with no trouble.

The same thing today. It's been an entire week since I started the challenge, and I've not experienced any adverse reactions. I haven't actually had any headaches related to the caffeine, and I haven't noticed any particularly strong cravings except for the situations I mentioned earlier.  It's a little early to predict how well things will go, but this leaves me feeling hopeful that going a year without it won't be that difficult.

I don't have a measuring tape handy that will allow me to compare this week's results to last week's. I'm kind of excited to see whether or not there have been any changes on that front. If my hypothesis - that my difficulty losing weight is partially caused by the soda that I have been drinking - I should begin seeing noticeable results soon. It did seem that one of my pairs of pants was somewhat looser than it has been. However, until I find the tape measure I won't be able to say anything definitively.

Day 5: Parties and Late Nights

Today I spent with my son in Ft. Sill, Oklahoma. I didn't find drinking soda a temptation today - until it came time for bowling and the pizza party with the group. That's when there were pitchers of soda bought and nothing else provided to drink, and I did feel a twinge of temptation to join in the soda drinking. However, I was well behaved and stayed away from it, choosing instead to focus on the pizza.

Tonight, I find that I'm craving a soda but I also recognize that I'm very thirsty and the craving would likely vanish were I to go and get myself some ice and drink some water. Soda is mostly tempting when everyone is drinking it and when I'm thirsty.  I am learning to appreciate just what an impact thirst and social behavior has on my tendency to engage in drinking soda, and it's a fascinating eye-opener.

However, the benefit of being more aware is that I get to make a conscious decision about how I handle those cravings and temptations. I recognize the sources of them and can work to avoid them. For example, if I go to a party or am in a social situation where everyone is likely to be drinking soda I can make sure that I bring myself a bottle of water or two so that my hosts do not feel like they need to expend extra money for me to have something and I don't feel overly tempted to drink what I know I don't need to be drinking.

I think this is the main thing about breaking a habit like drinking soda: it's largely becoming aware of what drives the impulse and working to short-circuit them by preparing in advance.  I am actually really glad that I've begun this challenge. It is making me more aware of what triggers impulses and by making me aware is allowing me to take control of the situation.

Day 4: The First Temptations

Yesterday was no big deal. I traveled throughout the day and I didn't encounter a single instance where I had to remind myself that I am not drinking soda.  Today, I was put to the test not once but twice.

The first temptation came this morning when my husband and I went for breakfast at Whataburger. Living in Elko, Nevada you don't have a Whataburger for several thousand miles, so getting a meal from here was a rare treat. I decided to have a vanilla malt and a regular whataburger with fries for breakfast.

My normal habit is to drink my shake and then take sips from my husband's soda in order to get past the thirst the shake causes. I forgot about the thirst and didn't think to order a courtesy water with it.  I found myself tempted several times to reach across and get a small sip of soda, but fought against it.  I'm glad to say I didn't give in at all.

The second time I was really tempted was this evening as we were on our way to Lawton, Oklahoma for Family Day. We stopped off at McDonalds to get a few things straightened out and grabbed a couple of burgers. My husband got a soda, but I didn't want to pay for bottled water so I didn't get anything. I found myself really thirsty and really tempted.

This is when I realized something: Failing to make sure I drink enough water leads me to become tempted to drink soda. I'm fine as long as I'm properly hydrated. That's something I'll have to make a note of for future encounters.

So far, I have resisted all temptations and stayed on track. Only 361 days of the challenge remaining, but I'm feeling good about it and - I noticed - feeling better about myself. I don't know if anything has changed weight wise or health wise, but I know that I feel like I'm better because of this.

Day 3: The Challenge Continues

Last night, after getting home from some errand running, my husband wanted to go get a soda and I went with him. However, I did NOT get myself a soda. I got an iced tea instead. Still a flavored beverage, but less carbonation and less chemicals. I think. At any rate, it's also far less expensive.

This afternoon, as part of getting ready for a trip I'm about to make, I had to walk across town to visit our cell phone carrier. This trip normally would have resulted in me stopping and taking a break at Burger King or McDonalds and picking up something to eat and a soda to drink. Instead, I walked there and straight back home, which probably saved me about $7. I had water when I got home, and again found that having water with my meal leads me to eat less than I normally would.

So far, I'm not finding it much of a challenge to leave soda behind.  Talk to me again in 10 days, or when I'm at a party or out at a fast food restaurant and my attitude might change, but here's to hoping this lasts.

Day 2: Temptation, Thy Name Is Soda

Less than 12 hours after I made my first post, temptation walked in the door. Quite literally. My roommate, a very thoughtful gentleman who was unaware of my decision to pick up this challenge and carry it forward, went to the store and returned home with soda.  Fortunately, my resolve is new enough that I am not overly tempted to drink it. If soda thought I was so weak willed as to give in this soon, it is sadly mistaken. I am determined to see this challenge through and to make the most of it.

To help myself resist the temptation on the basis of taste or thirst, I made up a very large pitcher of water into which I have put okra, lemons, and limes.  Okra, I have read, helps with the insulin resistance that comes from drinking soda and therefore can help the body re-establish normal responses to food.  Lemon and lime provide flavor and vitamin c.  The water not only makes sure I am kept properly hydrated, but since dehydration can also masquerade as hunger, it will help me to feel the need to eat less frequently.  In theory this combination should make the transition from soda drinking to not drinking much easier on my body.

I will note that it made me far less hungry than I expected to be. Whereas I normally don't find myself feeling full after eating a couple of helpings of pasta and sauce - my dinner of the evening - I was able to feel satisfied after just two bowls.  Furthermore, my hunger didn't return but my thirst made itself evident. It's becoming very evident to me that I was badly dehydrated. This morning I wake up to find that I'm feeling thirsty still, so I continue to drink the water I've prepared for myself. It may just be psychological at this point, but I do feel somewhat better.

Update this afternoon: Thirst levels are drastically reduced. I think I'm finally getting sufficiently hydrated. Temptations to drink the soda in the fridge have been surprisingly non-existent. Amount of food eaten today drastically reduced from my normal, not because I haven't been hungry but because I'm not taking as long to feel full when I'm done.

Day 1: The challenge begins

I'm Catholic, and I truly and really despise hormonal birth control pills. I think they are not only horrible for women's bodies, but they are terrible for the environment and the sheer number of women taking them means they are impacting everyone's bodies around them.

I was discussing this with a friend of mine, who pointed out that sodas are having similar effects - including harmful effects on the environment with chemicals that wind up in the water stream and poison other people's bodies, not just my own.  This led me to thinking about the matter, and I realized that it's hypocritical to be concerned about the effects of one while overlooking the effects of the other.

That led me to making a decision that I've thought about making off and on but have, until now, refused to commit to because I figured it would be too much of a challenge for me.  I am going to quit drinking soda for an entire year and chronicle the adventures in this blog.  When I'm tempted to go buy a soda, I'm going to take the money I would have spent on soda and set it aside for charitable causes instead. At the end of the year, when I donate the money, I'm going to figure out just how much money I've really been spending on soda that could have been better spent elsewhere.

I'm also going to chart my measurements at the beginning, as I go along, and at the ending to see how much of an impact soda drinking has on those things. I want to see if there are other behavior changes that happen, too. Does my decreasing the amount of soda lead me to drink more water? Does it impact my moods? I don't know. These are questions I'll have to answer as I go along. I have a sneaking suspicion that it has a direct relationship with my inability to lose much weight despite the fact that I usually walk 1-3 miles a day, sometimes more. Abstinence will make it easy to tell.

I'm making this public because I know it's going to be a tough challenge for me. I'll need to know I have a cheering section.  If you want to join the challenge with me, chime in on the comments section. If there are enough of us doing it, I'll create a Facebook group we can all join. I'll be doing my best to post something here everyday so that you can track my progress and see how well I do. If I succeed in completing the year,

I will be putting together a book from all these blog posts that I hope to share with others to help inspire them to take up this same challenge and shake the soda addiction.

Neck: 15"
Bust: 44"
Waist: 40"
Gut: 48"
Hips: 46 1/4"
Wrists: 7"
Left ankle: 10.5"
Right ankle: 11"