The importance of monitoring liquid calories is well known when trying to reach fitness goals BUT it can be very challenging to reduce or even eliminate certain liquid calories from diets. I speak from personal experience, when I was younger, I would drink a lot of soda and even in college went back to drinking many different kinds of liquid calories like energy drinks, sports drinks, and other sugary drinks. Over the years I have created a few strategies that worked for me in reducing and even eliminating certain liquid calories from my diet which I will share in this post.

Strategies to Reduce, Limit, or Even Get Rid of Certain Liquid Calories

First strategy I used when I was younger. I remember realizing that I was drinking way too much soda and really wanted to limit it. So, I first figured out how much soda I was having a day. This was pretty easy, I simply tracked how much I was drinking a day with no changes. I found that it was around 64 ounces a day. Then, I made a goal to reduce the amount by 8 ounces every week. No need to make a drastic change so quickly, just slowly start reducing it. After 2 months, I decided to completely eliminate it from my daily diet, and I will say that the first month was rough but by drinking enough water I was able to quit having soda in my diet. Nowadays, I may have it once every couple of months on a special occasion but definitely not the way I used to and that has allowed me to reach fitness goals. 

Strategy #1

1. Figure out how much of a certain liquid calorie drink, like soda, is taken in per day. Don’t reduce it for that day just have it like normal to get accurate data. Example let’s say I’m drinking 64 ounces a day.
2. Make a goal to reduce the liquid calorie drink by 8 ounces a week. So, in the first week, allow up to 56 ounces to be consumed a day. Then, each week keep reducing the amount.
3. Find a good spot to stop at. Some want to have certain liquid calories in their diet and that’s up to them, but some might want to cut it out completely. If you try to cut it out completely just keep in mind that there will probably be a period of withdrawal that needs to be pushed through.
4. After a while the desire to drink that certain drink will go down. Be sure to drink plenty of water.

Another strategy that I found helpful when I was trying to reduce energy drinks and sports drinks was focusing on drinking enough water throughout the day first and then at the end of the day allowing myself to have a sports drink if I felt like I needed it. Now, the only way this strategy works is if you are constantly drinking enough water throughout the day to stay hydrated.

Strategy #2

1. Focus on drinking enough water with no calories in it throughout the day until the daily recommended amount of water is reached. This will vary person to person. 

2. Avoid drinking any liquid calorie drink until the daily recommended amount of water is reached. Also, avoid drinking any liquid calorie drink until the end of the day.

3. When you do have that liquid calorie drink ask yourself if you really need it. If you have some liquid drinks in your house, it might not be a bad idea to put a label on each of the bottles or on the pantry door saying, “do you really need that drink?”

Other strategies would be to keep liquid calories out of the household to avoid temptation. The point is to find a strategy that works for you to reach your fitness goals.

Summary

There are a number of strategies to reduce sugary drinks and high liquid calorie drinks and stay on path towards reaching fitness goals. Find one that works for you and take it one day at a time. Remember, good habits take time.

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