Rethink Your Drink

I love this picture. My mom and I were having one of our continual health discussions and she asked me, "If someone asked you what to change, if they could only change ONE thing about how they were eating, what would you tell them?" I thought about it for a minute and then said, "I would tell them to not drink soda." She laughed and said, "That is exactly what I was thinking!"

I think this picture indicates pretty much why that is the case. I cannot tell you how many times I have read health articles and they have said to cut out soda. My family has done this for a long time because my brothers were runners in high school. Athletes know the disadvantages of soda on your lungs. I really started because I have asthma and I wanted to run. I wanted to give myself every advantage. Plus, my body is heavily affected by processed sugars and drinking soda makes me feel AWFUL!

If you want to know how soda affects your body I saw this AWESOME pin on Pinterest awhile ago:

There are actually a lot of wonderful alternatives to soda. Really! There are. And if you absolutely cannot live without your Dr. Pepper, treat it as a rare treat instead of a habit. Besides the typical lemon water and skim milk, (and SMOOTHIES!) here are some of my favorite soda alternatives:

I love Simply Orange juice. It is sweet and tangy and SOOO delicious. What is hard to see in this picture is the little label under "Not From Concentrate." It says 100% juice. Juices can still be high in their sugar content, like soda, and so make sure your juice bottle ALWAYS has this label. I am a pulp free kind of a girl, but my husband is a high pulp kind of a guy so we normally compromise and go with "Some Pulp."

This is definitely my favorite flavor of juice. I don't know what it is with me and cherry but I LOVE IT! Once again, 100% juice. And just remember that if you drink this entire jug in one sitting you may as well have had a soda. Juice is not sugar free and packs over 100 calories per cup. All things in moderation. :-)

I promise that I won't turn this blog into a health soap box. I just love these pictures and since I feel so strongly about this issue I thought I would share it. I still love everyone and I am not going to condemn you if you choose a different path. Ultimately, it is your choice. However, if you are going to work towards Changing Your Way of Thinking, start with this. 

Love, Shayla