Alternatives to Regular Soda

Hi all.  As I try to eat better, I am able to spot some of the culprits that inflated my gut in the first place.  I think one of the biggest is soda.  Specifically, I love Coke.  I love regular Coke.  If there were an Olympic size swimming pool full of fresh Coke, I'd probably dive in with nothing on but a smile and a straw.  I would then proceed to drink until I passed out.

The problem with regular Coke is the calories.  It's as fattening as it is yummy, in my opinion.  Some folks drink Diet Coke, and that's ok.  It's just too far from the taste of regular Coke for my liking.  If I'm going to drink a diet soda, I want it to taste as close to the original as possible.

For those of you in my boat, here are a few drink alternatives that I've had some success with.  I hope this helps you.  If you have one you'd like to add to the list, please comment.  It will help us all!

• diet Pepsi.  Of all the diet drinks out there, it's my opinion that this one is closest to the original.
• diet Dr Pepper.  I think it's a little farther from the original, but still close.
• Sprite Zero.  Again, pretty close to the original.
• ice tea with lemmon.  It took me awhile to get used to unsweet tea, but I have.  I find that putting a lemon in it improves the taste.
• flavor packets.  There are all sorts of flavor packets available.  They usually come in tubes.  Just pour a tube into your drink and shake it all about.  Market Pantry has a 0 calorie version that comes in several flavors and tastes great.