If you are trying to lose weight, you will want to eliminate as many calories as possible from the beverages you drink. Drinking calories instead of eating them will seriously hamper your weight loss goals, as your system will rapidly process fluid and won’t keep you full compared to eating the same number of calories. This will lead you to eat more frequently to fill your roaring stomach, resulting in a large number of excess calories being consumed each day. Even if you stick to healthy foods, you can easily end up gaining weight if you drink too many high-calorie beverages. So when losing weight is your goal, you need to consider not only the foods you eat, but the beverages you drink as well.
Fruit juices are often considered a healthy option; however, many fruit juices contain calories comparable to soft drinks. The sugar content of the two drinks is nearly identical in many cases, leading to spikes in blood sugar that can lead to bingeing once blood sugar levels drop later in the day. The only thing fruit juices have over soda is that fruit juices have more vitamins than sodas; sodas are the very definition of empty calories, containing only massive amounts of simple sugars. If you are trying to lose weight, it is important to eliminate soda from your diet completely and keep fruit juices to a minimum. Eating fruit is a much better option than drinking fruit juice, as it contains the same vitamins and minerals that you would find in fruit juice, except that by eating fruit you will feel fuller, both from the fact that you are eating something and from the fact that you will get more fiber in your diet, which will help you feel full longer.
Seltzer water can help you cross the bridge between drinking soda and drinking water. Many people find themselves wanting to drink something carbonated, and carbonated water allows you to get the carbonation you want without extra calories. Some carbonated water contains artificial sweeteners, which gives it a great taste and minimizes the number of calories you consume. However, you should be wary of sugar substitutes found in some carbonated water and diet sodas if you are trying to stop drinking soda. Although they do not contain as many calories as the real ones, they do not address the psychological desire that people have for soda, which is mainly related to the desire for sugar. You should start with unsweetened carbonated water when trying to stop drinking soda and only switch to the type with artificial sweeteners when your cravings for soda have passed.
The best things you can drink to promote weight loss are water, unsweetened tea, and coffee with no added sugars or creams. All of these beverages have negligible amounts of calories, and the caffeine found in tea and coffee can help boost your metabolism; Both of these factors help you lose weight faster and easier.