Why no fizzy drinks?

bigchez

bigchez

bigchez

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I've seen a lot of people advising avoiding fizzy drinks when trying to bulk up or lose weight. I was wondering why this is? I drink 2 cans of diet pepsi or coke zero most days and it hasn't hampered my weight loss. Are diet drinks that bad for you?
 
Diet is ok, it's still not ideal because it is full of sweeteners which aren't great, but as far as calories go it's got nothing in there so it's not going to cause any problems.

Generally it's things like normal Coke/Fanta etc that people are talking about, as they are full of sugar.
 
The reason I keep away from them is because I don't like them. They're just too sweet for me, I haven't got a sweet tooth at all, for example I tend to stick to 75%+ chocolate because the other stuff is just too sickly.

Diet Coke elicits an insulin spike (owing to it's sweetners), which blocks your ability to burn fat. Second, artificial sweeteners found in Diet Coke disrupt satiety, the feeling of being full. Combined it really does go against the whole word "diet".

When it comes to losing fat, it is more about how much sugar (or sugar substitute) you consume rather than calories or dietary fat intake. Hence, the goal is to consume as little sugar or sugar substitute as possible (including fruits and their juices). As said previously sweet flavours cause the release of insulin to improve the uptake of sugar by your cells so they don't linger in the bloodstream.

Once insulin is released it inhibits your fat burning hormone called HSL (hormone sensitive lipase). This hormone is responsible for releasing fat into the bloodstream to be utilised as fuel. If inhibited, your body is unable to burn fat and will then begin utilising amino acids (from muscle) and carbohydrates as fuel. This will leave you feeling tired, grumpy, and sloth-like toward the end of the day. Not to mention, you will become abnormally hungry. Those with large amounts of HSL burn fat all day and look thin and slim. Those who inhibit it by eating or drinking the wrong substances grow fat throughout their adult years. This doesn't just mean Diet Coke or other fizzy drinks, this means a diet as in everything you injest and in what quantities.

Second, artificial sweeteners disrupt satiety, the feeling of being full. A study showed that the "mouth feel" plays a crucial role in the body's ability to count calories and that when we consume artificial sweeteners we disrupt the body's ability to count calories based on sweetness. Not able to use "mouth feel" to count calories, those who drink diet fizzy drinks will over eat without conscious awareness. In other words, you think you're not eating like a pig, but in reality you are.

Diet Coke is not the only substance having these abilities. Makers of health food bars and protein supplements are either not aware or ignore the ill effects of sugar alternatives and sugar. This can be seen by the fact that most every health food bar and protein supplement is loaded with sugar or artificial sweeteners - hence why going with good ol' bulk unflavoured whey is better. The belief that these bars and supplements are healthy for you is a perfect example of how marketing strategies can supersede medical science and common sense.

So... Diet Coke is a joke if you think it helps you, however if you enjoy it, then of course go for it! Just don't be fooled into thinking it's actually better for you than regular coke. Stay away from it and other sugar sources if you're serious about losing fat and keeping it off. Regardless of your diet and/or training efforts, the aforementioned ill effects of sugar alternatives and sugar will greatly hinder them.


NB: A lot of the above is paraphrased from a nutritional forum I use.
 
Well my knowledge on diabetes is relatively limited, however I believe type 1 sufferes tend to be skinnier or lower levels of BF as they are insulin dependent since their pancreas cannot produce insulin to process carbs/sugars so if ever they eat sugar rich/carb heavy foods they have to up their dosages, and usually tend to keep away from such foods - from my experience. I have 3 diabetic type 1 friends who are all slim, and drink diet coke over regular coke as they find it easier to control since regular coke is hugely laced with a lot of sugar.

Type 2 which is more common is usually linked with being overweight IIRC, and from my limited knowledge I think things like diet coke will cause more of an effect on your body's ability to process sugars/carbs even with medication. I'd need to do some research into it and look into my knowledgebase when I get home.

Obviously since diet drinks make you hungrier, you're more likely to need to shoot up and boost your insulin levles, meaning your blood sugar will be all over the shop. The key to controlling your diabetes is to keep your blood sugar levels as steady as possible. Spiking to 200 or over and down really affects your metabolism and causes your body to struggle with processing the foods you take in. It's a question of being "in touch" with your body. I can't relate, but can only go by what my friends have commented and the limited knowledge I have acquired.

All this sort of stuff is of a passing interest to me so I'm actually keen to look into it if it helps.
 
Freefaller said:
Well my knowledge on diabetes is relatively limited, however I believe type 1 sufferes tend to be skinnier or lower levels of BF as they are insulin dependent since their pancreas cannot produce insulin to process carbs/sugars so if ever they eat sugar rich/carb heavy foods they have to up their dosages, and usually tend to keep away from such foods - from my experience. I have 3 diabetic type 1 friends who are all slim, and drink diet coke over regular coke as they find it easier to control since regular coke is hugely laced with a lot of sugar.

Type 2 which is more common is usually linked with being overweight IIRC, and from my limited knowledge I think things like diet coke will cause more of an effect on your body's ability to process sugars/carbs even with medication. I'd need to do some research into it and look into my knowledgebase when I get home.

Obviously since diet drinks make you hungrier, you're more likely to need to shoot up and boost your insulin levles, meaning your blood sugar will be all over the shop. The key to controlling your diabetes is to keep your blood sugar levels as steady as possible. Spiking to 200 or over and down really affects your metabolism and causes your body to struggle with processing the foods you take in. It's a question of being "in touch" with your body. I can't relate, but can only go by what my friends have commented and the limited knowledge I have acquired.

All this sort of stuff is of a passing interest to me so I'm actually keen to look into it if it helps.
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Cheers Freefaller.

I think the point you raise about being in touch with your body is spot on. I found out earlier this year I was type II and you really do get to understand what makes you feel the way you do. For example, too much fruit(albeit healthier than crisps & choc) can make me a right grumpy so and so because of the spikes.
 
Since I stopped drinking 4 or 5 cans of coke/fanta/pepsi a day and started drinking 2-3 litres of water my general well-being has improved, I don't get tired as much and the general health of my skin has drastically improved.

I've not had a soft drink for 6 months since changing my lifestyle (better diet + gym) and it really is worth doing.
 
i have just started this week without fizzy drinks and it isnt as hard as i thought it would be (only on day 2 i know) but i wondered what else to drink besides water (i bring 2 litres of water to work now). Also what would be a better option than salad sandwiches for dinner?
 
foz2000 said:
i have just started this week without fizzy drinks and it isnt as hard as i thought it would be (only on day 2 i know) but i wondered what else to drink besides water (i bring 2 litres of water to work now).
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You've got to change your mentality slightly. Food is fuel, water is hydration. Every time you put something in your mouth it doesn't have to be the most pleasurable experience you've ever had. If you accept that eating and drinking "dull" solids and liquids is essential to keeping you healthy then you can "cope" with just water more easily. I'm not saying you can't enjoy food or drink but make it a special occasion, not the norm. Take a friend/girlfriend/partner out for a random coffee/smoothie on a weekend as a treat (for both of you). You get to tickle your taste buds and your guest enjoys some company ;)

Having said that.......last weds I took one of the girls from the gym for a smoothie from Starbucks. The amount of sugar in there gave me the biggest sugar high and the worst sugar crash ever. I met a mate an hour or so later to watch Batman and sat in the cinema with a banging headache and the shakes :(
 
Fair enough i'll try that, i dont drink coffee anyway and only drink black tea without sugar. So i think i'll keep it like that, with just water.
 
Green tea is a good antioxidant and contains 1/3 of the caffeine than tea or coffee I don't remember which. It's a great drink, helps promote fat digestive enzymes apparently.
 
Freefaller said:
Green tea is a good antioxidant and contains 1/3 of the caffeine than tea or coffee I don't remember which. It's a great drink, helps promote fat digestive enzymes apparently.
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Just wondering if you could clarify something for me...

I drink a lot of Coke Zero as I like the taste and it has 0.5 calories per 250ml. Will taking 1 capsule of green tea extract (98% polyphenols, 50% EGCG - 441mg polyphenols, 225mg EGCG) help counter the effects of the Coke Zero on fat loss?
 
Oh... you've got me there. It's not just calories you have to think about in fizzy drinks though it's the chemicals (mainly artificial you have to think about). I don't really know anything about coke zero as it was never around when I studied this sort of stuff. However, ask yourself this, why drink something bad and have to counter it, when you could just avoid it and keep taking advantage of the benefits of the green tea. It's the bioflavonoids in the green tea that helps induce the thermogenic and fat burning effects and I'm not sure how much the insulin spikes would block the receptors for the absorption of such chemicals. I really don't know.

I guess it's akin to drinking a pint of water for every pint of beer you drink... is there a point and is it worth it? I couldn't tell you.

Good question though I'll seek my fountain of all knowledge and see if I can get any decent answers.
 
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