February 7, 2007 @ 10:54 am | Filed under: Uniquely Me

This is my friend Mandy. She was one of our speakers at this month’s WOW meeting. Her topic was "Water: Quenching the Thirst Within." Mandy is a Junior High math teacher by trade so she really knows how to present a lesson. And present…she DID! (Notice the water jug strapped to her hip.)

For the past couple of years I have prided myself on being fairly healthy. I’ve finally accepted the fact that I am, indeed, most likely not going to grow past my current 5’1" height. This makes maintaining a weight I am pleased with a little challenging but I’m learning to be pleased, instead, with the way God made me.

Two years ago I began to give up sugar. I have to admit that, at first, I did it as part of the new diet craze that advocated the low-carb way of life. But as the weeks, and then months, began to roll behind me, it became obvious to me and to those close to me that this type of plan truly works well for my body.

So while I still see-saw on and off carbs, I pretty much avoid sugar. My mind is sharper without it. I have more energy without it. And my weight is stabilized without it. All in all, I’ve learned a lot about my body and its individual needs during this time period.

Because of this, I’ve tried to justify my Diet Coke addiction. I drink a lot of water each day too. So between the no-sugar rule and the five or six bottles of water I drink a day, I’m all good, right? I can have my Diet Coke and feel good about it. A girl’s gotta have some kind of vice in her life, right? Well, maybe not so much…

I promise, Mandy "preached" me under conviction on Monday night! I say that light-heartedly but the truth is, I think she really helped me to turn a corner in my thinking. While I knew that caffeine is a dehydrator, I never knew that for each 8 oz. of caffeine I consume, that I must then consume an extra 10 – 12 ounces of water just to OFFSET the Diet Coke. Now if I only drank 8 ounces of Diet Coke per day, that wouldn’t be so much of an issue…

Need I say more? If you know me, you know I consume…well, lots more than 8 ounces!

I’ve had some concerns these past few months anyway. Like, what are the long-term effects of caffeine on a woman’s skin as she ages?

And…what is the long-term effect of aspartame? Since Diet Coke is only a couple of decades old, we don’t have any solid case study evidence on this.

Plus…addictions are really never good. Not even if they are indeed harmless and relatively amusing to your friends and family.

So I am putting into place The Plan.

The Plan will wean me off of Diet Coke, this time for good.

I think.

I hope.

I’m pretty sure the time is now.