Diet Coke / Coke Zero & Running

Wow, if I could only claim to drink 4-5 cans/day! I drink 2-2.5x what you do (not a coffee drinker). I know it's not very healthy, but I love it and I'm comfortable with the risks. I run up to 120mpw at peak and I've never noticed any problems. But, I know it's not healthy in the long run.

coke addict wrote:

I know it's bad, I just want to know how/why. It's my sole source of caffeine!

It may not kill you, but it's definitely not good for you. I've heard carbonation dehydrates you. Plus phosphoric acid (found in most dark-colored soda) is bad for your bones. If you want to drink soda, you're probably better off drinking the real thing, not diet. Artificial sweeteners aren't healthy. Neither is too much sugar, but at least sugar is natural rather than consuming chemicals. You'll run it off anyway.

I think you should try to switch to coffee, which has less articifial crap in it. Drink a small to medium cup of coffee in the morning and if you have to have the diet soda occasionally drink one can in the afternoon. I used to drink a lot of diet soda for caffeine but switched to coffee and only drink one can a week now, which is healthier.

txRUNNERgirl wrote:

coke addict wrote:

I know it's bad, I just want to know how/why. It's my sole source of caffeine!

It may not kill you, but it's definitely not good for you. I've heard carbonation dehydrates you. Plus phosphoric acid (found in most dark-colored soda) is bad for your bones. If you want to drink soda, you're probably better off drinking the real thing, not diet. Artificial sweeteners aren't healthy. Neither is too much sugar, but at least sugar is natural rather than consuming chemicals. You'll run it off anyway.

You know what you're talking about. Agreed that people who drink the regular coke are better off, too, but yeah I don't want the extra calories.

I especially like the distilled version (read: fountain drink) and my best post workout food is a huge diet coke at Chipotle w/ chicken bowl.

I also read that carbonated drinks affect your uptake of oxigen, so I try not to drink any 12 hours before a run. But I definitely overdo it after, and my main concern (besides bones/teeth) is the effect on my tendons and joints in terms of inflammation. I'm very prone to tendonitis crap.

Carbonation has no effect on hydration. Caffeine kind of does, in that it causes you to urinate more for a while after you drink it, but it also causes you to urinate less for a while after that and the net result is even. No idea about the phosphoric acid, but I doubt it's much of a problem. As far as chemicals go, artificial sweeteners are fine. If anything's really bad it's the plastic lining the can (which is BPA and can leach into the soda) and the preservatives.

^^^ Correct. Corbonation doesn't dehydrate you.

Science Bro wrote:

As far as chemicals go, artificial sweeteners are fine.

Except that they lead to weight gain and cancer. other than that, they are fine.

Wrong and wrong. Other than that, accurate.

Owned

and

Owned

...other than that, right on.

Moammar wrote:

Wrong and wrong. Other than that, accurate.

Just do some research. And don't look for studies done by anyone who has a stake in artificial sweeteners doing well. You may be shockingly surprised. Or not, since it doesn't seem like you want your ideas to be proven wrong. The research is there, you just need to be motivated to look for it and then decide if you want to believe it or not. I am not posting any links because there are so many to choose from.

by research, do you mean google?

flaneur wrote:

by research, do you mean google?

That is one way. There is also the library, or book stores, or scientific journals, etc. I think how you research is more up to you and how important something is to you. Google would obviously be the easiest way, but not always the best.

In response to the sciencedaily article.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12155793/ns/health-cancer/

Awwwww shit, you didn't know what you were talking about?!?! SHOCKER! Note: You shouldn't cite old out of date research, in which it was later shown that the link you hoped to prove did not exist.

zip zero nada wrote:

In response to the sciencedaily article.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/12155793/ns/health-cancer/

Awwwww shit, you didn't know what you were talking about?!?! SHOCKER! Note: You shouldn't cite old out of date research, in which it was later shown that the link you hoped to prove did not exist.

Nice catch on that one. However, I am sure people can go back and forth finding articles and studies supporting their belief on this subject. For me personally, I have seen too much negative stuff to even think about putting any kind of artificial sweetener in my body. Research goes back and forth and keeps changing so I figure why take the risk when it is something that is easily controlled by my actions. Here is a link to an article by a Doctor about the dangers of Nutrasweet. Of course, many people will not believe a word he says. That is their choice and the American way.

Tea is best like the EA's

tx girl is right original coke the only way to go. Hmmm didn't she just come out of a coma or something?

If you run a lot you can drink anything

See, this is what I'm talking about. It's a website maintained by God knows who that is full of jibberish.

ukathleticscoach wrote:

Tea is best like the EA's

tx girl is right original coke the only way to go. Hmmm didn't she just come out of a coma or something?

If you run a lot you can drink anything

I came out of my coma and saw the light. No, I wasn't really in a coma. I was in the ICU with a bad case of pneumonia.

But back on topic, I've only recently decided to cut my artificial sweetener habit. I don't drink a ton of soda to begin with, but when I did it would be diet. I drank a lot of other things (like coffee) with Splenda, etc., plus chewed a lot of sugar-free gum. I don't know why I decided to stop exactly, but I've always tried to eat healthy. In an effort to eat less processed food, I realized that I probably shouldn't be consuming artificial crap. If I crave something sweet, I eat/drink something that actually satisfies that craving. Diet drinks don't. They just make you crave more, so you eat more. Kind of defeats the purpose. Also, I never see good runners drink diet soda, but I have seen plenty drink regular soda. It doesn't seem to make any of them fat. I do see many overweight/obese people drinking diet soda.

flaneur wrote:

See, this is what I'm talking about. It's a website maintained by God knows who that is full of jibberish.

You are absolutely correct in that this article alone would not be enough to get me or anyone else to stop drinking diet soda. However, I would listen to this more than a "research" study done by anyone or anything associated with Nutrasweet or that has an economic stake in how well it does. When there are two sides to an issue, anyone can find things to support their position. Because they believe a certain way, they are going to tend to look for research, articles, brochures, etc. that support their position. I have seen enough over the years that I will stay far away from any of this stuff. My opinion was first formed in the 1980's when my then exercise scientist girlfriend did a paper in graduate school on Nutrasweet and it was pretty amazing the stuff she found. No, she was not using articles like the one I just posted, which I admit has very little validity. She did quite a bit of research from reputable research magazines and Universities and she also found out some interesting cover ups due to the economic issues associated with Nutrasweet. It was pretty scary stuff. She got an A on the paper which tells me the professor felt like her sources were credible.

i think that the point is that there is no clear, concrete decision that is backed by science. Science seems to go both ways Therefore, I will not drink it. The risk is sure as hell not worth the reward.

Now if we were talking about beer, that would be different, but diet coke? It is gross anyway.