Twitter has been life-altering for me professionally and personally. Perhaps the most surprising benefit has been for my health. First, I started playing basketball on Saturday mornings with the #SCLThoops crew. We started playing half court basketball in a high school parking lot, and over time moved up to playing full court for 2–3 hours every Saturday. A year later, and my cardiovascular health is now much better.

As great as playing basketball has been for my health, I believe that the most important change began in the fall of 2010. I’d seen the @NoFizzUSA Twitter identification float by on my Twitter stream, but did not pay much attention to it.

From the time I was 7 years old, I drank soda. At about that age, my brother and I would wake up early and sneak into the kitchen to chug Sundrop directly from the 2 liter bottle. It was all downhill from there.

Fast forward to 2010, and I was drinking 2 Monster Energy Drinks per day. I could not make it to the shower in the morning without my first Monster Energy drink. I had trouble driving past a convenience store with stopping and buying an energy drink.

Common sense tells you that long term use of these stimulants cannot be good for your health, but I was pretty much addicted. On top of drinking massive amount of energy drinks, I was drinking very little water.

In September of 2010, NoFizzUSA was doing a “60 for 60″ challenge. 60 ounces of water for 60 days. I love to support everything Twitter related in Charlotte, so I tweeted to NoFizzUSA to sign me up for the challenge. I honestly did not think I could go 60 days without drinking carbonated beverages, but I would give it a shot.

A few days before the challenge, I drank 3 Monster Energy Drinks on consecutive days. On the 3rd day I became very ill. The only symptoms were a high fever and aches. The fever would hardly break and while I was suffering in bed, I thought to myself that the illness was directly related to drinking way too much caffeine and herbal speed.

When I started feeling better, I did not touch an energy drink. I got a 2-day head start on the NoFizzUSA 60 for 60 challenge. 6 months later, I still have not consumed an energy drink. I’ve drank 70+ ounces of water every day.

I used to be able to feel my heart beating through my chest throughout the day while at rest. My resting heart beat is much slower today. I sleep so much better than I did while drinking energy drinks. I have to admit that today sometimes I have trouble passing a convenience store because I’m craving water.

I know that after 6+ months of drink water and no carbonated beverages that the health benefits are huge. It feels good to not be dependent on caffeine – I don’t drink coffee, soft drinks, or tea… just water, G2, and juices. I’m very thankful for Bobby DeMuro, NoFizzUSA, and the 60 for 60 challenge for pushing me to do something I would not have done otherwise. Another win for the people that Twitter has put in my life!