Beverages are a major source of calories in most peoples' diets. Changing out sugary beverages for water can, over time, reduce weight or prevent weight gain. I hear a lot of people say that they don't like to drink water because it "doesn't have any flavor". Take a look at this list to see the calorie levels of some common beverages. And find below a list of some beverages that are low calorie but still have "flavor"!
Notice how many calories are in juice, even the 100%, no sugar added juice! People tend to think juice is healthy because it is made from fruit, but it contains a lot of sugar! Sugar, especially in liquid form, is absorbed into the blood stream very quickly and contributes to a rapid rise in blood sugar. Drinking juice on a regular basis contributes to weight gain just like pop.
Beverage Calories Per 12 Ounces
Pepsi 150 calories
Coca Cola 146 calories
Mountain Dew 165 calories
Orange Soda 190 calories
Barq's Root Beer 167 calories
Gatorade 75 calories
Powerade 120 calories
Kool-Aid 90 calories
Orange Juice (100% Juice) 165 calories
Grape Juice (100% Juice, No Sugar Added) 196 calories
Fruit Punch (100% Juice, No Sugar Added) 178 calories
Apple-Grape (100% Juice, No Sugar Added) 183 calories
Budweiser 145 calories
Bud Light 110 calories
Red Wine 245 calories
Starbucks Cappacino (Skim Milk) 60 calories
Starbucks Mocha Frappacino 170 calories
Starbucks Mocha Frappacino (Light) 95 calories
McDonald's Caramel Iced Coffee 191 calories
McDonald's Vanilla Iced Coffee (Sugar Free) 85 calories
Dunkin Donuts Coffee (with Cream and Sugar) 144 calories
Whole Milk 217 calories
2% Milk 183 calories
Try these instead Calories Per 12 Ounces
Water 0 calories
Canada Dry Flavored Seltzer Waters 0 calories
Diet Pop 0 calories
Crystal Light Sugar Free Packets 5 calories
Skim Milk 136 calories
Water is always best for hydration and to quench thirst! Remember what your mom said and shoot for 8 glasses per day! Invest in a reusable water bottle (http://nutritionall-rd.blogspot.com/2011/08/bottled-water-fad.html). Always take water with you in the car, while doing errands, to work, and to the gym, that way you will never be far from a quick sip!
Don't drink your calories!
For calorie information on more common foods visit: http://www.calorieking.com/
Cheers,
Brittney
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Showing posts with label weight loss. Show all posts
Friday, August 19, 2011
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Save Money and Slim Down by Bringing Your Lunch to Work or School!
A great way to consume fewer calories, less fat and sugar, and to save money is by bringing your lunch to work or school. It works by the same principle as not grocery shopping when you're hungry. When 12:00pm rolls around you are feeling the grumbling in your stomach, signally that it's time to eat, you are starving and ready to grab the quickest, easiest, and possibly cheapest thing around. This is especially true if you skipped breakfast (don't do it!), or if you didn't have time for a mid-morning snack (dried fruit or a granola bar are great options!). You may head down to the cafeteria in your building, or you may hop in your car and hit up the drive-thru of the nearest fast food place. These options seem so tempting when you are famished, but you always end up regretting it later, whether it's because you strayed from your healthy eating plan or because all that grease isn't sitting well during that afternoon meeting. Bringing your own lunch can save you all the trouble!
Try to start thinking about your lunch the evening before, after you eat dinner. At this time your hunger is satisfied so you won't be tempted to add unnecessary, unhealthy foods to your lunch box.
Taking leftovers is a great way to stretch your food dollar (two meals in one!), and you will make sure they won't go to waste when they accidentally get pushed to the back of the fridge. In this case you can start thinking about your lunch before you even eat dinner the night before. As soon as the food is ready, put some in containers, and put them aside in the fridge. This way you won't be tempted to overeat either! I like Pyrex storage containers because you can put them in the microwave without worrying about BPAs leaking into your food when re-heated.
If you don't have any leftovers that day or you would rather not take them, try some of these ideas for a healthy lunch. Keep in mind that if you plan ahead, make a grocery list, and do your grocery shopping over the weekend, you can eliminate some unnecessary trips to the store during the week!
I always make sure I take fruit in my lunch. I also pack an extra piece that I can eat on my commute home, that tides me over and reduces temptation to pick up a snack from a drive through or from the gas station! I pick my fruit based on what is on sale at the grocery store. That typically reflects what is in season!
If I'm not taking a salad as my lunch I always pack a raw vegetable too. Some good options include:
I usually take a salad in my lunch. Since it takes time to eat, it feels like I am eating a lot, and the bulk of the raw veggies helps fill me up! Plus, raw veggies and fruit are great natural sources of fiber! Some good options include:
Some quick lunch time sandwich options include:
Other lunch items you might consider:
When 12:00pm rolls around and you are looking for a quick meal to tame your rumbling stomach, you can grab your healthy lunch out of the fridge and enjoy it without guilt! You won't be tempted to run to McDonald's if you have a healthy meal available. You won't have to worry about getting an upset stomach from greasy fast food and you won't sabotage your healthy eating plan! Sure, this takes some planning ahead, but it's worth it, and once you having been doing it for a week or so it will become second nature. You will also save money! If you spend $5.00 on your lunch each work day by going to the cafeteria or a fast food restaurant that's $25.00 per week. And lets be honest, $5.00 per day would be on the low end! That $25.00+ would be more than enough for a head of lettuce, veggies, fruit and a bottle of dressing for that same week. So start bringing your own lunch to work or school, and reduce your calorie, fat, sugar, and artificial additive intake, and save money at the same time!
Cheers,
Brittney
Try to start thinking about your lunch the evening before, after you eat dinner. At this time your hunger is satisfied so you won't be tempted to add unnecessary, unhealthy foods to your lunch box.
Taking leftovers is a great way to stretch your food dollar (two meals in one!), and you will make sure they won't go to waste when they accidentally get pushed to the back of the fridge. In this case you can start thinking about your lunch before you even eat dinner the night before. As soon as the food is ready, put some in containers, and put them aside in the fridge. This way you won't be tempted to overeat either! I like Pyrex storage containers because you can put them in the microwave without worrying about BPAs leaking into your food when re-heated.
If you don't have any leftovers that day or you would rather not take them, try some of these ideas for a healthy lunch. Keep in mind that if you plan ahead, make a grocery list, and do your grocery shopping over the weekend, you can eliminate some unnecessary trips to the store during the week!
I always make sure I take fruit in my lunch. I also pack an extra piece that I can eat on my commute home, that tides me over and reduces temptation to pick up a snack from a drive through or from the gas station! I pick my fruit based on what is on sale at the grocery store. That typically reflects what is in season!
If I'm not taking a salad as my lunch I always pack a raw vegetable too. Some good options include:
- fresh bell pepper strips with a side of hummus
- celery with a side of Laughing Cow cheese
- carrots or broccoli and low-fat ranch dressing
- string beans
- sweet potato sticks, yes you can eat them raw!
I usually take a salad in my lunch. Since it takes time to eat, it feels like I am eating a lot, and the bulk of the raw veggies helps fill me up! Plus, raw veggies and fruit are great natural sources of fiber! Some good options include:
- Caesar salad made with: romaine lettuce, shredded Parmesan cheese, croutons, hard boiled eggs, chopped onions, and Caesar dressing
- Rainbow salad made with: romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, sliced in half, chopped orange peppers, chopped red onions, croutons, and papaya citrus dressing.
- Greek: baby spinach, feta cheese, kalamata olives, chopped red onion, tomatoes, cucumbers, peperoncini, and low-fat Greek dressing
Some quick lunch time sandwich options include:
- BLT or FBLT: Pumpernickel rye swirl bread, light mayo, lettuce leaf, sliced tomato, bacon or two Morning Star fake bacon strips.
- Cheese sandwich: whole grain bread, 2 slices of cheddar cheese, lettuce, tomato, mustard or light mayo.
- Tuna salad: whole grain bread, tomato slice, slice of cheddar cheese, canned tuna mixed with light mayo, chopped red peppers and chopped onion.
- Chicken salad: whole grain bread, lettuce slice, chopped grilled chicken breast mixed with light mayo, grapes sliced in half, and chopped onion.
Other lunch items you might consider:
- Low fat yogurt
- Pretzels
- Dried fruit, such as dried cranberries, raisins, or banana chips
- Raw nuts, such as walnuts or almonds
- Dark chocolate square for dessert!
When 12:00pm rolls around and you are looking for a quick meal to tame your rumbling stomach, you can grab your healthy lunch out of the fridge and enjoy it without guilt! You won't be tempted to run to McDonald's if you have a healthy meal available. You won't have to worry about getting an upset stomach from greasy fast food and you won't sabotage your healthy eating plan! Sure, this takes some planning ahead, but it's worth it, and once you having been doing it for a week or so it will become second nature. You will also save money! If you spend $5.00 on your lunch each work day by going to the cafeteria or a fast food restaurant that's $25.00 per week. And lets be honest, $5.00 per day would be on the low end! That $25.00+ would be more than enough for a head of lettuce, veggies, fruit and a bottle of dressing for that same week. So start bringing your own lunch to work or school, and reduce your calorie, fat, sugar, and artificial additive intake, and save money at the same time!
Cheers,
Brittney
Monday, August 8, 2011
Book Recommendation: Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink, Ph.D.
Mindless Eating is a really great book for someone looking to make small changes that are sustainable over time. It's also a book that you can read again every so often to remind yourself to pay more attention to your eating habits. The book is interesting because it isn't directly written as a guide to weight loss, but its strategies are definitely something that if applied can lead there. It is written more as a summary of Wansink's research which is absolutely eye opening and you will surely see some of yourself in the pages here!
One example of what you will learn from Mindless Eating includes reducing the size of your plates and silverware in your home. Wansink points out that the size of our plates has grown significantly over the years and we therefore end up eating more! We grew up with our mothers telling us to clear our plates, and bigger plates leads to bigger portions! Larger silverware leads us to take bigger bites of food and often leads us to stuff ourselves before our brain can catch up with our stomach to signal that we are full!
Another example from the book is how we are often unaware of how much we are eating and to make ourselves feel better we round down. In an experiment with two groups of subjects at a chicken wing dinner waitstaff cleared the bones from the tables of one group and not the other group. The subjects in the group where the bones were not cleared ate significantly less, likely because they had an obvious reminder of how much that had actually eaten!
For more interesting tips and tricks to "out smart" your mind pick up a copy of Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink, Ph.D.
Cheers,
Brittney
One example of what you will learn from Mindless Eating includes reducing the size of your plates and silverware in your home. Wansink points out that the size of our plates has grown significantly over the years and we therefore end up eating more! We grew up with our mothers telling us to clear our plates, and bigger plates leads to bigger portions! Larger silverware leads us to take bigger bites of food and often leads us to stuff ourselves before our brain can catch up with our stomach to signal that we are full!
Another example from the book is how we are often unaware of how much we are eating and to make ourselves feel better we round down. In an experiment with two groups of subjects at a chicken wing dinner waitstaff cleared the bones from the tables of one group and not the other group. The subjects in the group where the bones were not cleared ate significantly less, likely because they had an obvious reminder of how much that had actually eaten!
For more interesting tips and tricks to "out smart" your mind pick up a copy of Mindless Eating by Brian Wansink, Ph.D.
Cheers,
Brittney
Thursday, August 4, 2011
When Others Sabotage Your Healthy Eating Plans
Based on an article from the Spring 2011 of the ADA Times, I would like to share with you some information about the reasons behind, and what you can do, when someone in your life is working against your weight loss or health goals.
It's something you may never have thought about, or it may be something that you experience every time you try to get on the right track with your health. When the people in your life deter your from following through with your weight loss or health goals. It is most commonly seen from significant others, friends, or coworkers; those people you spend the most time around.
Lets say you have become inspired to improve you eating habits with health and/or weight loss goals in mind. You research the best ways to achieve your goals, speak with a dietitian or your family doctor, and develop a plan. You are beginning making healthy changes in your life, but you notice something else happening too. Someone in your life is sabotaging your efforts! It may be through snide comments, it may be by pressuring you to deviate from your plan, it may be by bringing you unhealthy snacks or tempting you by eating something you are trying to cut down on in front of you. These things are all potentially deleterious to your plans! But why would someone you care about being trying to sabotage your efforts to achieve better health?
There can be many reasons someone you feel close to would try and thwart your health efforts. It may be intentional or not, but regardless of intent it is dangerous to your plan! Sometimes just the shift in balance in a relationship brought on by a change such as working to improve ones health can lead to conflict. The other person may also feel inferior when you are seeing results and they have not made any effort towards achieving greater health. They may feel guilty about themselves for not lacking the self discipline to make the healthy changes that you have made. They may be jealous of your results. They may want you to participate in a bad habit with them to make it seem less self-destructive. It may be none of these; the person may be using food to show their love for you. Such as a friend who is used to dropping by with a coffee cake or a lasagna!
So what can you do to to prevent these things from getting to you? You can keep your health or weight loss goals to your self in the beginning. Although it may feel good to share you plans, keeping them to yourself, at least in the early stages, can really help. It will be harder for someone to break you from your efforts if you have already established a pattern and have begun meeting your goals. Confronting the person is one of the best things you can do. Of course, using taste to avoid creating tension for the future. Ask the person to join you! If they are feeling jealous or insecure, getting involved with someone who is a friend and is already seeing results can be really motivational! Make sure the issues that are surfacing are directly related to the situation at hand. Address any issues that may be stemming from another problem. Be firm with someone who showers you with food. Make sure they know that you appreciate their effort but that there are better ways to show affection.
Overall, the problem of a being sabotaged by someone in your life in regards to your health goals can be detrimental. But you can overcome this obstacle! Recognizing the issue and addressing it can be your best bet. Having a well established plan can really help too. Writing down your plan, especially your goals, in a place you look often such as your planner can remind you on a regular basis of what you are working towards! Just remember that it is YOUR life and YOUR plan, and you can stick with it despite what is going on around you!
For more information on The American Dietetic Association (ADA) please visit: http://www.eatright.org/
Cheers,
Brittney
It's something you may never have thought about, or it may be something that you experience every time you try to get on the right track with your health. When the people in your life deter your from following through with your weight loss or health goals. It is most commonly seen from significant others, friends, or coworkers; those people you spend the most time around.
Lets say you have become inspired to improve you eating habits with health and/or weight loss goals in mind. You research the best ways to achieve your goals, speak with a dietitian or your family doctor, and develop a plan. You are beginning making healthy changes in your life, but you notice something else happening too. Someone in your life is sabotaging your efforts! It may be through snide comments, it may be by pressuring you to deviate from your plan, it may be by bringing you unhealthy snacks or tempting you by eating something you are trying to cut down on in front of you. These things are all potentially deleterious to your plans! But why would someone you care about being trying to sabotage your efforts to achieve better health?
There can be many reasons someone you feel close to would try and thwart your health efforts. It may be intentional or not, but regardless of intent it is dangerous to your plan! Sometimes just the shift in balance in a relationship brought on by a change such as working to improve ones health can lead to conflict. The other person may also feel inferior when you are seeing results and they have not made any effort towards achieving greater health. They may feel guilty about themselves for not lacking the self discipline to make the healthy changes that you have made. They may be jealous of your results. They may want you to participate in a bad habit with them to make it seem less self-destructive. It may be none of these; the person may be using food to show their love for you. Such as a friend who is used to dropping by with a coffee cake or a lasagna!
So what can you do to to prevent these things from getting to you? You can keep your health or weight loss goals to your self in the beginning. Although it may feel good to share you plans, keeping them to yourself, at least in the early stages, can really help. It will be harder for someone to break you from your efforts if you have already established a pattern and have begun meeting your goals. Confronting the person is one of the best things you can do. Of course, using taste to avoid creating tension for the future. Ask the person to join you! If they are feeling jealous or insecure, getting involved with someone who is a friend and is already seeing results can be really motivational! Make sure the issues that are surfacing are directly related to the situation at hand. Address any issues that may be stemming from another problem. Be firm with someone who showers you with food. Make sure they know that you appreciate their effort but that there are better ways to show affection.
Overall, the problem of a being sabotaged by someone in your life in regards to your health goals can be detrimental. But you can overcome this obstacle! Recognizing the issue and addressing it can be your best bet. Having a well established plan can really help too. Writing down your plan, especially your goals, in a place you look often such as your planner can remind you on a regular basis of what you are working towards! Just remember that it is YOUR life and YOUR plan, and you can stick with it despite what is going on around you!
For more information on The American Dietetic Association (ADA) please visit: http://www.eatright.org/
Cheers,
Brittney
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