Don’t Let Your Drinks Trip You Up
When you’re watching your calories, you should also pay attention to what’s inside your glass. By choosing the right drink and paying attention to how much you serve, you can reduce your appetite and calories.
Best Water
Water is a healthier alternative to sweetened drinks. You can save hundreds of calories each day by switching from soft drinks to water. Two glasses of water may help you feel more full, and you will eat less. It can also help your metabolism.
Which is best: Soy or Skim Milk
When you are trying to lose some weight, it is a good idea to choose beverages that are high in nutrients but low in calories. Both skim and soymilk fit the bill. Almond milk and other plant-based milk alternatives, such as almonds, have fewer calories but also less protein than cow’s dairy, so they are not better for weight loss.
Best Green Tea
This is a great choice if you need a boost. It’s calorie-free, and some research shows that green tea extract can help you lose weight. Although it’s unclear exactly how caffeine and micronutrients known as catechins could play a part, they may both have a positive effect. It appears that the benefit only lasts a few short hours. Therefore, it is best to drink green tea twice daily.
Best: Vegetable Juice
Vegetable juice has the same nutritional value as fruit juice but with less calories. Orange juice contains 122 calories per cup, while tomato juice only has 41. You can also get fibre by choosing juices with the pulp. That may help control your hunger.
Vegetable juice is high in sodium. If you purchase your vegetable juice in a store, choose a low-sodium variety.
Best Black Coffee
If you want a caffeine boost, coffee is better than energy drinks or soda. Black coffee has no calories and is rich in antioxidants.
Studies have shown that drinking 3-4 cups of coffee daily can improve mood and concentration and reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes or certain cancers.
Worst Specialty Coffees
A 12-ounce caffe mocha may contain almost 300 calories, and a vanilla latté can have close to 200. If mochas and latté are what you like, there are a few ways to reduce the amount of calories. You can order your drink with skim milk or sugar-free syrups at most coffee shops. Skip the whipped cream.
Worst: soda
You will consume hundreds of calories every time you drink this. By switching to diet soft drinks, you can reduce calories. Research is divided on whether switching to diet soft drinks helps you lose weight. You may not lose weight by sticking with diet soda if you consume or drink more than you burn.
Worst Specialty Cocktails
Drinks like margaritas and mai tais are high in calories, particularly if you don’t prepare them yourself. Avoid mixers such as soda, juice or pre-made cocktail blends. Sip instead on something simple like vodka and club soda. Club soda has no calories, and a 1-ounce serving contains 70-100 calories. Try a spice-infused version of vodka if you want to add more flavour.
Worst Mocktails
Alcohol-free does not mean calories-free. Mocktails may be high in calories and sugar, depending on which fruit juices are used. You can make a fancy cocktail without alcohol by using sparkling water, herbs, and spices.
Kombucha: Be careful
This is fermented black tea mixed with sugar, bacteria and yeast. A typical 8-ounce glass contains about 30 calories. The drink is said to be good for your health and can help you lose weight. Scientists are still researching it to determine its true effects.
Be Careful: Beer
It’s not the best beverage to drink if you are watching your weight. However, a 12-ounce can or bottle of light beer usually only has 100 calories. A 12-ounce bottle of regular beer usually has 150 calories. If you pour it from the tap into a 20—or 16-ounce glass, though, this number can reach 250. Craft beers may also contain more calories.
Wine Beware!
The calories and alcohol content of a typical 4-ounce glass of wine can vary. Know that pours and glasses are usually much larger than four ounces. You can reduce the calories by mixing wine with non-calorie beverages or watching how much you pour. You can reduce the calories by half if you make a wine-spritzer, which is half wine and half soda.
Be Careful: Energy Drinks
These products contain caffeine as the main ingredient, as well as vitamins, herbal supplements, and creatine.
You’ll want to read the labels and choose those without sugar carefully. By looking at the labels, you can tell exactly how much caffeine you are getting.
Be Careful: Fruit Juice
It is possible for juice to have the same amount of calories as soda but contain more nutrients. This is a difficult situation: you want to get the antioxidants and vitamins without the added sugar. Search for 100% fruit juice. Avoid juice drinks with added sweeteners. The percentage of juice in the drink should be listed on the nutrition label. Drinking water with just a little juice can help you reduce calories.
Beware of Smoothies
Blend bananas, blueberries, and strawberries into a delicious smoothie. You can make your smoothies and control the ingredients. All you need is skim milk or an alternative like almond milk, plus fresh or frozen fruits. Some restaurant smoothies include ice cream, honey, or other sweeteners, which can increase the calories.
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