Special K Vanilla Almond VS Captain Crunch - Crunch Berries

SandyCoils

My go-to breakfast for the past month or so has been Special K Vanilla Almond. I love that stuff. Not because it's supposedly a "diet" cereal, I just genuinely love it. Well, I went into Publix this morning to get another box of Special K and they were out!!! So, since I had been craving Captain Crunch - Crunch Berries, I decided to bite the bullet and get it. I figured that any additional calories that Captain Crunch had I could cut back on during the day to even out my cal intake by the end of the day.

Well......as I read the box, for 3/4 cup of cereal, how about Special K has 10 more cals per 3/4 cup of cereal that Special K Vanilla Almond!!!!! I nearly died! And yes, 10 cals may not be a lot to some of you, but that is huge to me since I eat cereal nearly every day Monday - Friday. That's at least 50 cals a week!

I just thought it was really funny how they market Special K to be so good for you and the pre-sweetened cereals - not so good. I'm sure the vitamins and all of that differ, and I haven't broken that down because I'm still new on this journey. My primary goal is to monitor cals and stay under 1740. Just thought it was something funny to share.

Daiako

Welllll there is more to food than calories. But if that is your major concern (and there's nothing wrong with that) then I suppose it's captain crunch time for you!

AmazonMayan

I'm not impressed with Special K cereals.

I look at serving size and calories and go from there. I usually eat Shredded Wheat N Bran (I've always loved plain shredded wheat)...but it's nice to have some captain crunch every once in awhile!

I should add...my normal cereal is higher in calories LOL but I don't do sweet cereals often because it's a trigger

wizzybeth

Special K Vanilla Almond has been my go to cereal too for years but recently I realized it is light on nutrition. I actually just started using Total Whole Grain Flakes crumbled on top of my yogurt for breakfast. Calories wise it's only 10 less than Special K...but it packs a way superior nutritional punch. Mixed in with my vanilla yogurt I don't miss the sweetness of Special K one bit...

It's yummy but verrrrrry deceptive.

Btw I love your taste in cereals...crunch berries is my favorite treat cereal! Lol

ForeverSunshine09

I learned that little trick whenI did WW yrs ago. Always read the labels. Weightwatchers whipped creamcheese is more calories than Philadelphia whipped cream cheese. Plain Honey nut cheerios is a bigger serving and same calories as the WW equivalent. Though my husband loves special k cinnamon crunch cereal. I love special k cracker chips and their chocolatey pretzel cereal bar.

DopeItUp

Not really surprising, it has almonds in it. Almonds == high fat == high caloric density. Anything with nuts in it tends to be higher calories.

Zedeff

At 50 cal/week it would take you over 16 months to gain a pound. Stop obsessing.

jgnatca

50 cals a week is nothing.
But I hate Special K cereals as they are usually high in the sugar department and short in the fiber. Short on nutrition. That meant something when I was a diabetic.

mskinner1091

My go to cereal is honey nut cherrios with vanilla almond milk. I also usually cut up a banana to put in it or some blueberries! Yum.. Could seriously eat it all day.

wizzybeth

DopeItUp wrote: »

Not really surprising, it has almonds in it. Almonds == high fat == high caloric density. Anything with nuts in it tends to be higher calories.

There is actually only a very very small amount of almond per serving. It is mostly sweetened flakes with maybe 3 to 5 paper thin slices of almond per serving...probably not even equivalent to 1 whole almond. lol

callsitlikeiseeit

now im wanting cereal. any kind. doesnt matter.

im out of calories AND just ate dinner, and am OVER cals until i go for my walk. why couldnt you have posted this yesterday when i had like 500 calories left over LOL

boo hiss. LOLOLOLOL

#oneofthosedays

Sabine_Stroehm

If all you're considering is calories, you're golden. Enjoy the cap'n!

michellemybelll

i've never had capt. crunch of any variety, but i like the special k vanilla almond. but as another poster said, my BF's son recently opened my eyes to the deliciousness of honey nut cheerios and vanilla almond milk. The kiddo actually comments that it makes it taste like lucky charms. I've never had lucky charms either so I wouldn't know. But man i can't say i haven't almost finished an entire box of honey nut cheerios + almond milk.

disneygirl626

I like Special K Red Berry because it tastes good. It is pretty nutritionally sound but I also switch it out with whatever fruity cereal I'm craving at the moment. I do watch my macros (I'm not overly worried but I like to at least hit protein and get my vitamins in) but CICO is my main focus.

runnrchic

For me, cereal in general doesn't cut it. I get hungry an hour later (as I do with most processed foods). I find that I'm never hungry within my calorie range eating mainly whole food. I cannot fathom eating 3/4 cup of captain crunch as breakfast lol, but if that's what works more power to you!

Sabine_Stroehm

runnrchic wrote: »

For me, cereal in general doesn't cut it. I get hungry an hour later (as I do with most processed foods). I find that I'm never hungry within my calorie range eating mainly whole food. I cannot fathom eating 3/4 cup of captain crunch as breakfast lol, but if that's what works more power to you!

Me too. I'd have to have something else with it. Something with protein and fat.

Francl27

runnrchic wrote: »

For me, cereal in general doesn't cut it. I get hungry an hour later (as I do with most processed foods). I find that I'm never hungry within my calorie range eating mainly whole food. I cannot fathom eating 3/4 cup of captain crunch as breakfast lol, but if that's what works more power to you!

Same. I'm actually jealous of people who can have that for breakfast and be full until lunch.

runnrchic

Maybe a little off topic but since almond milk was mentioned, I started making my own...it is 10x more delicious than store bought BTW. Since I'm not getting the added calcium, I now dry out organic eggshells in my food dehydrator and grind them up in a powder. 1/2tsp in morning and night for true whole calcium! It's sad how much this excites me lol.

MindySaysWhaaat

I eat a lot of cereal. It's usually my go-to side with lunch, or my after dinner snack if I've got extra calories left over. I can't stick to one serving though. I usually double or triple it, depending on how many calories the cereal has. For example, my lunch today was three servings of the frosted cheerios. I do go over my sugar goals a lot, but I have my hemoglobin a1c tested every year (I'm not diabetic - my work does this) and it's always normal so I don't worry too much.