Replacing cows milk with almond

RoyBeck
RoyBeck Posts: 947 Member
edited December 18 in Health and Weight Loss
For no other reason other than it tastes ok and it's much lower on calories and carbs.

I don't drink tea or coffee so I only have milk on cereal so it could save me 150 calories a day.

Is there anything else I need to know a out replacing cows milk with unsweetened almond milk?
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Replies

  • kksmom1789
    kksmom1789 Posts: 281 Member
    I use almond milk for cereal I love it and def love saving those calories lol
  • suzievv
    suzievv Posts: 410 Member
    I love to drink my morning hot cocoa with unsweetened almond milk. It definitely saves on calories!
  • happytree923
    happytree923 Posts: 463 Member
    kimny72 wrote: »
    Most almond milk will have less protein than dairy milk, so if you watch your macros they may need rebalancing.

    Anything you'd need to know (including that) will be in the nutrition info and ingredient list. Different brands of almond milk may have ingredient differences, so if you have allergies or other concerns keep that in mind.

    If protein is a concern there is protein enriched almond milk available. It is expensive though and higher calorie than regular almond milk.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    The only nutmilks I drink are homemade or otherwise have actual nuts in them, and therefore aren't actually lower cal than cow's milk. (I don't really care about milk so never buy it, but I alternate between yogurt and nutmilk in smoothies, which I like in the summer.)
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    ritzvin wrote: »
    Depending on your cereal, the whole milk might also be the only source of fat and protein in your breakfast. (We do need some dietary fat). Result will be fewer calories, but now almost all carbs instead of a blend of macros.

    I think this is a good point, but personally, I'd rather save the calories on the milk and use it on an egg or greek yogurt :)
  • ghudson92
    ghudson92 Posts: 2,061 Member
    Almond milk is fine, look out for the ingredients as some have quite a bit of added sugar. I prefer oat milk for taste, plus it is suggested to be the best out of the plant based milks for the environment (according to a recent study from Oxford). Just go with what tastes good to you and what fits in with your personal goals.
  • RoyBeck
    RoyBeck Posts: 947 Member
    I'm using unsweetened milk.
  • LivingtheLeanDream
    LivingtheLeanDream Posts: 13,342 Member
    try2again wrote: »
    RoyBeck wrote: »
    I'm aware it has 0 protein and no I don't have allergies. I just see it as a way to eat my cereal with almost 0 calories compared to the 150 or so in whole milk. I'll see how I get on I guess.

    Or you could split the difference & use skim for 80 calories and keep the protein. I use both... depends on what I'm doing with it.

    That was going to be my suggestion too :smile:
  • Roobyzooby
    Roobyzooby Posts: 189 Member
    Curious how much milk you have with your cereal, I have 100mls full fat cows milk and its 68 cals. I find it more than enough for the 50gms of cereal I have.
  • ridiculous59
    ridiculous59 Posts: 2,911 Member
    I switched to unsweetened almond milk while losing weight for the same reason. I just couldn't abide by it in my tea or coffee, but it certainly saved me some calories when used in smoothies, lattes, and cereal. Hmmmm...good idea, I may start using it again over the holidays so I can spend my calories elsewhere :)
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
    edited December 2018
    In my area, almond milk of any sort is about $4.99 a qt, no way I'm paying nearly $20 a gallon for that stuff. I'll continue with whole cow's milk and cut my 150 calories elsewhere. lol. But that's me, obviously.

    If you can get it reasonably priced, and you like the flavor, by all means... the info others posted regarding fat, protein, sugar if sweetened or flavors, etc, is all good info to go by.

    Worst case, try it out for a month or so, see how you like it, what it does for your food log and calorie tracking... if it works out for you, do it!

    Wow! Here in the midwest US, almond milk runs $2.99/half-gallon and I thought that was pricey! Price often dictates my willingness use a particular item to cut calories. 2 things I'm no longer willing to shell out for are 45 calorie bread and low-carb 60 calorie tortillas, though I enjoy them both. Also, I've never tried Halo Top because, with a family of 4, I'm never paying $4.99/pint for any kind of ice cream.

    Edited to add: Actually, I wouldn't pay $4.99/pint whether I had a family or not ;)
  • jdubois5351
    jdubois5351 Posts: 460 Member
    try2again wrote: »
    In my area, almond milk of any sort is about $4.99 a qt, no way I'm paying nearly $20 a gallon for that stuff. I'll continue with whole cow's milk and cut my 150 calories elsewhere. lol. But that's me, obviously.

    If you can get it reasonably priced, and you like the flavor, by all means... the info others posted regarding fat, protein, sugar if sweetened or flavors, etc, is all good info to go by.

    Worst case, try it out for a month or so, see how you like it, what it does for your food log and calorie tracking... if it works out for you, do it!

    Wow! Here in the midwest US, almond milk runs $2.99/half-gallon and I thought that was pricey! Price often dictates my willingness use a particular item to cut calories. 2 things I'm no longer willing to shell out for are 45 calorie bread and low-carb 60 calorie tortillas, though I enjoy them both. Also, I've never tried Halo Top because, with a family of 4, I'm never paying $4.99/pint for any kind of ice cream. :(

    I'm in Germany, and a liter of almond milk (so that's what, a quarter gallon?) costs about € 2,99 compared to cow's milk, which costs anywhere between € 0.90 and € 1,20. I do like the taste, but I just don't have that kind of money.
  • SVZee
    SVZee Posts: 76 Member
    In my area, almond milk of any sort is about $4.99 a qt, no way I'm paying nearly $20 a gallon for that stuff. I'll continue with whole cow's milk and cut my 150 calories elsewhere. lol. But that's me, obviously.

    If you can get it reasonably priced, and you like the flavor, by all means... the info others posted regarding fat, protein, sugar if sweetened or flavors, etc, is all good info to go by.

    Worst case, try it out for a month or so, see how you like it, what it does for your food log and calorie tracking... if it works out for you, do it!

    Ouch! I buy it for one of my lactose intolerant kids and it's $2 for a half gallon and a gallon of cow's milk is between $2-$2.50 (Aldi prices).
  • RoyBeck
    RoyBeck Posts: 947 Member
    Roobyzooby wrote: »
    Curious how much milk you have with your cereal, I have 100mls full fat cows milk and its 68 cals. I find it more than enough for the 50gms of cereal I have.

    I was having 60g and around 250ml of milk.
  • Phoebe5164
    Phoebe5164 Posts: 79 Member
    I too found almond milk too costly so I started making Kefir Milk for cows milk.

    The fermentation process removes the sugar and drops the calories. The thickness is yummy! And even works well with 2% milk.

    It’s really easy to do and I think in the long run the thin, expensive nut milks will leave you wanting a thicker product .

    Look up kefir grains , they’re easily found
  • Athijade
    Athijade Posts: 3,300 Member
    I drink almond milk and use regular milk (2%) for everything else. Skim milk is disgusting. It may as well slightly milk flavored water. The biggest reason I moved to almond milk for drinking is because for less calories I can have a nice glass of chocolate milk in the evenings which takes care of my cravings for sweets without snacking at night (I struggle with snacking at night... nothing wrong with it in general, but I end up eating WAY too much).
  • ridiculous59
    ridiculous59 Posts: 2,911 Member
    Athijade wrote: »
    I drink almond milk and use regular milk (2%) for everything else. Skim milk is disgusting. It may as well slightly milk flavored water. The biggest reason I moved to almond milk for drinking is because for less calories I can have a nice glass of chocolate milk in the evenings which takes care of my cravings for sweets without snacking at night (I struggle with snacking at night... nothing wrong with it in general, but I end up eating WAY too much).

    And if you heat up unsweetened chocolate almond milk with a bit of stevia, the calorie count is so awesome you even have room in your day to add baileys to it :wink:
  • New_Heavens_Earth
    New_Heavens_Earth Posts: 610 Member
    Athijade wrote: »
    I drink almond milk and use regular milk (2%) for everything else. Skim milk is disgusting. It may as well slightly milk flavored water. The biggest reason I moved to almond milk for drinking is because for less calories I can have a nice glass of chocolate milk in the evenings which takes care of my cravings for sweets without snacking at night (I struggle with snacking at night... nothing wrong with it in general, but I end up eating WAY too much).

    And if you heat up unsweetened chocolate almond milk with a bit of stevia, the calorie count is so awesome you even have room in your day to add baileys to it :wink:

    Try mixing in some coffee and hazelnut or peppermint creamer. Really good.
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    for coffee I actually like cashew milk better than almond milk, it's a bit creamier taste and actually has even less calories (25 cal/cup)
  • Evamutt
    Evamutt Posts: 2,798 Member
    I drink almond/cashew vanilla milk or just cashew milk when I can't find the other one to save calories & it's delicious! only 25 cal/cup.
  • emmamcgarity
    emmamcgarity Posts: 1,594 Member
    I just use skim milk. I like the extra protein boost and haven’t been interested in almond milk. But, I really like mixing vanilla yogurt with cereal instead of milk sometimes.
  • Psychgrrl
    Psychgrrl Posts: 3,177 Member
    I use unsweetened soy milk--more protein. I try to sneak in more protein wherever I can.
  • lemurcat2
    lemurcat2 Posts: 7,885 Member
    Phoebe5164 wrote: »
    It’s really easy to do and I think in the long run the thin, expensive nut milks will leave you wanting a thicker product .

    Not if you make real, homemade nutmilk. Cashew milk in particular is very thick and creamy.

    Of course, it's also not low cal, since it contains cashews.

    It's as expensive as cashews and water are. Not especially where I live.
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