Milk?

You don't need to drink milk per se, but it you like it, then by all means drink it. If you can go without milk, or milk products for the rest of your life, then that may be a reason to find something else to replace those.....personally that will never happen.

Milk is a very well balanced food, rich in protein, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals. I love it and drink a lot of whole milk. It's also an excellent post-exercise recovery food, with just the right nutrients and electrolytes to support muscle recovery. Overall, A+ from me.

I choose whole milk, but if you want to save calories by going with a lower fat option, I'm fine with that. I don't think skim milk is a great plan, because both vitamins A & D are fat soluble, and without the fat you won't get the full benefit of those nutrients- and vitamin D especially is one of the main benefits of drinking milk.

I can't fit milk into my calorie budget. It's just too "expensive" calorie-wise and frankly, it's not the end-all-be-all source of calcium that it's hyped up to be. I take a slow release calcium supplement along with my multi. If you really like milk, you may just have to budget for it. Perhaps consider it a treat instead of a drink staple. (Same advice I'd like to give some of my beer-is-the-forgotten-foodgroup friends.)

I drink 8 oz of organic whole milk 2-3 times a week, and also use small amounts in cooking. I think milk has a lot of healthy benefits, including calcium, and I drink it if I'm really lazy after a workout and don't want to prepare anything. 8oz=8g protein/8g fat and 150 calories. I'm looking into protein powders and might add a half scoop every now and then for a real protein boost.

I'm a doctor, and I can tell you that raw milk is a really bad idea. Pasteurization was invented for a reason- because there are a lot of harmful bacteria that can live in raw milk. I grew up on a farm and drank raw milk until I left home, and I still think it's a bad idea.

Personally I find milk really fills me up, so I do include skim or 1% in my diet. I have it as a 'snack' sometimes and it's as filling as the same number of calories of food. Plus calcium, vitamin D and protein. It's the only beverage with calories that I drink.

Do you have an opinion on non-homogenized milk? My preferred milk is organic, whole, non-homogenized, but it is pasteurized. That is too pricey for me sometimes, so I stick to organic whole when I can't afford it.

I agree with all the other comments--milk is great. I have a very low calorie diet, but I still manage to fit it in here and there. I don't eat any diet foods--including skim milk, so I only do whole. It's definitely a treat. The thing I really want to say is that you're going to have to make peace with water. I'd just go cold turkey and not allow yourself to drink anything but water for a month. I drank diet pop most of my life and then thought I could only drink water with crystal light or other crap in it. Then one day I just forced myself to only have straight water and it took.

I did however realize that not all water is created equal. I hate tap water (it's really bad where I'm at). I hate the taste of cheaper bottled water like Arrowhead. Just go do a water taste testing. You'll find something! Your body really needs it. It helps your metabolism! Nothin else can compete with it. If you're really having a hard time, lemon and ice might help (but not sugar!). You could even add cucumber slices to it (very refreshing!). Just stop looking for substitutes. I promise you'll totally end up loving it.

also just adding fresh herbs, like mint, to your water bottle does nothing to the water itself but makes it taste great

i'm pretty sure raw milk is illegal in the united states. i drink a glass every now and then. i get milk that doesn't use cows treated with hormones and antibiotics. the only time i drink milk is if there's something chocolate that i'm eating... = \

As a former vegan I understand the moral basis for not drinking milk, and found that a lot of other foods are high in calcium and some are lower calorie than milk if that is what floats your boat.

You get 100% of your calcium in 570 calories of sesame seeds, that is 2/3's of a cup
You'd have to eat 2300 calories of almonds to get 100%
1750 calories of flax seeds has 100%
900 calories of turnip has 100%
170 calories of spinach (4 cups)
882 calories of brocoli (18 cups)
2655 calories of baked beans gives 100%
377 calories of kale gives 100%

Now after all those numbers know that 286 calories of milk gives 100% of your daily calcium needs. Clearly then, spinach wins the gold, followed by milk(which soy milk ties), followed by kale, sesame seeds. For calcium everything else is beyond easy consumption on a low calorie diet. I suppose spinach would be a better choice.

All that being said, I'm no longer vegan and I drink 1-2 cups of milk a day, which together with other foods usually makes me reach my calcium goal. You might be interested to know that eatting 2 times your necessary protein makes you pee out 50% more calcium, thus leading to higher calcium requirements according to scientific studies. This is a factor in the high incidence of osteoporosis. Hope that helps you, ta ta for now.

When you consider a cup 8oz of 1% Milk is 110 cal, if you extrapolate that out that's 165 cal in a 12 oz serving. Compare that to a can of coke and yes it is slightly higher (a can of coke is 140 cal). However, the big difference is when you look at the rest of the nutrition label. The can of coke has nothing but sugar in it; well and a little sodium. By comparison, with the Milk you're getting a good serving of protein, some key fats that your body needs, a good dose of Vitamins A & D, Calcium plus a whole variety of other nutrients. So in that regard while yes it may be 25 more calories, you're getting far more benefit from the Milk than you are the soda. Soda is one of the best definitions of empty calories.

So if you enjoy milk, drink it!! Personally I love milk and have at least one serving every day. Chocolate milk is one of my favorite recovery drinks after particularly heavy exercise. There's lots of good stuff in there even if the calories come with it to. Just log it with the rest of your intake and you'll do fine.

Perfectly stated. /thread

i haaaate milk, but i do include skim milk in coffee etc. i would never ever be able to stomach whole milk, whether raw or pasteurised, and im losing....

I totally detest milk too. hate the stuff. Haven't had a glass of regular milk since I was 10yrs old and i am 55 now. What I just discovered was Almond Milk (I lack calcium and Vitamin D and wanted to find some kind of dairy that would help these area's) I saw lots of my friends on MFP using Almond milk flavored with vanilla. So I bought a carton of it.. and guess what I like it. It is packed (better than regular milk) with all kinds of calcium and vitamin D as well as other good stuff. I bought the unsweetened soy / lactose free kind (which I hear all Almond milk is lactose free) It is made from almonds and not from animal. so there is no fat etc in it. I liked it so much I bought a few more cartons of it (was on sale and exp. date is end of March). You may want to try this too. I know I was so glad to finally find something to put in place of Milk. (which I totally can not stand)