Bad habit: Drinking your calories

Options
24

Replies

  • quintoespada
    quintoespada Posts: 58 Member
    Options
    i only drink vodka or whiskey and i drink black coffee with butter or cream. i take full fat because i'm of sound mind thinking fat and cholesterol is good for you. needless to say, i have much better blood readings because of it... you can occasionally indulge, don't let yourself think messing up is be all end all.
  • mtcastillo86
    mtcastillo86 Posts: 119 Member
    Options
    So true.

    I got addicted to the sugar-free French vanilla iced coffee at McDonald's over the holidays. The large has 150 calories! I love it, but am now only allowing it once per week, on the same day as my long workout. On other days, I drink coffee at work, where I use Splenda, and I've cut my creamer to 1/4th of what I used to put in it.

    I'm still developing my alcoholism -- I usually enjoy one mixed drink on Friday night, and that's it. If I can't fit that into my diet, then I've got bigger problems.

    My real vice is Diet Coke. Sure, it's calorie-free, but I don't need it. I allow one per day, and drink water the rest of the time.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    Options
    jmbmilholland wrote: »
    Drinking some calories isn't a bad habit; being ignorant of how many calories are in a (say) margarita is definitely a bad practice if you are counting calories. If you are seeing a sudden weight spike after the weekend, it might be water weight; since it takes 3500 cals to create a lb of flesh, that would be a very interesting "few cocktails" but regardless, knowledge and tracking are important.

    This.

  • BoogeyBrat
    BoogeyBrat Posts: 212 Member
    Options
    Those liquid calories get you every time. Just kicking soda and sweet tea makes a huge difference. I used to love soda, sweet coffee drinks, milkshakes, etc, but when I think of all the things I could eat instead of drinking those things I don't miss them at all.
  • enterdanger
    enterdanger Posts: 2,447 Member
    Options
    sbrooks0387 wrote: »
    when i decided to really get serious this year, i stopped drinking everything but almond milk and water. I love love love chocolate milk but have not had a taste in almost two months. this month I have had some diet soda, just so i don't feel deprived. i would much rather eat my calories than drink them. i do not drink coffee to start with, so i do not know that struggle.

    Can't you just add the chocolate to your almond milk? I used to love chocolate cashew milk and it wasn't too terrible for you. I used to drink it as my post work out.
  • bartcal
    bartcal Posts: 40 Member
    Options
    I've cut way back on my creamer use (pretty much only use 1/2 the allotted creamer serving) and drink some of my coffee black. I rarely drink a fancy coffee, meaning latte or whatnot, as the extra calories just aren't worth it. I also don't like my coffee sweet, so I don't add any sweetners to it, including the flavored ones.

    I recently started brewing beer, so there's no way I'm going to cut it out completely. I just account for the calories and either try to make sure I exercise appropriately and/or cut out some other cals in my snacks. I still enjoy a beer at hockey games, but I've cut down on the amount I drink at one time, not that I drink all that many. And when I drink my whiskey, I'll drink it neat or on the rocks, forgoing things like Old Fashions and stuff that adds sugar.
  • zyxst
    zyxst Posts: 9,134 Member
    Options
    http://getdrunknotfat.com/

    I'm not much of a drinker for alcohol. I get annoyed that I can't* have milk in my hot chocolate like I used to or have hot chocolate when I have a cold (used to live on it while sick).

    *too lazy to measure out 2 T
  • tkphotogirl
    tkphotogirl Posts: 245 Member
    Options
    I drink a lot of coffee and went cold turkey on milk and weaned myself off sugar in it just over a year ago. I prefer water to juice and soda (always have), and if I'm having alcohol I'll often get a good tequila to sip (not have as a shot) and it lasts me ages.
  • zadowd
    zadowd Posts: 44 Member
    Options
    I have given up my Diet Pepsi and Miller lite, but I'm not giving up my coffee!! It's truely my comfort and my sanity!
  • MamaMc3
    MamaMc3 Posts: 213 Member
    Options
    I drank Pepsi like it was water before I started on my current eating plan - I can't believe how many calories I was drinking!! I like food too much to use my calories on drinks, so I stick to water and zero calorie drinks.
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Options
    sbrooks0387 wrote: »
    i do not drink coffee to start with, so i do not know that struggle.

    No struggle. Coffee is a lovely beverage with very few calories. Well, when you drink it black, which is by far the tastiest way to drink it!
  • VintageFeline
    VintageFeline Posts: 6,771 Member
    Options
    I have kept my milk and sugar in my morning coffee but my breakfast is generally low calorie enough that it's not a big deal. Fancy coffees are for when I'm eating at maintenance and I really don't miss them.

    Not a big drinker to begin with so it wasn't an effort to just not have the odd glass of wine, that said, if I do drink I know I can have a whole bottle of red for 500 calories which seems pretty reasonable to me!

    As for soft drinks, again I was never big drinker of them anyway, I tend to drink cordial which has minimal calories anyway. And I found out apple Tango is pretty low calorie for soda so if I get the rare soda urge that's what I tend to go for.

    Liquid calories can be a minefield though for those who love to drink tasty drinks.
  • GrooveMerchant
    GrooveMerchant Posts: 44 Member
    Options
    Fortunately for me I dig my coffee black.. but I realize now how lazy I've been about alcohol for a while now. Had a loss in the family last year and that tends to be the first place I go to take the edge off. I'm trying to cut it out for now.
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    Options
    I definitely wouldn't be able to do this if I were still drinking regular soda and light/sweet coffee on a regular basis. I trained myself to drink coffee black (I like it more as a drug than a beverage anyway), and to be ok with artificial sweeteners in diet soda. I'm not big on alcohol, but when I do drink these days, it's shots of pisco chased with cherry coke zero.
  • cdlee1010
    cdlee1010 Posts: 251 Member
    edited February 2016
    Options
    my problem with a few drinks has always been that it leads to intense cravings to snack and then the day is pretty much shot. I think ultimately, it just depends on how strict your goals are and how strict you want to be to achieve them. With time, whatever efforts you put in will be the results you get out. Unless you're drinking a LOT of creamer, I wouldn't worry too much about it...take a good hard look at everything else and if you're proud of your day then just put a bunch of those days in a row together.
  • snowflake930
    snowflake930 Posts: 2,188 Member
    Options
    I never was a big drinker, so it was never really an issue that added to my being morbidly obese.
    I know that for me, chewing my calories is way more satisfying than drinking (anything other than water).
    I have been doing this for almost 4 years now, and a little over 2 years on maintenance, so I know what works for me.
  • absentmindedhousewife
    absentmindedhousewife Posts: 68 Member
    Options
    I love milk. Wholesome delicious cold milk.

    Discovering I was drinking about 600 calories a day in milk was delightful. Now I limit myself to 1. If I get to budget in calories for pizza I have to budget in calories for a glass of 2% too. Pizza isn't pizza without milk.
  • katiebean
    katiebean Posts: 110 Member
    Options
    Slightly off-topic but can someone tell me what creamer is? We don't have it in the uk (that I know of) but I see it mentioned all the time on here. Is it cream? Is it milk?
  • RollTideTri
    RollTideTri Posts: 116 Member
    edited February 2016
    Options
    katiebean wrote: »
    Slightly off-topic but can someone tell me what creamer is? We don't have it in the uk (that I know of) but I see it mentioned all the time on here. Is it cream? Is it milk?

    Basically it's something you put in your coffee to make it "creamy" but it's not cream or milk, it's usually a non-dairy product. The liquid looks like cream and is refrigerated. It can also be powdered. Comes in all kinds of flavors. Vanilla, Hazelnut, etc.

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/American-Coffee-Mate-Hazelnut-Creamer/dp/B008T9S75O
  • katiebean
    katiebean Posts: 110 Member
    Options
    RollTideTri wrote: »
    katiebean wrote: »
    Slightly off-topic but can someone tell me what creamer is? We don't have it in the uk (that I know of) but I see it mentioned all the time on here. Is it cream? Is it milk?

    Basically it's something you put in your coffee to make it "creamy" but it's not cream or milk, it's usually a non-dairy product. The liquid looks like cream and is refrigerated. It can also be powdered. Comes in all kinds of flavors. Vanilla, Hazelnut, etc.

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/American-Coffee-Mate-Hazelnut-Creamer/dp/B008T9S75O

    Thanks! :)

Categories