Needless Calories

Needless Calories
FREE DAILY DIET TIP
By Joel Marion, CISSN, NSCA-CPT

Published November 18, 2008
Have you ever added up the number of calories you drink on a weekly basis in the form of juice, soda, or other sweetened beverages? Probably not. If you did, you may be surprised. In a typical day, a person might drink a 12-ounce glass of orange juice, a couple of cups of coffee sweetened with sugar, a glass of sweetened iced tea, and one soda. That adds up to a whopping 500 calories! And those calories do nothing to increase fullness, curb cravings, or increase dietary satisfaction. Drinking sugar-rich beverages habitually can easily tack on an additional 3,500 calories each week (the equivalent of one pound of fat)! The simple solution: If it has calories, don’t drink it. That includes fruit juice (if you want the vitamin C in a glass of orange juice, eat an orange – the actual fruit contains even more nutrients, more fiber, and much less sugar). Instead, go with calorie-free beverages such as plain water, flavored waters, “diet” teas, or other diet-friendly flavored drinks such as Crystal Light. Save the needless calories, lose the fat!
To your body transformation success,Joel Marion