Eat Out Eat Well

tea

Is Your Coffee Or Tea Giving You A Pot Belly?

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Morning coffee.  Coffee break.  Afternoon tea.  A nice cup after dinner. Many of us love – need – our coffee or tea.

A nice hot steaming cup of coffee or tea can hit the spot and a hot skim latte is a great snack – soothing, calorie controlled, and protein laced.  On the other hand, a giant hot coffee drink filled with syrup and whipped cream – often clocking in at 400 to 500 calories — might be soothing but sure isn’t great for your waistline.

Black Or Light And Sweet?

How do you like your coffee?  Black, light and sweet, regular?  Do you add sugar and pour milk until the color and taste is just right?

As you dump sugar and pour cream into mugs and those too hot to touch cardboard containers, have you ever thought about how many calories you’re actually adding to an otherwise very low calorie drink?  Probably not. They’re calories not usually measured and all too easy to forget.

What Do You Put Into Your Coffee Or Tea?

There are about two calories in eight ounces (a small cup) of unsweetened black brewed coffee or tea – doesn’t matter if it’s hot or iced. Not a bad deal.

What a lot of us don’t think about is how many calories are in the add-ins that we stir into our coffee and tea.

How much milk or half and half do you add to your coffee or tea? How much sugar? Bet you don’t have a clue.  We all do a freehand pour.  Try measuring how much you pour and you might be really surprised.

The Add-Ins

  • Heavy cream, 2 tablespoons:  104 calories
  • Half and half, 2 tablespoons (1/8 cup):  40 calories
  • Whole milk, 2 tablespoons:  18 calories
  • 2% (low fat) milk, 2 tablespoons:  14 calories
  • Non-fat milk, 2 tablespoons:  11 calories
  • Table sugar, 1 tablespoon:  49 calories
  • Table sugar, 1 teaspoon:  16 calories

How’s This For An Eye-Opener?

Say you have 3 grande (Starbucks) – or 3 large (Dunkin’ Donuts) – size coffees a day.  Each is 20 ounces or 2.5 times the size of a traditional 8 ounce cup.

If you add 4 tablespoons of half and half and three teaspoons of sugar to each that’s adds up to128 calories for the additives and around 5 calories for the coffee.  That’s 133 calories for each grande/large cup of coffee. Have three of those and you’ve added 399 calories a day from coffee (or tea).

Do that every day for a year and mathematically that’s the equivalent of 145,635 calories. Does that make you stop and think?

Is Your Coffee Or Tea Giving You A Muffin Top?

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Coffee cup and muffin top

Morning coffee. Coffee break. Afternoon tea. A nice cup after dinner. Many of us love – need – our coffee or tea.

A nice hot steaming cup of coffee or tea can hit the spot and a hot skim latte is a great snack – soothing, calorie controlled, and protein laced.  On the other hand, a giant hot coffee drink filled with syrup and whipped cream – often clocking in at 400 to 500 calories — might be soothing but sure isn’t great for your waistline.

Black Or Light And Sweet?

How do you like your coffee?  Black, light and sweet, regular?  Do you add sugar and pour milk until the color and taste is just right?

As you dump sugar and pour cream into mugs and those too hot to touch cardboard containers, have you ever thought about how many calories you’re actually adding to an otherwise very low calorie drink? Probably not. They’re calories not usually measured and all too easy to forget.

What Do You Put Into Your Coffee Or Tea?

There are about two calories in eight ounces (a small cup) of unsweetened black brewed coffee or tea – doesn’t matter if it’s hot or iced. Not a bad deal.

What a lot of us don’t think about is how many calories are in the add-ins that we stir into our coffee and tea.

How much milk or half and half do you add to your coffee or tea? How much sugar? Bet you don’t have a clue. We all do a freehand pour.  Try measuring how much you pour and you might be really surprised.

The Add-Ins

  • Heavy cream, 2 tablespoons:  104 calories
  • Half and half, 2 tablespoons (1/8 cup):  40 calories
  • Whole milk, 2 tablespoons:  18 calories
  • 2% (low fat) milk, 2 tablespoons:  14 calories
  • Non-fat milk, 2 tablespoons:  11 calories
  • Table sugar, 1 tablespoon:  49 calories
  • Table sugar, 1 teaspoon:  16 calories

How’s This For An Eye-Opener?

Say you have 3 grande (Starbuck’s) – or 3 large (Dunkin Donuts) – size coffees a day.  Each is 20 ounces or 2.5 times the size of a traditional 8 ounce cup.

If you add 4 tablespoons of half and half and three teaspoons of sugar to each that’s adds up to128 calories for the additives and around 5 calories for the coffee. That’s 133 calories for each grande/large cup of coffee.

Have three of those and that’s 399 calories a day of coffee (or tea) your way.

Do that every day for a year and mathematically that’s the equivalent of 145,635 calories. Does that make you stop and think?

Coffee Drinks And Hot Chocolate, Too

Sweet, creamy comfort in a cup is how Starbuck’s describes their hot chocolate made with steamed milk, vanilla and mocha-flavored syrups, and topped with a generous swirl of sweetened whipped cream. With a description like that, how can you resist? Just remember that hot chocolate and specialty coffee drinks come not only with a monetary price, but with a caloric one, too.

Here’s the nutritional information for some other Starbuck’s and Dunkin’ Donuts drinks:

  • Starbuck’s Caffe Latte, grande (16 oz), 2% milk:  190 calories; 7g fat; 18g carbs; 12g protein
  • Starbucks’ Non-Fat Caffe Latte (espresso and non-fat milk)
    • Tall (12 oz):  100 calories, 10 grams of protein
    • Grande (16 oz):  130 calories, 13 grams protein
    • Venti (20 oz):  170 calories, 16 grams protein
  • Starbuck’s Cappuchino, grande (16 oz), 2% milk:  120 calories; 4g fat; 12g carbs; 8g protein
  • Starbuck’s Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha, grande (16oz), 2% milk, no whipped cream:  440 calories; 10g fat; 75g carbs; 13g protein
  • Starbuck’s Gingerbread Latte, grande (16 oz), 2% milk:  250 calories; 6g fat; 37g carbs; 11g protein
  • Starbuck’s Hot Chocolate, grande (16 oz), 2% milk with whipped cream:  370 calories; 16g fat ; 50g carbs; 14g protein; 25mg caffeine.  Without whipped cream: 290 calories
  • Dunkin’ Donuts Gingerbread Hot Coffee with Cream, medium:  260 calories; 9g fat; 41g carbs; 4g protein
  • Dunkin’ Donuts Mint Hot Chocolate, medium:  310 calories; 10g fat; 52g carbs; 2g protein
  • Dunkin’ Donuts Vanilla Chai:  330 calories; 8g fat; 53g carbs; 11g protein

For flavored lattes, add (in sugars): 50 calories to the tall, 70 calories to the grande, and 80 calories to the venti and drop the protein count for each by a gram.

Is Your Coffee Or Tea Giving You A Muffin Top?

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Morning coffee.  Coffee break.  Afternoon tea.  A nice cup after dinner. Many of us love – need – our coffee or tea.  Hot, cold, it doesn’t always matter.

But, as you dump sugar and pour cream into mugs, thermoses, and those too hot to touch cardboard take-out containers, have you ever thought about how many calories you’re actually adding to an otherwise very low calorie drink? Probably not. They’re calories not usually measured and all to easy to forget.

What Do You Put Into Your Coffee Or Tea?

How much milk or half and half do you add to your coffee or tea? How much sugar? Bet you don’t have a clue.  We all do a freehand pour.  Try measuring how much you pour and you might be really surprised.

Here’s The Facts

Black brewed coffee and tea both have around two calories in an eight ounce cup. Not a bad deal.

Here’s the potential trouble:

  • Heavy cream, 1tbs:  52 calories
  • Half-and-half, 1 tbs:  20 calories
  • Whole milk, 1 tbs:  9 calories
  • 2% (low fat) milk; 1 tbs:  7 calories
  • Non-fat milk, 1tbs:  5 calories
  • Table sugar, 1tbs:  49 calories; 1tsp:  16 calories

Wow – It Can Add Up

Say you have three grande (Starbuck’s) – or large (Dunkin Donuts) – size coffees a day.  Each is 20 ounces or 2.5 times the size of a traditional 8 ounce cup.

If you add 4 tablespoons of half and half and three teaspoons of sugar to each — which sounds like a lot but is very east to do — that’s:

  • 128 calories for what you add and around 5 calories for the coffee for a total of 133 calories for each grande/large cup of coffee
  • If you have three of those that’s 399 calories a day
  • Do that every day for a year and that’s the equivalent of 145,635 calories a year.

Of course not everyone will drink this amount of coffee with this amount of half and half and sugar.  But, it does make you stop and think about how many calories you really are putting into your coffee.

In Case You’re Tempted By Something More

Here’s the nutritional information for some other Starbuck’s and Dunkin’ Donuts drinks:

  • Starbuck’s Hot Chocolate, grande (16 oz), 2% milk with whipped cream:  370 calories; 16g fat ; 50g carbs; 14g protein; 25mg caffeine.  Without whipped cream: 290 calories

This article is part of the 30 day series of blog posts called: 30 Easy Tips for Looser Pants and Excellent Energy.

 

Are You Drinking Your Calories?

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Lazy, Hazy Days Of Summer

It’s summer.  It’s hot.  You’re thirsty.  You want some shade and something cool – or maybe ice cold – to drink.

Just remember – a lot of those cool, refreshing drinks come with a hefty dose of calories.

Check Out The Calories

You might be surprised at the caloric content of a drink you have been having for years.  There is a wide variation in the number of calories even in the same category of drinks.  Do a little research and learn your best choice and then make that your drink of choice.  You often can be satisfied with, for instance, a bottle of beer that has around 100 calories rather than another brand that has around 300.

Of course, there’s always water, plain or flavored (beware the vitamin enhanced kinds with added sugar)!

Non-Alcoholic Drinks:

Water and Sports Drinks

  • Gatorade:  12 oz, 80 calories
  • Propel:  24 oz, 30 calories
  • SoBe Lifewater:  20 oz, 90 calories
  • Glaceau Smart Water:  33.8 oz, 0 calories
  • Vitamin Water:  20 oz, 125 calories
  • Vitamin Water 10:  20 oz, 25 calories

Iced Coffee and Tea Drinks

  • Dunkin’ Donuts Vanilla Bean Coolatta:  16 oz, 430 calories
  • Dunkin’ Donuts Sweet Tea:  16 oz, 120 calories
  • Starbuck’s Coffee Frappuccino:  16 0z (grande), 240 calories
  • Starbuck’s Coffee Frappuccino, light:  16 oz grande), 110 calories
  • Tazo Unsweetened Shaken Iced Passion Tea:  0 calories
  • Iced Brewed Coffee with classic syrup:  12 oz (tall), 60 calories

Soda

  • Coke Classic:  one 20 oz bottle, 233 calories
  • Diet coke:  one 20 oz bottle, 0 calories
  • Mountain Dew:  one 20 oz bottle, 290 calories

Alcoholic Drinks:

Beer

  • Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Ale:  one 12 oz bottle, 330 calories
  • Samuel Adams Brown Ale:  160 calories
  • Amstel Light:  95 calories

Wine

  • Red Wine:  5 oz, 129 calories
  • White Wine:  5 oz, 120 calories
  • Sangria:  8 oz, 176 calories

Alcoholic Drinks

  • Mojito:  7 oz, 172 calories
  • Frozen Magarita: 4 oz, 180 calories (the average margarita glass holds 12 oz, 540 calories)
  • Mimosa:  137 calories
  • Gin and Tonic:  175 calories

SocialDieter Tip:

According to CSPI (Center for Science in the Public Interest), carbonated soft drinks are the single biggest source of calories in the American diet.  We tend to forget about the calories in sugared sports drinks and in sweetened ice teas, juices, and alcoholic beverages.  Alcohol has 7 calories per gram  — compared to protein and carbs which have 4 calories per gram and fat which has 9 calories per gram.     Couple the alcohol with sweetened juices, syrups, and, in some cases, soda, and you could be drinking a significant portion of your suggested daily calorie allowance.  There are low and lower calorie choices in each category of cold drinks.  Choose wisely, sip slowly, limit the repeats and/or alternate with water, seltzer, diet soda, or iced tea or coffee.