Liquid calories are your mortal enemies when you want to drop some serious pounds.
Even if you think you’re being healthy by drinking fruit juice – you’re still taking in a lot of extra calories. How much is a lot? One seemingly harmless cup of raw orange juice is an extra 112 calories.
If you keep stacking high calorie drinks one after another, you will have had the calories of a full meal without even eating one. Continue reading this article to learn more about how drinking your calories can hurt your weight loss goals.
Those Sneaky Little Liquid Calories
Everyone’s doing it. You look around at the Starbucks line, and you see one venti after another walking out the door in the arms of some very posh people. Those customers look slim, so maybe it won’t hurt my waist that much. You’re looking at around 300 or more calories when you consume drinks like the frappuccino.
If you don’t think liquid calories are making it into your diet, let’s go through a standard day and see where the calories are sneaking into your diet. While this may not be 100% your life, I am sure you can see some similarities.
If you want to look like the after photo in the before and afters, you need to pay attention to the non-food calories and how they’re getting you. It is easy to let them slip like the extra shoes or sports equipment you bought at the mall the other day. Let’s get into how these liquids are getting you throughout the day.
Breakfast
You’ve heard that you shouldn’t miss breakfast if you want to lose weight, so you do take the time to put together a healthy breakfast. You’ve got some eggs scrambled without any salt but right next to it is that infamous glass of orange juice. Most of the time, that orange juice isn’t juice, and you’ve got a calorie-packed orange drink sitting there.
Let’s not even look at your counter fifteen or twenty minutes later to see the coffee with creamer and sugar in it. As you can see, the calorie side of things is winning, and your weight loss plan isn’t going so great. We’ve reached multiple cups of calories and we haven’t made it past the breakfast bar.
Lunch
Most of the time, lunch isn’t going to hit you as hard. But wait, you need another pick me up. Here comes a sugary soda or another coffee to help you get your energy level up from a good kick of caffeine.
If you go out to eat lunch with friends, you might have a couple of sodas since they are giving free refills. If you must have a soda, make sure to tell the wait staff that you’ll only have one and then you’d like water after that.
Snacks
Snacks? Who has time to sit down and have a snack? You forgot your protein bar, so I guess it’s going to be a glass of juice.
While the juice isn’t as bad as some snack choices, like a big custard filled donut, it still isn’t the best choice. When you’re out of the house, there usually aren’t enough healthy options. If you prepare with backup snacks, you’ll have a much better chance of staying on track.
Dinner
What is dinner without a little dessert? Wine desert that is. One glass, two glass, three glass four. What is dinner without a little wine? And since it’s been a long day, why not have a second or third glass?
How many glasses was that again? It’s easy to forget which glass of wine you’re on, especially if it is the weekend and you’re having a good time with some of your besties and buds.
If you look back over the day, it is easy to see that you’ve consumed a lot of calories from liquids. Why are these liquid calories so dangerous?
Whether it is high-calorie sodas or other sugary drinks, when you consume these liquids you don’t feel full. You’ve taken in calories, but your body still needs to feel full.
Beating the Bulge and Avoiding Liquid Sabotage
Many popular diets hinge upon drinking shakes, juices, and other liquid concoctions to lose weight. You’ve seen people lose weight on them, so why not use those methods to lose weight?
Drinking your diet takes less time and is less satisfying. Both your physical and mental signals are going off and telling you that you’re not done!
People that use juice diets and diets using other liquids often gain back the weight they lost and weigh more than when they started.
Solid Foods Over Liquid
Drinking your diet takes less time and is less satisfying. Both your physical and mental signals are going off saying – I’m not done!
When you eat solid foods, you focus more when you’re eating. You notice what is going in your body and you have a feeling of satiety. Your intestines and stomach give you the signals that make you feel full.
If you’re not eating solid foods, your intestines and your stomach can’t let you know that you’re full. Instead of drinking your calories, replace your high-calorie drinks with much-needed water and eat foods that are high in fiber and protein.
You can keep a food journal and see where you’re winning or losing with your diet and where you can improve.
Ready to Win the Weight Battle Once and for All?
It’s understandable that you’ve experienced some yo-yo diets. It’s fine that you’ve fallen off the exercise wagon. It’s even okay that you’ve had your share of liquid calories today.
Instead of worrying about what you did right or wrong, it’s time to take steps in the right direction. Learn more about our program today and find out how we can help you win starting right now.