30 January 2009
DON’T DRINK YOUR CALORIES
Kaytee says:
Everytime I see someone with a vitamin water, jamba juice or a “cranberry juice cocktail,” I cry a little on the inside.
Me too, girl, me too. Let’s list the reasons why people drink crap vitamin water or enhanced juice or power liquid or WHATEVER:
- It has vitamins!
Okay, your vitamins and nutrients should come from FOOD, not beverages. You know what else has vitamins and not a lot of sugar/high fructose corn syrup/dextrose/chemical sweeteners? FRUITS AND VEGETABLES. People love fortified food and drink. By that, I mean, food and drink that have added vitamins and other nutrients where they don’t naturally occur. There’s nothing inherently wrong with that, but are you really so opposed to the foods where vitamins DO naturally occur? Eat a freaking apple. It’ll go a long way.
- It tastes good!
Sure it tastes good. That’s because, nutritionally speaking, it’s about the same as eating dessert. If you want a Jamba Juice for dessert, I guess that’s your call. But watch it, because some of those “smoothies” have like 800 calories.
- It quenches my thirst!
You know what else quenches thirst? WATER. And it doesn’t have added sugar, which, by the way, does not quench your thirst. No one can persuade me that sugar is hydrating. Sorry. If you really need to drink something flavored to quench your thirst, try a little bit of 100% juice mixed with sparkling water.
- It gives me energy!
Unless you’re working out very intensely or are an athlete, you don’t need energy drinks or drinks that claim to have energy-boosting properties. FOOD should give you energy, not drinks.
Here are some Nutritionista-approved beverages for your consumption:
- WATER
- tea - black and green both have small amounts of caffeine
- coffee - try to keep it to one cup a day, and no fancy, calorie-laden mochaccinos, either
- small amounts of 100% juice mixed with sparkling water
Yeah, it’s kinda boring, but if you’re serious about health and fitness, you won’t waste your calories on sugar water… unless you really would rather drink one of those as a treat rather than eat a piece of cake or something… and who would prefer that?
