Five of My Favorite Zero and Low-Calorie Drinks
I don’t like coffee. Well, let me rephrase that, I don’t like coffee that doesn’t have sugar, cream, and 400 calories added (Starbucks, basically). I also don’t like drink most diet soda, alcohol, or soda.
These are all personal choices of mine of course and not a requirement for losing weight.
I’ve tried countless zero and low calorie drinks over the last few years in pursuit of finding good tasting alternatives to water. Don’t get me wrong, I love water and drink it all day, every day. I probably drink one to two gallons of water a day without trying. Water does get tiresome though, especially toward the end of the day, at parties, and nights out with friends and family, etc.
Here are my favorite low-calorie drinks in no particular order:
– Water with a twist. I personally add a lemon or lime when plain old water gets dull. Some folks also elect to add sugar-free flavor packets, but I’ve yet to find one I really like.
– Unsweet tea. This is definitely an acquired taste. I was born in the south, so I have sweet tea running through my veins. Being able to admit that I’ve slowly acquired a liking for unsweet tea has caused riffs in my family. I might as well move up north.
If you’re not ready and willing to move directly from sweet to unsweet, you can also order a “split” tea or “half and half” tea when you’re out at a restaurant. This request will get you a glass half full with sweet tea with the remaining unsweet. It still has a considerable amount of calories, though, anywhere from 75-120 depending on the size of your drink.
Every little bit helps, right?
– Pepsi Max. I have no loyalty to Pepsi, but they do make the only “diet” soda that I like the taste of. While I’d like more variety, I just don’t like the taste of the others I’ve tried and Diet Coke gives me a headache (seriously). Unfortunately, most places don’t serve Pepsi Max so this is something I have at home on a rare occasion.
– Amino Energy. This isn’t very well known (most likely due to the price). Put a couple of scoops of this stuff into a cup, pour 16 ounces of water or so along with it and a few ice cubes. It has the consistency of lemonade and tastes like it too (Grape and Fruit Punch are my favorite flavors). It’s a nice fruity concoction with no calories. It also has a little bit of caffeine and some herbs/extracts for a good energy boost during the day.
– Milk. Here comes the hate mail. Okay, milk isn’t exactly a low-calorie drink, but it’s something I like to drink in moderation. I suppose in doing so, it’s also low-calorie (isn’t everything?) I typically like to get my fix of milk by chugging a shotglass of it (about 70 calories) to keep the calories at a minimum.
Do you have to give up soda, sweet tea, alcohol, milk, or your morning’s Starbucks addiction to lose weight? That’s a negative ghost rider. Please feel free to skip all of the sissy drinks I listed above and enjoy that 200-calorie glass of sweet tea at lunch. When you do though, you’re going to have to limit the calories you actually eat at lunch.
And that’s the big problem with consuming tons of calories through your drinks.
