Web Watch has always been a fan of the EAT THIS, NOT THAT series of books from Men’s Health, which boil down dieting and weight-loss to one simple task: you may not be exercising as much as you want to, and you may not be eating as healthy as you would like to — but making the right choices in eating can help offset the lack of exercise.
Remember, gaining and losing weight is paritally to do with the number and type of calories and fat that you take in. So change your meals, and even if you do nothing else – you should lose some weight simply by eating better.
The premise of their latest book, DRINK THIS, NOT THAT concentrates specifically on beverages, and what you should substitute when you go out for a drink. Not a lot has changed between the 2009 DRINKS YOU SHOULD DRINK, AND DRINKS THAT YOU SHOULDN’T and the 2010 LIST OF DRINK THIS, NOT THAT CONTENDERS, so let’s take a look at some of what’s listed in their HALL OF SHAME:
- Worst beer? Samuel Adams Light. True, it’s definitely better than drinking some other so-called “light” beers, and infinitely better than most “full-bodied” beers — especially Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Ale at 304 calories per 12oz. But if you’re going the light beer route and want to drink the BEST of them for weight-loss purposes, your best choice is Beck’s Light.
- Worst Lemonade? Minute Maid pre-bottled lemonade in 2009. Auntie Anne’s Wild Cherry Lemonade in 2010. In either case, use Crystal Light instead.
- Worst Energy Drink? Rockstar Original has the most sugar of any of the energy drinks out there. Try Monster Lo-Carb Energy instead.
- Worst Reduced-Calorie Smoothie? It’s any of them listed at Dunkin’ Donuts. They’re not reduced calorie smoothies compared to other smoothies; they are reduced calorie smoothies compared to the normal Dunkin’ Donuts smoothie recipe.
- The Worst Drink in America? The Cold Stone Creamery PB&C Shake, “Gotta Have It” Size. We won’t judge you if you order one – it sounds tasty. But here’s what you do need to know: this thing has 2,010 calories, 131 fat grams (68 g saturated), and 153 grams of sugar. That’s about 68 slices of bacon or 20 orders of McDonald’s fries.
The best advice that DRINK THIS, NOT THAT has for its readers comes from their description of the WORST BOTTLED BEVERAGE: “don’t buy products with cartoon animals on the front“. Even if you stick with just this one suggestion on everything you eat, and you should be losing weight in no time.