Are You Using Too Much Heavy Cream in Your Coffee?
I ran into an interesting thread over at Low Carb Friends today. One of the senior members has lost almost 50 pounds, but he stalled a few pounds above goal weight several weeks ago. Like most of us who have experienced a stall at one time or another, he felt frustrated, but at least he was able to hold onto what he has accomplished so far.
When Stalled, First Take a Serious Look at Your Eating Habits
Although most low carbers don’t want to hear that the last few pounds often require you to take a serious look at your current eating habits, and make adjustments, the man decided to take someone’s advice, and take a look. He carefully weighed out his food and beverages for a few days, and recorded everything he was eating and drinking.His largest calorie hog?
Heavy whipping cream in his coffee. Considering the way many low carbers fix their coffee in the morning, I wasn’t surprised.
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| Are You Using Too Much Heavy Cream in Your Coffee? (Photo by Timothy Boyd) |
Are Fat Additives Slowing Down Your Weight Loss?
The calories in heavy whipping cream and sugar substitutes can add up quickly, especially if you drink several cups of coffee a day and you aren’t measuring how much you’re using. In this case, the culprit was 4 to 5 cups of coffee per day. At 50 to 60 calories per tablespoon, depending upon the brand, that added a whopping 800 calories to his daily low-carb diet plan because he discovered he was using 3-1/2 tablespoons of heavy cream per cup of coffee.Add to that, the extra-virgin olive oil, real butter, and coconut oil that many low-carbers enjoy daily, and it’s easy to be tipping the scales with over 1,000 calories in fat additives. That’s just additives, not the fat that comes with your meat or in your eggs and cheese. So, the man decided to cut back on his use of heavy cream, and report back.
His post encouraged others to come forward, which was unusual for Low Carb Friends, because most of the time the Party Line over there is “up your fats” regardless of what’s wrong. It was nice to see a helpful post for a change. A post that addressed the real issues, instead of some fantasy wish. Our metabolisms and disorders are all so different, and up the fat isn’t always the right answer. Sometimes, the answer is to lower it.
It’s only when you keep a close eye on what you’re eating and drinking, that you can make educated decisions to benefit your low-carb lifestyle and eating plan. If you don’t know what you’re eating and drinking, you can’t make the necessary changes that will enable you to reach your weight-loss goals.
The Danger of Focusing Only On Carbs
Like most low-carb folks, this particular person lost those 45 pounds mindlessly, by focusing only on carbohydrates. If you only have 30 or 40 pounds to lose, from beginning to end, that might work nicely for you. But for those of us who started out with over a hundred pounds to lose, it’s a completely different ballgame.From what I’ve seen throughout the years, 50 pounds seems to be about the maximum that works mindlessly. After that, you have to either count calories, start paying attention to quantities or serving sizes, or find some other way to limit the amount of food you’re eating. Why? Because a smaller body needs fewer calories to function, and because dieting itself will lower our metabolisms by at least 10%.
The three nutrients we have to work with are protein, carbohydrates, and fats. Since the amount of protein you eat should be set to maintain your muscle mass, and carbs should be set in line with your insulin sensitivity or resistance, that only leaves dietary fats to play with. Yet, it’s dietary fats that bring the loudest noise and controversy.
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| It's NORMAL to Have to Lower Your Fats As You Approach Goal Weight (Photo by Craig Dugas) |
To Reach Your Dietary Goals, Calories Matter
Most people who have actually reached goal weight doing a low-carb diet will tell you that when you get close to goal weight, calories matter. For me, calories started to matter about 50 pounds into my journey. Although cutting down portion sizes isn’t a fun prospect, the lengths to which you have to go depends on your current dietary habits and tastes.Cutting calories doesn’t have to be brutal. It can be more like a gentle wave if you can find a bit of wiggle room, such as the amount of heavy cream in your coffee or protein shakes. While some people have switched from heavy cream to organic half-and-half, others prefer to cut down on the amount of coffee they drink instead of going lighter. It’s all a matter of what’s important to you, and what you can live with, of course.
The idea isn’t to cut down to the point to where you feel deprived. The point is to take an honest, realistic look at what you’re doing right now, and make simple, almost unnoticeable adjustments you can live with. For example, this man decided to give up one cup of coffee per day. Instead of four cups, he lowered his coffee drinking to three. He also dropped his 3-1/2 tablespoons of heavy cream per cup to 2 level tablespoons instead.
The result? The weight started coming off again, and quickly.
Where Are YOUR Calories Sneaking In?
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| Where Are YOUR Calories Sneaking In? (Photo by Yarden Sachs) |
So, where are YOUR calories sneaking in?
If you’ve made similar discoveries of your own, please take a moment and share what you’ve learned in the comments section below.
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