Enjoying Fall Coffee Treats

This week brought the first true signs of crisp autumn air and with that I found myself craving a Pumpkin Spice Latte to help warm me up. It is crazy how a drink can instantly change your mood and the rest of your meals. While the occasional coffee-style sp

lurge is ok, it can be problematic when the occasional splurge turns in to the everyday norm. If this becomes the case you will find yourself forced to shuffle your remaining meals to make up for the extra grams of fat and sugar that you drank. I’m not saying that these types of drinks need to be completely off limits, but there are ways we can make them a healthier choice and remember, make them the sporadic treat as opposed to the everyday norm. 

Let’s take a look at some of these famous “cold weather” drinks we love…

Dunkin Donuts:
Caramel Mocha Latte with cream (10oz):

• 207 calories
• 6.5 g fat (4 g sat fat)
• 26 g sugar
• Substituting the cream with skim milk results in 163 calories; 5.5 g fats (4 g sat fat); 31 g sugar. 

Starbucks:
Pumpkin Spice Latte with Whole Milk (8oz):

• 170 calories
• 5 g fat (3g sat fat)
• 24 g sugar
• Substituting the whole milk with skim milk results in 130 calories; 0 g fat; 24 g sugar. 

Peppermint Mocha with Whole Milk (8oz):

• 180 calories
• 5.5 g fats (3 sat fat)
• 26 g sugar
• Substituting the whole milk with skim milk results in 145 calories, 0 g fat, 26 g sugar. 

You’ll notice that the portions are small in these examples I provided. Portions make a swing of a couple hundred calories. Going from “short” (8oz) serving to a venti (20 oz.) changes the drink from being a snack to a meal. However you choose it, be sure to write it down!

While making the choice for skim milk will save you of the saturated fat, all of the options are loaded with sugar. There are options available that are lower in sugar, but use sugar substitutes instead.

In my first blog post, I mentioned as we are training for the turkey trot we should be aiming to eat “real”. This means eating foods as close to nature as we can. Considering a sugar substitute would not be classified as a “real” food, it would be worth while to ponder selecting the skim milk version but with sugar. It goes without saying that these yummy latte’s are not an everyday occurrence, so splurging on something so delicious every once in a while, fits right in with our goal of EVERYTHING IN MODERATION.

Choose real and choose small.

Between now and November Annie Deremeik, our Fit N Fun Nutritionist, will be guest posting for us! Annie is a Registered Dietitian and Licensed Dietitian Nutritionist.

Image credit: Anthony Garza