What does 2% Milk Actually Mean?

Photo used under Creative Commons 

from NickPiggott

There are many misconceptions about what the different terms for milk mean. For example, some may believe that 2% milk means that the manufacturers took out all but 2% of the fat. This is not true. The 2% means that 2% of the weight is milk fat. For example, a cup of 2% milk weighs 224 grams. Of that, 5 grams are fat. Five dived by 224 is 2.23%.

• Myth: 2% of the calories come from fat

One cup of 2% milk has 124 calories. There are 5 grams of fat in a cup of milk and each gram has 9 calories. Therefore there are 45 calories of fat in a cup of milk, which makes up 36.29% of the calories. In other words, 36.29% of the calories in 2% milk come from the fat.  This is because the amount calories per gram of fat (9) is greater the amount of calories per gram of protein and carbohydrates (4).

My Plan

Monitor Eating

I am logging everything I eat using MyFitnessPal, which has both phone and web interfaces. MyFitnessPal recommends that I eat 1370 calories a day if I don't exercise. When I do any sort of exercise, I log it and my calorie allowance increases for the day. For example, today I spent 40 minutes walking my neighbor's dog, which burned 172 calories. That made my calorie allowance increase to 1542 for today. I have several friends on this site. We're able to monitor each others' progress and look at each others' food diaries.

Even though I haven't restricted what I'm eating (besides my no sweets rule), I am eating pretty healthily - fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, etc. I'm eating these out of necessity because otherwise I'd be too hungry all the time - healthy foods tend to have higher satiety to calorie ratios.

Example of my food diary that I logged on MyFitnessPal

4 Best Dark Chocolate Steals

I'm a chocoholic and could eat chocolate all day long. Unfortunately, chocolate cake, chocolate ice cream, and chocolate candies cause weight gain. Also, I gave up sweets 3 weeks ago.

I do, however, eat one square (10 - 12 grams) of dark chocolate (≥90% cocoa) every day. It's good for me and helps curb my chocolate craving. And because I eat small amounts, less than 62 calories of chocolate a day, I'm not too worried.

Many of my friends think that 90+% is too bitter to eat. I used to think this, but I've found that with tenacity and patience, it can be easy to enjoy extremely dark chocolate. Eating the highest percentage you're able to handle and working up seems to be a good way to get to 90+%. Seventy percent used to be the highest I could enjoy. This is no longer the case. Also, it's really easy to binge on 70%, but nearly impossible to binge on extremely dark chocolate, which is another good reason to go dark.

I've comprised the following list of my top dark chocolates based on price, quality, availability, taste, and nutrition. 

4 Reasons to Eat Dark Chocolate

Photo used under Creative Commons

from Chotda

1. May Make You Thinner

A recent study by my alma matar, UC San Diego, found that frequent chocolate eaters are thinner. What's key is that it measured a relationship between b.m.i and frequency of chocolate consumption instead of total chocolate consumption. It seems like it is more important to have small amounts of chocolate regularly then to eat a bunch at once. This is good news for me as I consume one square (10 grams) of dark chocolate (≥90% cocoa) every day. 

2. Helps Control Overeating 

Chocolate Banana Shake - No Added Sugar

This shake with only 409 calories is a great treat made with whole and simple ingredients. I use whole coconut milk - not light - and also unsweetened cocoa powder. This drink is naturally sweetened from the banana and coconut milk and it's amazingly delicious.

As much as I'd love to drink this each and every day, I realize that it is still a high calorie dessert as it takes up about 29% of my daily calories (1300- 1500 calories). Also, it is far less filling than other meals with a comparable caloric content.

This would be a good after-workout beverage, especially if you add a protein powder.

Quitting Sugar

Photo used under Creative
Commons from Kevin.J

Why Quit Sugar

Since giving up desserts and sugary drinks, I've not only noticed a change in my waist line, but also in my ability to resist temptations to overeat.

Empty Calories 

I'm eating a reduced calorie diet (1300 - 1500 calories a day depending on my level of activity) and so it's important to maximize the satiety to calorie ratio so hunger doesn't prevent me from staying within my calorie range and reaching my goal weight. Desserts and other sugary foods add calories to my diet without adding much hunger relief. Therefore, every calorie of sugar I eat is one fewer calorie of something healthy and filling.

Sharp Changes in Blood Glucose

Purpose For Starting This Blog

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 from puuikibeach

When I graduated from high school in 2006 I weighted 185 lbs. Despite my struggles to lose weight throughout my undergraduate studies, I was able to lose 35 lbs by graduation in 2010. Though I had a goal weight of 130 lbs, I remained at 150 for almost two years.

Since starting graduate school this past fall (2011) and dealing with a breakup, I've gained back much of the weight I lost. Three weeks ago I weighed in at 178 lbs and decided to quit eating sweets to assist me in losing weight. So far I have lost 7 lbs and plan to write this blog during the remainder of my journey.

Weight Loss

My goal is to lose 41 lbs. My current weight is 171 lbs and I'm 5'3.25''. I want to use this blog as a way to set my goals, monitor my progress, and share my obstacles and accomplishments with others.

Community Support

This blog will increase the support in my life by expanding my community to the internet.

Accountability

Additionally, this blog holds me accountable to the goals I set for myself because I am publicizing them to friends, family, and strangers. This opens me up for scrutiny, which I will embrace as an additional motivator.