Vol. 2, No. 7
July 6, 2005
Trimming
the Summer Fat
Warm
summer days, vacations and cookouts bring thoughts of
fun, sand, surf, barbeques, picnics, beer, potato salad,
coleslaw...and a few extra pounds if you’re not careful.
Those refreshing summer drinks can be particularly
calorie laden. Alcoholic drinks like wine coolers,
frozen drinks, beer and coffee coolers can contribute
unwanted calories to your diet.
Here are a
few you should enjoy in moderation:
Popular summer
cocktails
|
Smirnoff ICE |
310 calories (8 tsp. sugar) |
|
Bacardi Breezer, Tropical Orange |
254 calories (10 tsp. sugar) |
|
Strongbow Cider |
135 calories (2 tsp. sugar) |
|
Cosmopolitan |
151 calories |
|
Beer, regular |
150 calories |
These are slightly better
choices, but should also be limited to one or two a day
if you're counting calories:
Slightly lighter summer cocktails
Per 355 ml
|
Mike’s Light |
76 calories (0 tsp. sugar) |
|
Mott’s Clamato Caesar |
105 calories (2.5 tsp. sugar) |
|
Smirnoff ICE Ultra 1 |
110 calories (0 tsp. sugar) |
|
Bacardi Breezer, Light Crisp Pear |
130 calories (2 tsp. sugar) |
|
Schweppes Light Infusion |
140 calories (0 tsp. sugar) |
Enjoy the summer fun, go
easy on the alcohol, and you’ll avoid buying bigger
clothes come Fall.
Hydrate
for Health
While
we’re on the subject of summer drinks...Do you know how
much water you need to stay healthy during summer
activities?
When you
lose weight due to sweating or exerting in hot weather,
you need to replenish these fluid stores. Although it
may be exciting to see the scale drop two pounds after a
lengthy run in hot weather, it’s not fat loss (it should
be so easy!) and you need to replace what you’ve lost.
Otherwise, you can compromise your health by depriving
your body of the fluids it needs to perform and function
properly.
The
following is the recommended drinking guidelines before,
during and after exercise, as reported by the Gatorade
Science Institute:
BEFORE
EXERCISE: Drink 17-20 oz. two to three hours before
activity and drink an additional 7-10 oz. of fluid 10-20
minutes before working out.
DURING:
Drink approximately 7-10 oz. every 15 minutes.
AFTER:
Drink at least 20 oz. per pound of weight loss within
two hours
Note:
Typically one gulp of fluid equals one ounce.
Enjoy the
summer and bottoms up!
Burn More
Calories Walking
If you
regularly walk for its calorie-burning benefit, try one
of these three new props to help you get the most bang
for your buck.
Health
magazine recently reported that wearing a Walkvest
while walking helps burn 10-15 percent more calories. A
person would need to add about 10 percent of total body
weight to reap these benefits, but don’t go over or you
may hurt your knees. The vest is $79.95 and can be
purchased at www.walkvest.com.
The
PowerBelt by Kathy Smith is a padded belt with
retractable cords that add upper body resistance at any
one of four intensity settings. It enables you to reap
cardio benefits similar to running at nearly 7 mph, even
at the lower resistances, Go to www.powerbelt.com to
purchase this $89.95 accessory.
Lastly,
NordicWalking Poles mimic cross-country skiing --
without the skis -- and sells for $109 at
www.nordicwalker.com. You can maintain a more vigorous
pace with less impact on your knees.
You now
have three more ways to burn calories while enjoying the
warm weather, so get outside and do it!
|
