Low calorie versus high calories with more nutrition?

What is more important to you?

Skim milk versus Almond milk:

For 8 oz skim milk has 83 calories, no fat, 12 g carbs and 8 g protein.

Almond milk as 40 calories, 2 g carbs and 1 g protein

We are counting calories here, right? I mean, that is why we are on website. So it seems the lower calorie food would be the natural choice. BUT skim is a good source of carbs and protein sooooooo....?

What's your practice?

low calorie does NOT always equal healthy!  Sometimes it's hard for us to remember that.  In weight loss, it's all about calories in vs. calories out, BUT, if your body is getting all the right nutrients it needs, it will run better, which means you're metabolism will be revved up, and you'll burn more.

You can cut your calories way down and eat nothing but junk, but your body will crash and stop burning anything.  You'll be malnurished, have no energy, have trouble functioning through the day, and basically feel like crap.

In terms of Almond vs skim milk......go with whichever tastes better.  Both are good for you, so it's a taste preference.

Now, if you were asking milk vs. diet coke, well diet coke might be 0 calories, but that's still a no-brainer when it comes to nutrients. :)

I drink almond milk when it comes to my protein shakes and cereal, since those already tend to be high in calories, but when it comes just to drinking, id take the skim milk.

I have whole wheat bread and its like 200 cals per slice!! thats a little much for my mind lol so id always pick the low cal ones. 

I always choose high-nutrient or all-natural foods over low-calorie, processed foods, even if the calories are higher. They are simply better for you in the long run and they usually taste quite a bit better too. I mean, compare "diet" foods to REAL foods. Fat-free cheese to the actual thing. "Diet" bread to fresh baked baugette or French loaf. Shirataki noodles to good, artisian pasta. Better N' Peanut Butter (artifical-tasting and cloying) to REAL peanut butter (heaven on earth).

Even if you don't eat diet foods and low-cal foods you can still lose weight. Just make sure to stay within your calorie limit. And the natural foods aren't always higher in calories - many of them are actually less.

Almond milk just strikes me as unnatural.  I mean, c'mon, if I squeeze an almond, it's not gonna leak milk.  Plus, I remember my severely anorexic sister drinking it all the time, so I don't want to go down that route.

It's milk.  It's one of the healthiest things you can have.  Plus, I have doubts that almond milk has the same amount of calcium, which we need!  I'll stick with the milk.

Mainly I use the almond milk as a fat boost.  It has 3.5 g of fat per cup so if I'm ok in carbs and protein but low in fat, I'll have a glass.  Lately I've been thinking of switching to skim milk for the nutrients.

LOL dattaplot, my hubby says the same thing about almond milk.  He's like, how do they make that??

 

 

Because I don't drink regular milk (I don't care for the taste of it) almond milk appears fairly regularly on my shopping list. I prefer the unsweetened kind as I find that regualr is 1) high in cals and 2) almost too sweet and tastes kinda funny.

In terms of nutrition, I tend to go for the real stuff. I enjoy fresh bread, real peanut butter, homemade pasta, ect. I've found that I feel much fuller and have much more energy. 

 

I go for the nutrition over the calories any day! I will eat extra virgin olive oil, flaxseed oil, etc liberally without worrying about the calories because I know how healthy this fat is for my body! Same goes for fish, I eat LARGE portions and enjoy every bite because I know my body is having a "dance party" from ingesting all these nutrients! 

I'm very anti milk in general (Tastes terrible to me and I'm also lactose intolerant), so I tend to stick with Vanilla Soy Milk in my cereal/protein shakes. Not to mention, the stuff has a shelf life of 2+ months :)

1 cup = 100 calories, 300mg potassium, 6g protein, 10g carbs, 3.5 grams of fat

After taking a college course in nutrition and starting try and take better care of my body, I will always consider the caloric value of food, but it is not the decideing factor.  Now when I compare the labels its not just calories, I look at size of serving, calories, fat (types of fat), potassium, sodium, sugar, FIBER, carbs, and protein.  Trying to look more in vitamins, but I already spend to long grocery shopping as it is...

Obviously fat, carbs and protein play a big role in the decision but I have learned that sodium, sugar and fiber are equally important.

Its funny that you should mention the bettern peanut butter zebulancherry.  I still have a jar sittin in the fridge from last october... Always told myself that "it tastes better then regular peanut butter"  but I won't lie to myself anymore, stuff tastes like crap compared to the real stuff.

I drink almond milk because I'm extremely allergic to both milk and soy.  It's a no brainer - if I want to have cereal, or bake something, or... we'll eat like a normal person... it's either Rice Milk (pure sugar, tastes bad), Hemp Milk (very expensive), or Almond Milk.  There are a few other choices out there, but they are pretty expensive or hard to find.

I like the taste of almond milk, and the low calorie content is simply a perk.

Also, to whoever said it is unnatural - people have been drinking almond milk (or really, almond juice) since the middle ages.  Cow's milk would spoil easily, and it was typically immediately used to make cheese.  People also drank it during fast days and during Lent since it was not an animal product.  It's not milk any more than soy milk is - it's almonds blended with water, and then strained.  And it's certainly not unhealthy, whereas, for me, cows milk or soy milk could literally lead to fairly immediate death without medical intervention.

I don't know what you would classify me in the milk Department.  I LOVE milk...Absolutely adore it.  LOVE Almond milk, and LOVE vanilla soy milk.  But I have to watch the carbs in the almond and soy milk, because being diabetic, I can only have so many carb grams a day, and Almond and Soy both have higher carb counts than regular milk.

Now, that being said...I can drink milk...in moderation.  (No lie...in the past I could down a gallon a day...craved milk SUPER bad...)  BUT!  As I get older, I drink less and less milk, because if I overdo it, I end up with sinus infections.  Tried Goats milk, because those with allergies are said to be able to drink goats milk...GOOD GOD!  ICK!  BLECH!  PUTOOOEY!  But...never had it "fresh" so...can't really totally judge it.  Found that if I get the non-fat milk, I can drink more of it before it bothers me...(Land O' Lakes has an AWESOME fat non-fat milk called Over The Moon...BEST non-fat milk on the market that I have found!)   But I can definately tell if I drink too much of it.

Now on the Almond milk...Almonds are said to be VERY good for you, and some boast that it is GREAT for weight loss...So if the nut itself is good for ya, why wouldn't the milk made from them be just as great for ya?  Think about it

Cindy

I hate milk, but out of those two I'd go with Skim Milk (unless I was watching my carbs).

Think about it: 43 calories for 7 more grams of protein and 10 more carbs, plus no fat. I don't think that that's a bad idea. However, without having the carton in front of me I can't tell you much more...however, that is what I would do.

It's like those 100 calorie packs: sure, it's only 100 calories, but all it is is HFCS-laced cardboard. I'd rather have a medium apple and some ham or something (I like eating raw ham, don't judge me!) Going with nutrition is a lot better, in the long run.

Unless, of course, you're watching specific stats (carbs, etc) or you just like Almond milk better. I personally love chocolate soy milk. Omnomnom.

hi its not abot skimmed milk or almond milk...... its about having nutrition dense food or calorie dense food...at least thats the way i understand my eating habits....the rest i leave my exercise and running to burn.

I love almond milk, I am not a person to just drink milk anymore. But I started buying it because we were out of goats milk and my ds is allergic to cow and can tolerate goats milk somewhat better.  But now I put it in my oatmeal everymourning it is thicker and I love it in it. I also make pudding out of it for him. So maybe it is a much protein but I can get that somewhere else.  Plus my ds is also allergic to soy so that is out also. just my thoughts and my house. Debbie

I've actually fallen for coconut milk (coconut water is delicious as well).  It's full of good fat (medium chain fatty acids) that are readily used for energy for your body and potassium.  I prefer the SO Delicious Unsweetened (50 cals per cup) because it tastes creamier to me than the Original (80 cal) or Vanilla (90) but it's delicious and compatable with raw/detox diets chock full of enzymes and while it's still low calorie, it definitely doesn't seem it OR lack the nutrients.

I have also used coconut milk, it makes great pudding also. My ds has to take his lunch to school every day because of his allergies, so I am always making him food and changing ingredients. Thanks for reminding me about coconut milk.

Excellent question.  I just completed a diet class with a registered dietician.  And she answered, yes, the problem is that almond milk has no protein. She would not tell me what to do.

I have not found a good answer.  I do get almond milk at times, when I have trouble keeping my calorie count at 1,500.  If I use soy milk I use less with my cereal.  My store has Westsoy Lite Soy Milk Drink, which includes a number of ingredients in addition to soy. Plus I don't like the taste.  Organic Valley has the lowest calories of the soy milks, but it is not always available.

I don't like the taste of skim milk.  I never thought of trying goat milk or coconut milk.  I will check them out.  My store also carries rice milk; I have not looked at the calories or the protein in this product.

Sorry this is not much help.  I just wanted to say I have the same problem.

 

 

good one! very good reply!

Just because certain oils have beneficial effects doesn't make them health food.  I'm not saying you should stop using them, but they need to be used in a controlled fashion, i.e., not liberally pouring 1/3 of a cup a 1/2 a cup of oil into a saute pan when 2 tablespoons will do.

I choose almond milk over skim milk... but that's because I'm vegan. :)