Recommended Starbucks Drinks for Weight Watchers
Meta: If you’re trying to lose weight and still enjoy your visits to Starbucks, here are some tips that can help (along with great drinks that won’t pile on the calories).
If you’re somewhat overweight, at least you’re not alone. That’s especially true in the US, where fully 69% of all adults are overweight. You’re probably on a diet right now, and your doctor or nutritionist probably told you to minimize your visits to fast-food joints.
The problem is that it’s hard to avoid a place like Starbucks, especially if you’re already a fan. Like the coffee drink they serve, Starbucks is quite addictive. The problem is that plenty of their offerings are laden with too many calories, and that can be problematic even for regular adults not on a strict weight loss diet.
The good news is that it’s possible to enjoy a visit to Starbucks without wrecking your diet. All you need to do is to follow some simple rules, while you stick with our recommended drinks.
The 4 Basic Rules
You can get by with visits to your local Starbucks (and still stick to your diet) if you generally live by these rules:
1) Stick to the Simpler Drinks
That means you should basically just go with coffee, espresso, and tea. Cappuccino isn’t all that bad, every now and then. Just stick to the drinks that don’t need too many ingredients, since those ingredients invariably comes with plenty of calories.
2) Ask for Healthier Variants (or Do Your Own Research)
Let’s say you just can’t live without your beloved iced caramel macchiato. Sure, you’re one of its many fans.
But it’s not exactly a healthy option, not with its 34 grams of sugar. That’s a lot, as men are supposed to limit their sugar intake to 37 grams per day. The limit is even lower for women. Since you have 4 calories for each gram of sugar you get, that means you’re getting 136 calories from this drink alone.
Instead, go with the healthier Cloud Macchiato version. It’s not all that expensive, as you can get this Tall coffee for $3.75.
3) Keep It Below 100 Calories Per Drink
That should keep you within the constraints of whatever diet you’re following. Stick to size Tall whenever you can. You can go with a Grande every now and then. A refill is okay with your Tall cup as well, every so often.
4) Keep Away from the Sweeteners (Especially Syrup)
The problem with syrups, is that even if they’re real and not artificial, the calorie content goes up so high you might as well be eating a meal. And you’ll also end up craving sweets for the rest of the day.
The Recommended Drinks
Here it is, the Starbucks drinks that shouldn’t get you into too much trouble with your diet (and your doctor):
*Brewed Coffee. This is a drink you can order each day and not get in trouble with. Besides, drinking this type of coffee comes with plenty of health benefits. If you lots of caffeine, you don’t even need to order a second cup. Just get some brewed coffee that uses blonde roast.
*Iced Coffee. Hey, you’re just adding ice, right? It’s really best to just drink your coffee without sweeteners. If you really need the sweet stuff, then at least use Stevia. If you’re in dire need for a bit of flavor, don’t use the regular milk. Instead, use a little bit of coconut, soy, or almond milk.
*Teavana Shaken Ice Passion Tango Tea. This is already full of naturally sweet stuff, so don’t add more syrup or sugar. So, make sure you ask for the unsweetened version.
*Red Eye. This is one of those “secret drinks” that’s normally not on the menu, but plenty of people know about it. Red eye is brewed coffee with added espresso, and both coffee and espresso are safe enough. This will really wake you up, though.
*Caffè Americano. Basically, it’s watered-down espresso. The added water dilutes the espresso, so there’s no need to use sweetener to cut down on the bitterness.
*Caffè Latte. This is coffee with milk, but be sure to ask for the almond milk version to cut down on the calories.
*Pumpkin Spice Latte. The healthiest way to enjoy the PSL is to specify that you want the almond milk and without the whipped cream. Also, ask only for a single pump of the syrup.
*Ombré Pink Drink. This is only 100 calories—and that’s for the Grande.
*Pineapple Kona Pop Brewed Tea. This is both low-calorie and caffeine-free, despite all that flavor. It’s great after dinner, as it won’t keep you up.
Final Words
You don’t have to actually avoid getting your favorite Starbucks drinks with all those calories all the time. There’s a time for everything, so maybe you can enjoy your calorie-laden drink for special occasions only.
But with your daily caffeine fix, you may want to be a lot more careful. Stick to our recommendations, and you should be able to stick to your diet while you also enjoy drinks from Starbucks!
