"I never eat between meals."
"I rarely have dessert."
"Almost everything I eat is low fat."
Do you ever hear (or perhaps say!) these comments, which are often followed by: "But, why am I still gaining weight?"
To answer that question we often have to zoom in closer and check those "tiny" bites of food we might overlook throughout our day. For instance:
Bite 1:
One-fourth cup of orange juice remains in the carton. You might as well finish it, right?
Calories: 26
Bite 2:
Two tablespoons of granola are left in the box. It's hardly worth returning to the cupboard. You add it to your serving of cereal.
Calories: 64
Bite 3:
You add two teaspoons powdered cream substitute in the coffee at work. Someone made really strong coffee today. Adding creamer is the only way you can stand the taste.
Calories: 20
Bite 4:
You take just a small "sample" of the cake in the break room. Well, maybe a second "sliver" would be O.K. too!
Calories: 73
Bite 5:
Oops! You forgot to ask them to leave the mayo off the hamburger this noon.
Calories: 100
Bite 6:
Add two mints. You also forgot to have them leave off the onion! Better have a mint or two for your breath, just in case.
Calories: 20
Bite 7:
You take a chocolate kiss from your coworker's candy jar. You have to crank out a big report this afternoon. This is for medicinal purposes only!
Calories: 25
Bite 8:
A second chocolate kiss from your coworker's candy jar. You finished the report -- what better way to celebrate? And besides, it's just a tiny piece of candy.
Calories: 25
Bite 9:
There you are with a handful of snack mix. The gang has gotten together for a quick drink after work to celebrate completing the report. You just order mineral water; but surely just a handful of mix can't have many calories.
Calories: 105
Bite 10:
Cheese on cracker at grocery store. After all, it's a small sample.
Calories: 55
Bite 11:
Two tablespoons macaroni and cheese. You're trying out a new recipe. You taste as you cook to get the seasonings just right.
Calories: 54
Bite 12:
One-fourth cup macaroni and cheese. Your new recipe tasted great; however, there's a small amount left over. It hardly seems worth the effort to refrigerate only a fourth cup. You don't want to toss it, so you eat it.
Calories: 108
The Grand Total "Extra" Calories For The Day: 675
If these extra calories are eaten daily, it might be possible to gain as much as a pound a week! On average, an additional 3,500 calories above your body's needs can lead to a weight gain of a pound.
If you've been adding "mystery" pounds, consider counting the calories in those "tiny" bite
FoodTalk E-mail Newsletter, University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension in Lancaster County, http://lancaster.unl.edu/food/ FoodTalk.htm
