Sometimes i feel like the last adult (maybe female) who loves milk on the planet! I feel like i should live in a frat house.
I buy skim milk by the gallon.
Confession: I drink it straight from the container! (I'm a mom; I'm going to have to stop this behavior!)
Anyway, I may drink a couple gallons a week.
Is this nuts, a secret diet sabotage that I totally ignore? Opinions.
If you drink milk, how much do you drink?

My only other beverage is water--LOTS--and tea, red wine occasionally, and

a BIG cup of coffee with 2% every day.
How much milk do you coffee drinkers put in your coffee and feel is workable?

Thank you!
Dana

quote:

Originally posted by GoingSkiing:

quote:

Originally posted by d.maya:
I'm a little embarassed that I admitted to the quantity of milk I'd gotten to consuming.

Shoot... there are a LOT of people that drink 3 or 4+ gallons of soda a week. Talk about some empty calories!

Don't be embarassed. You started a great discussion!

And plus, it is great that you were able to pinpoint a source of a lot of calories.

Congrats!

VERY good point Denise, my DH used to drink about 12 sodas a day. A DAY! He worked in a FF restaurant and it was there.

I think it is so easy for most people to forget the calories in any drink.

Dawn

quote:

Originally posted by d.maya:
I'm a little embarassed that I admitted to the quantity of milk I'd gotten to consuming.

Shoot... there are a LOT of people that drink 3 or 4+ gallons of soda a week. Talk about some empty calories!

Don't be embarassed. You started a great discussion!

And plus, it is great that you were able to pinpoint a source of a lot of calories.

Congrats!

Thanks, once again, for the plethora of information and advice here.
I'm a little embarassed that I admitted to the quantity of milk I'd gotten to consuming. I don't love it THAT much; I just hadn't noticed, and I think it became something that sort of passed under my radar as if it were water when it is clearly not!
I sort of understand how people might do this with soda, now.
Thanks for "weighing" in with lots to think about: calories, glycemic index info, portions, etc.
I think I will aim for a gallon a week (!) and measure it out in glasses and for cereal. No guzzling.

I suddenly noticed this behavior because of the journaling (which I do only in general terms right now, but is still s mode of consciousness/accounting)
AND
because I thought about why I always, always drop significant weight when I am out of the country, Mexico often, or any other country.
And obviously it is the social/non-individual form eating takes in most other places, and the activity and the lack of sugar addiction, but it is also that i never have access to/practice a milk habit in other places!

Anyway, thanks for help!
Dana

I make 12 oz. very strong coffee, espresso roast even, so that I can use a cup of skim milk in it. That assures me one serving a day, at the very least. Milk, along with the protein, is actually full of lactose, which is sugar. It does have calories and should figure in to your planned amount for the day/week.

I grew up drinking milk. Probably in our family we went through 1 1/2 - 2 gallons per week. Now that I am older, I don't drink milk that much. When I lived in the dorms at college, the milk that was served always made me sick. I'm not sure if it has to do with developing a lactose intolerance or the temperature that they stored the milk. It took a few times before I eliminated it. After I moved out the dorms I went back to drinking milk.

Nowadays, I will buy about 1/2 gallon once or twice a month. The other weeks, I substitute w/soy milk.

I don't drink coffee. It makes me feel higher than a kite and it will give me a stomach ache. I never cared much for the taste.

I have lactose issues too so I've never been a milk drinker. I remember going to a friend's house and the Dad forced me to drink a HUGE glass of milk. It seems like people either love it or hate it.

I use Silk lite soymilk in my smoothies and any sweet drinks. They also make a really good creamer. I like half and half or the soy creamer in my coffee -- just enough to lighten it. Skim milk turns coffee gray.

Dana,

Although I don't drink from the carton, unless it's just the last drops, I, too have to have my milk. After all it's what I grew up on - not soda!

The first time I joined Weight Watchers (right after the dinosaurs disappeared), I paid my $20 initiation fee, found out they would not allow whole milk in the plan, and walked out the door.

By the time I went back both had become less stringent. I had changed to less than whole milk and Weight Watchers adapted for its exchanges.

I drink/eat 1 cup in the morning with my cereal. I measure the milk, pour some on my cereal and drink the rest. My second glass I have as my before bed snack.

I drink both my coffee and my tea clear.

Good luck with wrestling this alligator! Or should I have said wrestling this cow!

Linda

quote:

Originally posted by Bee:

quote:

Originally posted by GoingSkiing:
PS... Some people consider skim milk or yogurt a lean protein. It is about 40% protein and I find that it actually is a really good snack and filling. A cup of milk is a bargain at 90 calories. Especially compared to snacks with no nutritional value like the Nabisco 100 calorie snacks or cookies.

Nutritionists generally do consider milk to be a food for the purpose of exchanges and tracking proteins, fat, etc... When I was on my strict gestational diabetic diet it was milk OR something else, NOT both (or a glass of milk reduced the exchange I had for that meal for the "real" food which would have ended up not being enough food for me at the time).

I generally have 2 milk exchanges per day. I use one with breakfast (skim milk or ff yogurt) and I have one in the afternoon as my snack. Because of the mix of carb and protein, it is an ideal snack. I think of it as food with calories. It is not a "free" or almost "free" beverage in my food plan. I work the calories in.

I rarely drink a glass of milk. I use it cooking, use it with cereal, or sometimes just milk with fruit and a touch of sugar. The only time I drink milk is when I have cookies to dunk!
I stopped putting creamer or milk in coffee and now drink it black. I used to think that black coffee was YUK but have found a coffee brand I really enjoy and it needs nothing added to make it good.
I would have to say that while I really think milk is good for you two gallons/week might be sabotoging your weight goals. When I went to Fitday.com and figured out what my caloric intake/day would need to be to lose weight it averaged to a decrease of about 3500 cals/week. As Bee posted, one gallon of milk equals 1450 cals so two would be almost 3000/wk. By eliminating even 1 of the gallons you are significantly decreasing your cals/wk. Also, you might want to substitute something else for the milk, like food to help you feel full and to get nutrition from other sources.

I am curious about something-you are drinking a ton of milk and as you stated LOTS of water. Do you have excessive thirst or is this a normal amt of liquid for you to drink in a day? You might want to visit your doctor if it is a constant thirst issue.
Jill

I don't drink milk because I'm lactose intolerant. However, 2 gallons sounds like WAY too much milk. If you are supposed to have 3 servings of dairy a day, and a serving of milk is 8 oz. the most you should have in a week is 168 oz. and that is if milk is your ONLY source of dairy. That means no cheese or yogurt or anything else like that...

Dawn

I confess that I don't drink much milk at all. My DR would have a fit I'm sure..lol.. but it makes my stomach hurt. About the only time I can have milk is with cereal and then it's only enough to get by with. I've never liked milk in my coffee. It makes it cold to me so I use powdered creamer. Not the best choice I'm sure but I do like the creaminess. *S*

I drink 1 to 1 1/2 quarts of milk a week (a combo of 1% at home and skim at work). "A couple gallons a week," even of skim milk, seems excessive to me.

While I don't fully subscribe to the glycemic index hullabaloo, I read last night, in a Consumer Reports on Health article, that skim milk actually has a higher glycemic load than whole milk. So it's possible that could be partially responsible for the cravings/snackiness that you mentioned in the other thread.

Hey Dana
I like milk but I don't yearn for it, so the milk I have on my cereal is all I have. Now, milk in coffee? That is where I am passionate. It has to be whole milk, and God help anyone who drinks the whole milk that I need for my coffee! With all I've given up for my fitness goals and all the wonderful habits I have gained, coffee with whole milk is the one satisfaction I have not been pried apart from yet. And, two or three (horrors) cups a day has not stood in the way of my weight loss. The only negative I see is that if I drink too much coffee, I don't drink as much water. Those are the two beverages in my life, because, like Brie, I prefer my calories in food form!

Lynne (committed-coffee-addict)

quote:

Originally posted by GoingSkiing:
PS... Some people consider skim milk or yogurt a lean protein. It is about 40% protein and I find that it actually is a really good snack and filling. A cup of milk is a bargain at 90 calories. Especially compared to snacks with no nutritional value like the Nabisco 100 calorie snacks or cookies.

Nutritionists generally do consider milk to be a food for the purpose of exchanges and tracking proteins, fat, etc... When I was on my strict gestational diabetic diet it was milk OR something else, NOT both (or a glass of milk reduced the exchange I had for that meal for the "real" food which would have ended up not being enough food for me at the time).

Clearly if this is something you love, you should be able to work it into your food plan. Like everything else, you need to account for those calories coming in.

PS I don't want to start a huge debate but the research showing that milk helps weight loss is mostly funded by the dairy groups and is highly debatable. (Most of the studies aren't very well controlled and yes, if you give teenagers (and adults for that matter) skim milk over sodas, they will lose weight and get healthier). If you google "milk" you'll get equally as many articles telling you it's liquid death. Like everything else, moderation, moderation, moderation...

I really admire your milk drinking habit!! I have thyroid disease and take synthroid. I need the extra calcium and I don't think I have had any kind of milk in years. How horrible is that??

Anyway, I drink 2 cups of coffee in the morning and it is entirely black. No sugar, no milk.

I also have a cup of hot tea in the afternoon and it has no milk either, but I do put a teaspoon of sugar.

quote:

Originally posted by d.maya:

How much milk do you coffee drinkers put in your coffee and feel is workable?

I hate milk in coffe. I like my coffee with half and half, but the half and half is bad for my cholesterol.

I found it easier to switch to tea, which I can drink black or with skim milk. I stopped drinking coffee every day and just drink it twice a week (with half and half ).

quote:

Originally posted by cobismom:
Milk has been proven to be a good weight reducer...

Actually, research is finding that this may not be true...

""Study Challenges Dairy's Weight Loss Claim

Teens Who Drank the Most Milk Gained Weight

June 6, 2005 -- A growing body of research is taking aim at the claim that there is something special about milk and other dairy foods that help people lose weight.

In a study published in April, women who added extra milk to their diets for a year lost no more weight than women who consumed the same number of calories, but drank less milk. Now a new study in older children and teens shows that drinking more than the recommended three servings of milk a day actually promotes weight gain. But the dairy industry doesn't see it that way.

Harvard Medical School researcher Catherine S. Berkey, ScD, who led the research team, says the evidence regarding milk and weight loss is far from conclusive.

Studies examining the relationship between milk and body fat have been very mixed, but the marketing messages directed at families are clear -- advertisements encourage dairy products such as milk to help promote weight loss, so it is critical we continue to study this area until we have solid answers," Berkey says."

The rest of the article is at:

http://www.webmd.com/content/article/106/108332.htm

You aren't the only one, and don't tell my boys I drink it from the carton when they aren't around, too. I use it for cooking, drinking, etc. Milk has been proven to be a good weight reducer...so drink up and be proud. All those people in the milk producing states, love you!

PS... Some people consider skim milk or yogurt a lean protein. It is about 40% protein and I find that it actually is a really good snack and filling. A cup of milk is a bargain at 90 calories. Especially compared to snacks with no nutritional value like the Nabisco 100 calorie snacks or cookies.

But still, 4.5+ cups might me a little much... Drink your milk... but have an apple or banana, too.