You’ve been trying to stick to that New Year’s resolution like it is your job. You are going to eat healthy if it kills you, damn it. So, instead of stocking your fridge with beer and baked goods, you loaded up on fruits, vegetables…and beer. But, no matter how hard you try, bananas just aren’t as appetizing post-bar as, say, a giant pizza.

And where does that leave you? With some over-priced brown ‘nanas, that’s where. What is a college-girl on a budget to do? How do super low-fat, super tasty banana muffins sound? Too good to be true? Try again: Read More »

Health food is health food.

Health food is good for you. Health food will keep you slim. Right?

Well, not if you eat twice as much.

The Journal of Consumer Research recently released a study about the “obesity paradox”; a trend that shows the rise of both obesity and health food popularity in America.

Basically, the trend goes like this: when people see something that says ‘low fat’, they eat twice as much of it—or—they allow themselves higher calorie deserts or snacks after eating a ‘healthy’ meal.

This development makes perfect sense to me. Whenever I force myself to eat a salad for dinner (I mean, how are lettuce and tomatoes supposed to fill you up?), I’ll go straight for the ice cream afterwards. I’ll tell myself, “I ate real healthy for dinner! I can eat more of this than usual! And I won’t gain weight!”

Which is, of course, total bullsh*t.

Especially when most ‘low fat’, ‘low calorie’, and ‘low carb’ products aren’t always as ‘low’ as they claim to be, and often times have unhealthy hidden components.

Now, I’m no doctor, but I’ve read enough of these America is so freaking chubtastic! studies to hypothesize that our major issue as a nation is our tendency to over-eat. Gorging ourselves on bran muffins is still gorging ourselves. Read More »

Starbucks was an integral part of my college experience.

Whether it was grabbing a latte before my 8 am class at the building next door, or catching up with a friend I hadn’t seen in awhile due to crazy schedules, I have so many memories that include Starbucks and college, it’s hard to count.

Over my four years, I started to become more aware of what I was drinking and just how many calories and grams of fat I was ingesting (one venti white chocolate mocha can cost you 580 calories…not to mention almost 5 bucks).

I eventually became used to ordering drinks with skim milk and sugar-free syrups. I downsized from Ventis to Grandes, and — gasp! — even Talls. Recently, I have also become very fond of their tea selection.

And much to everyone’s surprise, there are actually ways to order low fat/low cal drinks at Starbucks…you just have to know what to ask for.

Fortunately, a great health and dieting blog called, Back in Skinny Jeans, gives us “7 ways to cut down calories and fat in Starbucks drinks” : Read More »

It seems like every kind of food or snack is now compressing into some sort of low calorie pack. The explosion of the 100 calorie packs really took off in the past year and the newest, almost laughable, version is the Hostess cupcakes. Three tiny cupcakes in one little package—all for just 100 calories.

Some other fabulous new treats have been turned into low calorie packs. Quaker Mini Delights (rice cakes) with Chocolate Drizzle have just 90 calories a pack. Jell-O pudding came out with three new flavors of sugar-free pudding for just 60 calories per cup: Chocolate Mint Fudge, Moccachino, and Caramel de Leche. The chocolate mint fudge is my favorite because of its rich sugary taste, minus the calories. Read More »