Weight Loss

Diet Saboteurs

High-calorie food bombs can dismantle your diet

Published: April 2008   [ Updated: Aug 21, 2008 - 5:20:30 PM ]

Top loading your diet with “health foods” such as yogurt and granola does not a flatter belly make, according to researchers at Cornell University. In a recent study, they discovered that people not only underestimate the number of calories in wholesome fare, but they also consume substantially larger portions of it. Here are eight of the healthiest high-calorie food bombs that can dismantle your diet.

Top Offender
6-oz. bag of vegetable chips

Calories
840   

Low-Calorie Alternative
16-oz. bag of baby carrots with ½ cup hummus (390 cal)


To burn off a 6-oz. bag of vegetable chips, a 180-pound man would have to:
Run:  55 min  
Swim:  65 min  
Bike:  70 min  
Row:  70 min
Lift weights:  1 hour, 45 min
Golf:  2 hours, 20 min  
Shop:  4 hours, 30 min
Do desk work:  7 hours

Saboteur: 1 cup of trail mix (693 cal)
Exercise Needed to Burn Off Calories: Lift weights for 1 hour and 30 minutes
Low-Calorie Alternative: ¼ cup almonds and ¼ cup dried apricots (280 cal)

Saboteur: Fruit smoothie (600 cal)
Exercise Needed to Burn Off Calories: Perform desk work for 5 hours
Low-Calorie Alternative: Naked Antioxidant 100 percent juice smoothie in Berry Blast (240 cal)