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There have been rumors floating around the 21 Day Fix (my review of 21 Day Fix) as to whether unsweetened almond milk is classified as a yellow or considered “free”. Here’s a video of Autumn Calabrese telling her thoughts:
So here’s the deal:
Officially, the book states that 8 oz of unsweetened almond milk is considered to be a yellow “cheat” (meaning you can have it three times a week in place of a container). Officially, that is still the designation. The nutrition guide was created by nutritionists, who planned out the 21 Day Fix based on macronutrients (proportions of proteins, fats, and carbs).
Autumn Calabrese, the trainer for 21 Day Fix, does not agree with the designation of the unsweetened almond milk. Her stance is that it is only 30 calories, holds a trivial amount of sugar, and therefore drinking a cup every day at 30 calories is not going to hurt anything.
Here’s my take:
Obviously, it’s going to be your call on this one. The containers have a built in calorie range so it could easily be accounted for within that range. However, there are two points to consider:
1) Over the course of a year, it *could* make a difference of 3 pounds. (30 calories x 365 days = 10,950 calories / 3,500 = 3.12 pounds).
2) You know yourself better than anyone else (it’s true!). Is not having almond milk a deal breaker for your long term lifestyle? Would 3 pounds over the course of a year be a deal breaker for you? What will your strictness level be?
I don’t want to be the coach who ever says “You’ll never eat this or drink that again!” This is truly a LIFESTYLE change, not a diet. Part of that lifestyle is figuring out where the regular daily stuff fits into the long-term. Daily Cheetos? Maybe not such a hot idea. (I know, it *could* be done…). Daily Unsweetened Almond milk? It’s really your call. How will you make it work into your daily counts? Will you be more strict with everything else to help compensate? Or perhaps you can set limits to either a smaller amount of milk (or not every day).
UPDATE:
Autumn has returned to clarify her previous video. She still considers 8oz a cheat yellow as per the book, but for lesser quantities (ie. 4 oz) she does not count it.
