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Originally Posted by babygurl12
Ok tank y'all. I decided to not drink anything but water and tea and cranberry juice unsweetened or the light kind but is it ok to drink apple juice?
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As to whether any of the beverages you've mentioned are "ok" it's really a personal decision and depends on what your goals are.
If you mean "ok for weight loss" it depends on your plan. Are you on a low-carb plan? Are you on a plan that controls portions through "counting" food in some way (carbs, calories, points, exchanges...)
There's some research evidence that suggests that beverage calories do not satisfy hunger in the way that more solid foods do, so drinking your calories often isn't the best strategy for weight loss, especially when the calories are carb-calories, because some people respond to high-carb foods and beverages with increased hunger.
Most fruit juices (including apple juice and cranberry juice) are higher in calorie per serving than Gatorade. Both juices and gatorade contain sugars. Gatorade also contains sodium and other electrolytes, but most people don't need the extra sodium. There are lower calorie gatorade and electrolyte beverages but unless you have an electrolyte deficiency or are working out extremely intensely, the electrolytes aren't necessarily helpful.
Apple juice and many other juices really aren't much better than kool-ade, because most of the fiber and some of the other nutrients are left behind, so you're mostly getting sugar and water (and a few good antioxidants - but eating the whole fruit is going to be more satisfying and will provide more nutrients).
You really have to read the labels, and know what you want and are willing to include in your diet and what you don't.
I'm carb-sensitive, in that I lose better when I restrict carbs and high-carb foods tend to make me so hungry that I call that carby-hunger, "rabid hunger."
Juices tend to trigger that kind of hunger for me, because they're such a concentrated form of carbohydrates. If you don't get hungrier (or are willing to accept the extra hunger and are accounting for the calories) you can include juices in your diet. You just have to remember that they contain calories, and the calories count. If you're carb-sensitive, they may even count for more than fat and protein foods. I lose better on 1800 calories of low-carb than on 1800 calories of high-carb (and on the high-carb I'm 10 times as hungry). So for me, the best strategy is to avoid or drastically limit sugar containing beverages, and to count them when I do indulge.
Even with my carb-sensitivity, I do drink cranberry and other berry juices, but never full-strength, and usually not on an empty stomach. I dilute it with unsweetened sparkling water or diet Sprite (I'm not opposed to low-calorie sweeteners. I use Splenda, aspartame, and sometimes stevia). And I dilute it a lot (Maybe 20% or less juice to 80% water or sparkling water with a bit of Splenda).
I don't usually buy the Light, because it's more expensive. The Light cranberry juice is just cranberry juice, Splenda, and water - so I buy juice and dilute it myself. Not only is it cheaper, I can dilute and sweeten to my preference.
I always measure out my juice to make sure I'm getting only the calories I want (I use an exchange plan, and one fruit exchange is equal to 70 calories of fruit or juice).
You don't get a lot of juice for 70 calories - only 3 to 6 ounces. You'll get twice as much for the "Light juices" but they're very expensive compared to buying full-strength juice and diluting and sweetening it youself.