Honestly, it probably won't make that much of a difference, though there are other things you could do with those 65 calories that would be a lot more satisfying. If it bothers you or stalls your weight loss, try reducing the amount in your tea by 1/4tsp a week until you have it down to 1/2 tsp or so. White sugar calories are empty, but unless they stall you, you're good.
mandalinn82 - I just wanted to say that I've been watching your progress since I've started coming here, and you look amazing! Your photos are truly inspirational!
Well, 4 tsps of sugar is 64 calories. That is 64 empty calories, but, depending on your diet plan, it may not be the end of the world.
A few years ago, when I weighed about 185 pounds (my heaviest) and when I was not dieting or trying to lose weight, I figured out that by drinking 4-6 cups of coffee a day, each with a bunch of sugar and milk, I was consuming HUNDREDS of empty calories a day, just in coffee. I decided that although I have never liked black coffee, I would just have to get used to it. So, I switched to black coffee and after a couple of weeks, I got completely used to the taste and came to like it as much as I used to like my light and sweet coffee. The nice thing is that in my head there remains a connection between 'coffee' and 'sweet', even after all these years. As a result, sometimes when I crave something sweet, a cup of black coffee will actually curb the craving. (And I now find coffee with sugar in it completely unpalatable.)
Anyway, my main point here is that just by switching to black coffee and doing NOTHING ELSE, I lost somewhere between 5 and 10 pounds over the course of a few months. (I didn't weigh myself in those days. The scale was not my friend!) It was like magic!
For you, with only two cups of tea and 4 teaspoons of sugar per day, it might not be the end of the world. At the same time, your taste buds can easily adjust to no sugar and you could be filling your belly with something else instead. (Personally, I'd rather have a mini-snickers at 70 calories than sugar in tea... or you could have 3 cups of baby spinach, a small banana, an egg, etc etc etc.)
There was a study recently...I'll have to go back and see if I can find which magazine I read it in..either prevention or women's health.
Anyway, people who use small amounts of real sugar in their tea (I think it was 1 tsp) lost more weight than people who used artificial sweeteners.
Honestly...its really a matter of is that how you want to use 64 calories? If you love your sweet tea, then keep it. If you want the 64 calories for something else, then reduce the amount of sugar gradually.
White sugar......please tell me how bad it is
