Who does not like to go to Starbucks and order a Frappucino or other cold drink? They taste great and are a good occasional treat.
However, if you turn a Starbucks visit with a Frappucino into a daily occurrence, not only will you spend nearly $50 a week buying the Frappucino ($7 / day x 7 days / week), there is a likelihood you could gain up to 1 lb of fat a week in the event you make zero other changes to your diet and / or exercise routine. (This assumes you get a Venti Caramel Frappucino daily, which comes in at 470 calories, 72 grams of sugar, and 17 grams of fat). To burn one pound of fat, one must burn 3,500 calories.
Could you imagine putting yourself on a path to gain 50 lbs of fat in one year and spending approximately $2,500 ($50/week x 52 weeks/yr) for the privilege of gaining that weight? A vast majority of the audience would not go to Starbucks daily, but even going 3 days a week and making zero other changes to diet / lifestyle would result in nearly a 21 lb weight gain and almost $1,100 spent.
We created a free tool using Metabolic Equivalents, or METS, to help visitors understand the exercise required to burn the calories of a certain meal or drink. There are approximately 25 activities listed from walking, running, swimming, to yoga, and even sitting in a sauna. As you would expect, the METS values increase with the intensity of an activity. For example, martial arts will consume more caloric energy than walking.
Would You Walk 6.5 Miles to Burn the Calories From a Drink?
In the case of the Starbucks Venti Caramel Frappucino, a 130-lb woman would need to walk 6.5 miles to burn the 470 calories at a reasonable walking pace. (The calculator shows walking at a 3 mph pace requires 130 minutes of walking, which equals 6.5 miles at a 20min / mile pace).
Don’t Eat The Greasy Burger and Fries Until you See This!
Conversely, if a 250-lb man consumed a Little Cheeseburger (610 calories, 39.5g carbohydrates, and 32g of fat) from Five Guys Burger and Fries and an order of small fries (530 calories, lots of carbs and fats), this man would need to lift weights at a moderate pace (8 – 15 rep sets) for over 3-hours continuously … which is an aspirational goal. This Five Guys exercise assumes the man gets a diet drink because one has to maintain some semblance of discipline when visiting Five Guys …
What is the Point of This Post?
The point of this post is to 1) Share a free METS Calculator with website visitors and 2) Encourage thoughtful consideration before one turns an occasional splurge into a daily routine.