One Cornell study showed just how mindless it can be. Researchers gave patrons different-sized popcorn buckets, and those with large buckets ate nearly twice as much as those with medium buckets. And get this: In some of the buckets, researchers traded out the fresh-popped corn for two-week-old kernels! Those moviegoers munched away so absentmindedly that they put away 34 percent more stale popcorn than those with medium buckets of fresh corn! That’s why I have developed this guide to movie theater snack survival. Avoid the following belly-ballooning munchies at all costs.
Worst Movie Snack
Buttered popcorn (medium: 10-12 cups)
600 calories
39 g fat (12 g saturated)
1,120 mg sodium
Popcorn can be a great, fiber-rich snack, as long as you stay away from the dreaded butter pump. Besides tripling the calories of a page of popcorn, many movie theater “butters” are teeming with trans fat. (Check out the Fattiest Foods in America.) Instead, seek flavor from the spice mixes many theaters carry now. Or grab a pretzel: As long as you’re not dipping it into molten cheese, a large soft pretzel makes a reasonable movie theater snack. Be really good and ask them to skip the salt—mustard packs plenty of sodium as it is.
Worst Chocolate Candies
M&M’s (1 bag)
240 calories
10 g fat (6 g saturated)
31 g sugars
They may seem harmless and fun in their tiny candy-coated vessels, but a few generous handful of M&M’s can wipe out a meal’s worth of calories before you know it. Pick Junior Mints instead. Minty candies tend to be the best of the chocolate choices. Just be sure to split the box with your friend.
Worst Licorice-Type Candy
Twizzlers (1 package)
480 calories
2 g fat
64 g sugars
Ignore the “low fat” claims on the side of the package—these are nothing more than ropes of high-fructose corn syrup. Opt for real licorice in the Good & Plenty box. Many cultures have viewed licorice as a healing herb for centuries, with anti-inflammatory properties. But we’re just thankful they have less sugar and fewer calories than traditional chewy fruit candies.
Worst Chocolate Bar
Hershey’s Milk Chocolate Bar
210 calories
13 g fat (8 g saturated)
24 g sugars
If you’re going to eat pure chocolate, you’re better off picking up a bar with at least 65% cacao. That way, you lower you sugar intake while maximizing antioxidants. Since most movie theaters don’t offer the dark stuff, opt for a Kit Kat bar instead. Break it up and dole out the pieces to your friends. (Just because there are four in a package doesn’t mean you need to eat them all yourself).
Worst Chewy Fruit Candy
Dots (22 pieces)
260 calories
0 g fat
42 g sugars
They stick to your teeth just like they stick to your waistline. You’re better off going for nearly any other gummy product besides Dots. In the world of pure sugar candies, few are better than the fish from Sweden.
Thanks for reading!
Marty Ozaeta
Velocity Performance Training
www.VPTBootCamp.com
www.VPTForAbs.com
VPTraining10@yahoo.com
