As warnings of damage,
flooding, and power outages swept the East Coast, many residents ran out and
stocked up on nonperishable foods, including all the chips, candy, and cookies
they could find. Now that the storm has passed, much of Hurricane Irene’s
lingering damage might actually be to your diet.
So we used My Calorie Counter food and exercise database to see how
you can burn off your worst weekend snacks and get your diet back on track.
All activity calorie
counts are based on what a 150-pound woman would burn in the time noted.
Bagel and cream
cheese: A 4-ounce everything bagel has 270 calories; a small scoop of low-fat plain cream cheese tacks on another 69. Work it
off with about 38 minutes of sit-ups.
Beer: Light beer has 103 calories in a 12-ounce serving
(regular beer can have 150 or more). Undo the calories in a bottle of the light
stuff by playing tennis for 20 minutes.
Cheese and crackers: One ounce of
cheddar cheese packs 112 calories and 10 wheat crackers add on an additional137
calories. Work off this snack with 49 minutes of basketball.
Chips: Classic Lay’s
Potato Chips have 150 calories per serving (only about 15 chips). Lift weights for 23 minutes to exercise away this snack.
Donuts: A classic glazed
donut has 242 calories, and filling or frosting can push the calorie count even
higher. Undo the damage with 85 minutes of light yoga.
Goldfish crackers: Pepperidge Farm
Goldfish crackers have 150 calories in a serving of 55 fish. Do 17 minutes of
push-ups to burn off this snack.
Granola bars: A plain granola
bar has about 126 calories, but fully-loaded versions with extra protein, nuts,
and chocolate can be much higher. Walk at 3.5 miles per hour on a level surface for 30
minutes to burn off a single, simple bar.
Hurricane cocktails: Thought to serve
hurricane cocktails this weekend? Burn off each drink’s 200 calories per
6-ounce serving by washing dishes for 73 minutes.
M&Ms: Plain M&Ms
pack 240 calories in a single-serving bag. It would take 33 minutes of Zumba class to exercise away a bag.
Oreos: Three Oreo cookies quickly add up to 160 calories. Rollerblade
away the calories in just 12 minutes.
Pancakes: One plain
pancake has 259 calories; topping it with regular syrup adds another 187. Mop the floor for 113 minutes to burn off this breakfast
indulgence.
Pop-Tarts: Just one brown
sugar cinnamon Pop-Tart contains 219 calories. To torch two toaster pastries
(it’s hard to eat just one), spend 45 minutes on a stair-step machine.
Red Wine: If you were
worried about power outages, room-temperature red wine may have been your drink
of choice. Vacuum for 35 minutes to burn off the 125 calories in a 5-ounce
glass.