While I certainly enjoy the occasional visit to Starbucks, I am not one of their regular customers that all the workers know by name as soon as they see me. However, I’m sure many of you are known to your local Starbucks team, so it is important that you know how to successfully navigate the menu here and in other coffee shops to avoid consuming more than 500 calories each morning.

Skip the whipped cream

Did you know that the whipped cream in a Tall Starbucks Frappuccino adds 8 grams of fat and approximately 80 calories? And that’s the small size: in a Large you add 12 grams of fat, which is about 120 calories. Considering that there really is no difference between whipped cream between various coffee shops, you can assume that those numbers will be roughly the same wherever you go. In my experience, the whipped cream always melts into the drink to the point where it isn’t noticeable anyway, so order your drink without the whipped cream and you’ll save yourself a handful of useless calories and fat.

Skip the sugar and cream

Or at least cut back. This one seems like a no-brainer, but if you really think you can’t have your favorite coffee drink without sugar and / or creamer, do your best to limit it. Remember, even if you only cut a little, that little difference will contribute to your weight loss over a long period of time.

Order “Light” or “Skinny”

Starbucks actually makes it very easy for you to order a lower calorie option of your favorite beverage. By ordering their “light” drink, workers will know to automatically hold the whipped cream and will use skim milk if appropriate. If you’re in another cafeteria, just ask if they can substitute skim or reduced-fat milk for whole milk and you’ll cut another 60-120 calories. Your drink may lose some of its original thickness, but I have never had a taste problem.

Be careful with the tea

Many people have tried drinking green tea for its caffeine as a healthy alternative to coffee. Green tea has a number of amazing health benefits, including a good dose of vitamin C. If you can drink pure green tea, do so. However, most coffee shops, including Starbucks, will add a lot of sugar to their green tea drinks to make them taste better, and it’s hard to know what they sweeten it with and how much sugar they add. My recommendation: drink green tea at home and sweeten with organic honey as a healthy alternative to coffee, but avoid it in coffee shops.

Practice portion control

This is true regardless of where you eat out – never get the largest size of anything. Believe me, you don’t need it and it won’t be friendly on your waistline. Ideally, always order the smallest size or at most the medium size; You will save money and pounds in the long run.

Do your homework

This is also true for any dining experience. Almost all restaurants have their nutrition information posted online, so you can check how many calories and sugar you will get before heading to your favorite coffee shop (you can always open it on your smartphone if you forget). Also, by law, restaurants are required to have nutritional information on the restaurant, so don’t hesitate to ask if you’re not sure which is the best option for your diet.