What are everyone's thoughts on dairy such as cottage cheese and cheese etc?

Depends on your goals. Are you talking about dieting for a show or just healthy eating in general? I use fat free american cheese on things and it don't seem to bother me any, but I'm gonna be starting a show diet and that will have to go.

I think this may be subjective, but what worked for me was eliminating dairy during contest prep. I noticed a difference in my midsection once I cut out cottage cheese and skim milk. But for a general healthy diet, I say keep it. I incorporate it back in once my comp. is over.

As a general rule, if you want to look leaner, and who doesn't, dairy just plain doesn't cut it (with the exception of hard cheeses). The lactose within most dairy does not digest correctly in the healthy human adult. As a result, the body goes into a minor "inflammatory" stage which actually looks like a bit of bloating or "water under the skin". Not a good look.

As far as hard cheeses, there is NO lactose in them, but are very abundant in fats and fat calories. They can be used sparingly AND with a close eye because fat intake from cheese can get LARGE very quickly with only small portions. Example: 1 oz Provalone has 9 grams of fat, 6 grams protein... THAT IS ONLY ONE OZ.!!

Chunky,
What about cottage cheese with regards to lactose content (high or low)?

Hard Cheese does not include Cottage cheese. Cottage cheese is has about 5-7 grams of lactose per serving. That adds up quickly. To much lactose in my opinion. It is fine if you are lactose tolerant and you are "offseason". But your goal is to be "leaner". Ditch the Cottage cheese for now. Cheers.

Hi!! I am new to Beverly and I have a question about dairy. It says in here to cut dairy when trying to lose fat. Can you use Almond Milk in place of that?

Thank you!!!

You might want to get an opinion from someone else, but I think the Almond Breeze UNSWEETENED might be your best bet in regard to its use. It's only 40 cal per 8 oz serving. I use it or a brown rice beverage occasionally in my protein.

Hi Netty. Welcome to the board!

Yes, when fat loss is the primary goal, you want to omit dairy products. They are high in sugar (lactose) and prohibit fat loss. The exception would be heavy whipping cream on some diets because it doesn't contain milk sugars.

I checked out the nutrition info for the original flavor of almond milk. For one cup it contains:

60 calories
8 g carbs (7 sugars)
2.5 g fat
1 g protein

For a cup of milk (skim) you get:

86 calories
12 g carbs (12 sugars)
0 g fat
12 g protein

They both have at least half of the calories coming from carbs, predominantly sugar. If you are looking for fat loss (especially if precontest), you want to stear clear of both. Now, if you’re just starting your program, you might be able to get away with a little almond milk for the first couple of weeks. You just have to monitor you progress. If you aren’t losing as much as you’d like – or if you hit a plateau, it’s the first thing to drop. Check out the Master Food List for the best food substitutions here.

If you’re using Beverly proteins, you don’t need milk or almond milk. They are designed to be mixed with water and are delicious. You can read more about Ultimate Muscle Protein here and Muscle Provider here. Good luck!

Rachel Wade
BI

For what it's worth, mixing MP or UMP in water and adding a little almond butter or other nut butter (which is recommended on many of the diets) tastes outstanding! The effectiveness and the taste are both better with water and almond butter instead of almond milk in my opinion.