What are your must have rescue foods that help you keep your calories in control?

zenner22
zenner22 Posts: 33 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hello All,

I've recently discovered MFP and have logged in for 20 days in a row. I love the app and reading the forum. I'm curious what foods you find are most helpful while you are trying to limit your calories. So far I have been depending heavily on:

1. Frozen spinach. So low cal and so filling. I'm basically adding it to every savory meal I make.
2. Protein shakes (with stevia). Having a hard time getting my protein in without atleast two of these a day. I'm not a huge fan of meat, but I've been trying to eat chicken and turkey jerky too.
3. Popcorn.
4. Freeze dried fruit from Starbucks. 40 cals for a crunchy fruit snack, replaces my cravings for cookies.

What are your go-tos? Also, any suggestions on how to bump up the protein? Turns out peanut butter and hummus don't have as much protein as I thought....
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Replies

  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    String cheese, beef jerky, tinned tuna, hard boiled eggs
  • rivka_m
    rivka_m Posts: 1,007 Member
    Lentils with a little olive or canola oil added. Also seitan (meat substitute). Both are fairly easy to make (I hate prepping/cooking) and will keep me satisfied for a bit.
  • halimaiqbal00
    halimaiqbal00 Posts: 288 Member
    Peanut butter. Cashew butter, Raisins, fruit
  • annette_15
    annette_15 Posts: 1,657 Member
    Quark, its like greek yogurt, but its a spoonable cheese. High in protein and tastes better than greek yogurt. Also very low in calories
  • pplastics
    pplastics Posts: 135 Member
    string cheese, greek yogurt, fruits and veggies, pistachios and almonds
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,603 Member
    Fruit and chicken, I guess. :)
  • annangelich
    annangelich Posts: 402 Member
    Spinach, Kale, Arugula, Cottage cheese, Salmon and celery with Hummus...
  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    I have a Quest bar in my purse at all times. This practice has saved me from a lot of bad decisions.
  • GrammyPeachy
    GrammyPeachy Posts: 1,723 Member
    Laughing cow cheese wedges, (only 35 calories), broccoli, I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray,(0 calories), boiled eggs, salmon patties
  • zenner22
    zenner22 Posts: 33 Member
    I've heard a lot about Quest bars, but haven't been able to find them at the store. Are they only available online? And do they have artificial sweeteners?
  • tanek747
    tanek747 Posts: 37 Member
    Apples, baked too
    Grapes
    Soya yogurt low cal filling protein
    tofu especially easy pre marinated pressed ready to go
    miso soup kills off a salty craving without nearly any calories
  • girlviernes
    girlviernes Posts: 2,402 Member
    roasted seaweed, coconut chips, larabar, almonds
  • Debbjones
    Debbjones Posts: 278 Member
    My favorite go to foods are:

    Breakfast
    Nature Harvest Low cal multi grain bread...
    A little spritz of zero calorie cooking spray on the bread and a teaspoon of cinnamon sugar (sugar being Splenda), pop that in the toaster and YUM! Bread is only 40 calories a slice, less than a gram of sugar and provides 6 grams of protein!

    Dinner
    Sauteed fish with onions... Brown the onion in a pan, add a little tea for moisture and flavor, add 4 ounces of fish and cook till brown. Around 150 calories.

    Snack
    For my sweet tooth, I munch on a plain ice cream cone filled with sugar free pudding (instead of ice cream)... this will range between 80-100 calories.
  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    zenner22 wrote: »
    I've heard a lot about Quest bars, but haven't been able to find them at the store. Are they only available online? And do they have artificial sweeteners?

    The "all natural" cookie dough bar is the only one that I'm familiar with, and it is sweetened with Stevia. I buy them at bodybuilding.com, and stock up when they go on sale. They currently have a 25% off promo on the box.

  • giggitygoo
    giggitygoo Posts: 1,978 Member
    I also rely heavily on reduced sodium sliced turkey breast. I buy it from costco, and snack on it throughout the day.

    For breakfast, I really like Kashi Go-Lean as it has a decent amount of protein.
  • SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish
    SoLongAndThanksForAllTheFish Posts: 831 Member
    Bacon.
  • ahoier
    ahoier Posts: 312 Member
    Sardines! LOL......sometimes a can of tuna.....

    Almonds....I found some Cajun seasoned almonds from ALDI that are pretty good......I gotta weigh them out though for portion control though! 28 grams comes at about 120-150 calories or something crazy LOL.......but they keep me good til my lunch.....

    Beef Jerkey at work......before my p.m. workout.......

    Protein powder I got from Sam's Club is basically my "dinner" (last meal of the day) when I come home from the gym......

  • laciemn
    laciemn Posts: 77 Member
    Rice crackers (16 for 100 cals)
    Salad
    Lean meat
    Egg whites
  • MyMalfunction7
    MyMalfunction7 Posts: 61 Member
    edited October 2014
    Cauliflower, 80-calorie greek yogurts, coffee blended with peppermint extract. When I need a snack because I'm craving something tasty (and not because I'm actually hungry), I can eat 10 oz of cauliflower or a yogurt and feel full for a long time. The coffee is very, very few calories and feels like a treat every time.
  • holly55555
    holly55555 Posts: 306 Member
    giggitygoo wrote: »
    I have a Quest bar in my purse at all times. This practice has saved me from a lot of bad decisions.

    I'm so with you. You can even bake the bars into cookies. Quest also just started making protein chips - they are awesome! They are more like crackers, but 20g of protein and 120 cal for a whole bag. I am a crunchy snack fiend, so these keep me from laying into the real chips and I don't feel guilty.

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