Surprising "diet" foods?

2

Replies

  • 7lenny7
    7lenny7 Posts: 3,498 Member
    Bacon!
  • RuNaRoUnDaFiEld
    RuNaRoUnDaFiEld Posts: 5,864 Member
    Youngs crab sticks, only 16 calories. I thought around 50 each!

    It was nice to read about the Mars icecream bars, might treat my husband to one today.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    7lenny7 wrote: »
    Bacon!

    true dat - 110 calories for 2 rashers

    nuffink
  • whmscll
    whmscll Posts: 2,255 Member
    heathsab wrote: »
    whmscll - I actually had the opposite reaction. My happiest "diet food" realization was when I realized I could get a hamburger (with the sauce!) and a diet coke for only 390 cals!

    It's certainly do-able!
  • barbecuesauce
    barbecuesauce Posts: 1,771 Member
    -How low in calories chili is (while so high in protein and fiber--my chili has beans)
    -How low most fish is--try fish tacos, OP!
    -an ounce of cheese cut into strips and wrapped in 2 ounces of deli meat is a low-cal and filling snack
    -mashed potatoes cooked with canned tomatoes and kale is a low-calorie and filling, if low-protein, meal
    -cut-up vegetables dipped in hot sauce. I can get through a whole bunch of celery like this.
  • teresa_garcia29
    teresa_garcia29 Posts: 65 Member
    Finding out something I always ate before I started this journey is not high in calories...umm...gets me angry....so why the hell do I have so much trouble losing weight or gaining it in the first place for that matter....I know...its all about portion control....arggghhh!!
  • missiontofitness
    missiontofitness Posts: 4,059 Member
    Wine.
  • BoxerBrawler
    BoxerBrawler Posts: 2,032 Member
    7lenny7 wrote: »
    Bacon!

    Yes! I love bacon! The brand that I buy is only 60 calories in two pan-fried slices. I'm a happy girl with my giant plate of bacon, egg whites and veggies in the morning :smile:

    And yes, a couple of years ago I was amazed to find out that a lot of good foods were not as high in calories as I suspected. On the flip side, I was also amazed that some of the foods I thought were healthy weren't, and had huge calories. Over the years I've found that I can select good foods that are nutritionally dense but fairly low in calories. I've found a lot of really great substitutions as well. It's a learning process that's for sure! I remember being thrilled when I discovered that Laughing Cow cheese only had 35 calories in one yummy wedge!
  • unrelentingminx
    unrelentingminx Posts: 231 Member
    Taco Bell can be surprisingly reasonable. But lately my favorite "diet" food is cheeseburger made with 93% lean beef (grass fed, antibiotic free, etc.) and herbed goat cheese on sandwich thin buns. 360 cals, 28 grams protein.

    That sounds amazing. In the last couple of years I have gone from hating goats cheese to totally loving it.
  • slaite1
    slaite1 Posts: 1,307 Member
    Fast food in general. There are definitely some calorie bombs but I was surprised to realize how many reasonable items I can fit into my day. I used to avoid fast food like the plague. Often it's a lighter choice than a restaurant meal.

    Potatoes! Because of everything you hear about potatoes/pasta/bread making you fat I expected potatoes to be very high calorie. I was pleasantly surprised by the portion size i can have for under 100 calories

    All types of squash.
  • unrelentingminx
    unrelentingminx Posts: 231 Member
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    Snickers ice cream bar - 179 calories
    Mars icecream bar - 140 calories
    Solero 85 calories
    Fab ice lolly - 90 calories
    Quavers from a multipack - 85 calories

    White thick sliced farmhouse bread - 105 calories

    Sourdough anchovy and mushroom pizza - under 800 calories

    On the flip side I'm surprised how many calories salmon and fresh tuna have comparative to expectations

    I only rediscovered Soleros last week. For months I've been secretly jealous of my other half wolfing down his ice cream while I refused myself any, but as soon as I saw Soleros were so low calorie, I filled the freezer with them. Can get my ice cream fix now and because they take a while to eat (the sorbet is so cold!), they really satisfy my sweet tooth.
    I love Mars ice cream bars too but they just leave me wanting more chocolate so I don't buy them.
  • Sued0nim
    Sued0nim Posts: 17,456 Member
    rabbitjb wrote: »
    Snickers ice cream bar - 179 calories
    Mars icecream bar - 140 calories
    Solero 85 calories
    Fab ice lolly - 90 calories
    Quavers from a multipack - 85 calories

    White thick sliced farmhouse bread - 105 calories

    Sourdough anchovy and mushroom pizza - under 800 calories

    On the flip side I'm surprised how many calories salmon and fresh tuna have comparative to expectations

    I only rediscovered Soleros last week. For months I've been secretly jealous of my other half wolfing down his ice cream while I refused myself any, but as soon as I saw Soleros were so low calorie, I filled the freezer with them. Can get my ice cream fix now and because they take a while to eat (the sorbet is so cold!), they really satisfy my sweet tooth.
    I love Mars ice cream bars too but they just leave me wanting more chocolate so I don't buy them.

    LOL I find the trick there is to suck them rather bite so you let it melt into your mouth .. lasts a lot longer and seems enough
  • msf74
    msf74 Posts: 3,498 Member
    Ice cream in general.

    Even a classic Magnum is something like 240 cals which is less than many bags of crisps...
  • amusedmonkey
    amusedmonkey Posts: 10,330 Member
    Instant noodles. I've always thought they were one of these "sinful" evil processed foods that exceeded 600 calories. To my surprise my usual brands are 260 and 350 calories respectively and they are filling enough to replace a meal. I have them when I'm too lazy to cook or just feel like having noodles.
  • PeachyCarol
    PeachyCarol Posts: 8,029 Member
    edited June 2015
    Avocado was my happiest surprise.

    Feta cheese. (especially the good imported creamy sheep's milk kind)

    Fun sized Snickers bars.
  • misskarne
    misskarne Posts: 1,765 Member
    Another vote for bacon!
  • MDanca
    MDanca Posts: 27 Member
    Along the lines of tacos - I can do a mean fish taco with two small fish fillets, two corn tortillas, lots of shredded cabbage or lettuce, tomato, onion, cilantro, and make a sauce with l/f sour cream and hot sauce...all for about 300 calories, and they're super-filling! Great - it's 6:45am, and now I want it!
  • vinerie
    vinerie Posts: 234 Member
    Shrimp, scallops and crab legs. So low cal and so delicious! In fact, we had crab legs last night. I dipped them in butter and we also had roasted vegetables. I think my dinner came to 300 calories.
  • Narcissora
    Narcissora Posts: 197 Member
    Taco Bell, feta, ice cream sandwiches, pickles. I think all of these were mentioned already, but here they are again!

    On the flip side, I am shocked at how many calories bananas are. And olives.
  • l8knut
    l8knut Posts: 18 Member
    I really was an addict to dognuts and cookies. I still try to avoid them as I have little self control. But on the flip side, using the MFP, I usually eat what I want, just in lower quantity. Trying to "avoid" certain kinds of foods on other "diets" I think had a lot to do with why they didn't work.

    Oh and yes, another vote for bacon!!
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
    slaite1 wrote: »
    Fast food in general. There are definitely some calorie bombs but I was surprised to realize how many reasonable items I can fit into my day. I used to avoid fast food like the plague. Often it's a lighter choice than a restaurant meal.

    Potatoes! Because of everything you hear about potatoes/pasta/bread making you fat I expected potatoes to be very high calorie. I was pleasantly surprised by the portion size i can have for under 100 calories

    All types of squash.

    That's a funny thing about fast food. I spent years of believing it was "da debbil", still shamefully scarfing down a McWhoppBaconator from time to time but preferring "better" restaurants. After I found MFP and started logging a couple years ago, I realized that fast food has one very useful feature: It's exceptionally well portion controlled. That makes it so much easier to work into a plan when you're restricting calories. McD's actually has some decent salads that can keep a whole meal under 300 cals, too.

    I still like the "better" restaurants, but it is more tricky to track, and sometimes I just take a WAG.

  • brendak76
    brendak76 Posts: 241 Member
    I'm a huge fan of soups! My favorite are Trader Joes low sodium tomato (90 cal) and Latin Black Bean Soup (70 cal). Carrot Ginger is great too.
  • photosarah
    photosarah Posts: 32 Member
    Oysters! They feel so indulgent for some reason...
  • Vailara
    Vailara Posts: 2,469 Member
    Apricots. About 17 calories each, apparently. Pretty good compared to, say, an apple or a banana.

    Beetroot: it seems so dense and solid that I expected to be high calorie. It isn't.
  • PaulaWallaDingDong
    PaulaWallaDingDong Posts: 4,641 Member
    bpetrosky wrote: »
    slaite1 wrote: »
    Fast food in general. There are definitely some calorie bombs but I was surprised to realize how many reasonable items I can fit into my day. I used to avoid fast food like the plague. Often it's a lighter choice than a restaurant meal.

    Potatoes! Because of everything you hear about potatoes/pasta/bread making you fat I expected potatoes to be very high calorie. I was pleasantly surprised by the portion size i can have for under 100 calories

    All types of squash.

    That's a funny thing about fast food. I spent years of believing it was "da debbil", still shamefully scarfing down a McWhoppBaconator from time to time but preferring "better" restaurants. After I found MFP and started logging a couple years ago, I realized that fast food has one very useful feature: It's exceptionally well portion controlled. That makes it so much easier to work into a plan when you're restricting calories. McD's actually has some decent salads that can keep a whole meal under 300 cals, too.

    I still like the "better" restaurants, but it is more tricky to track, and sometimes I just take a WAG.

    Samesies. Bf and I went to an event out of town, and the first thing I did was look at a map for nearby fast food and was so psyched for a spicy chicken sandwich from Wendy's. Then the "foodie" in the group wanted to take us to a new chinese place. Crap. Anyway, I blew it up and still had a loss that week, but I'm trying not to get too used to it.

  • Digbysmom
    Digbysmom Posts: 36 Member
    I love Natas, Portuguese egg tarts. I was beyond happy when I found out there were only 127 calories in one and they freeze beautifully! It's funny how something so simple can be the inspiration you need to persevere, lol.
  • bioklutz
    bioklutz Posts: 1,365 Member
    I think hot sauce was the most surprising to me. If you are not worried about sodium load up on hot sauce!
  • bpetrosky
    bpetrosky Posts: 3,911 Member
    bioklutz wrote: »
    I think hot sauce was the most surprising to me. If you are not worried about sodium load up on hot sauce!

    This, and salsa. A tbsp worth of a good spicy salsa is great with my morning egg.
  • angellll12
    angellll12 Posts: 296 Member
    Digbysmom wrote: »
    I love Natas, Portuguese egg tarts. I was beyond happy when I found out there were only 127 calories in one and they freeze beautifully! It's funny how something so simple can be the inspiration you need to persevere, lol.

    Ayyeee I love eating those with a spoon!
    I thought they were at least 200 cals.
  • jezahb
    jezahb Posts: 73 Member

    Feta cheese. (especially the good imported creamy sheep's milk kind)

    Yes! I forgot about feta! That was a HUGE surprise to me, as I just assumed cheese = caloric bombshell. However Feta is really packed with protein and not bad as a snack even as it is so salty and strong that it really satiates me, it doesn't take much to "hit the spot" so to say. Also fantastic is Feta eggs, my bestie is Greek so she uses Feta as a staple, and introduced me to putting Feta in scrambled eggs with some fresh rosemary...I cannot even describe how good it is. Very satisfying and protein loaded breakfast, which for me is essential as I notice starting the day with a protein punch keeps me from overeating all day.
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