Movie snack ideas?

Hey guys!
So my boyfriend and I are trying to go on more 'dates', and also trying to get our diets back in check at the same time. We settled for a $5 movie night every week (he LOVES movies, and the theater has lazyboy recliners...), but we can't have the same snacks we used to!

Our old go-to was:
One sour/tart candy (like sweetarts, or gummy worms)
One chocolate candy
One spicy stick of beef jerkey (slim jim tabasco preferred)

Can't do that anymore!

I tried just taking a pack of gum to the movies the other day, but it was boring, to say the least, and I'd prefer not to repeat that.

So, does anyone have some (not incredibly bulky) suggestion of foods we can sneak in that won't destroy our calorie count, but will last?

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Replies

  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    Can't help, when we go we get the big popcorn, the nachos and the soda lol. Why can't you just make room in your calories for your favorite snacks?
  • jbee27
    jbee27 Posts: 356 Member
    Can you pair it down to just one split candy, and build that into your calories for the day?

    I LOVE popcorn, particularly movie theater popcorn, so I typically splurge a little when I go the movies and have some.
  • TR0berts
    TR0berts Posts: 7,739 Member
    Small/medium popcorn - no butter. Hopefully, it's a place with good popcorn. Split it - especially if it's a medium.

    If you've saved enough Calories, go ahead and have the butter.

  • carrieloveshk
    carrieloveshk Posts: 128 Member
    Can't help. I just don't get snacks. Good luck!
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    Can't help. I just don't get snacks. Good luck!

    So helpful. :noway:
  • 25lbsorbust
    25lbsorbust Posts: 225 Member
    Can't help, when we go we get the big popcorn, the nachos and the soda lol. Why can't you just make room in your calories for your favorite snacks?

    I'm on 1200 cal in an attempt to lose a pound and a half for a while, so making room would basically mean eating 200 cal before 7pm :tongue:
    jbee27 wrote: »
    Can you pair it down to just one split candy, and build that into your calories for the day?

    I LOVE popcorn, particularly movie theater popcorn, so I typically splurge a little when I go the movies and have some.

    I wish! I eat way faster than him in general, so we've tried to share popcorn, etc and he gets all defensive over his 'half'. We no longer share food! :lol: I'm thinking buying a cheap zipper tote bag and bringing in low-cal popcorn and diet sodas and stuff, but I wanted to know if anyone had more creative ideas. Usually I'd accept the splurge but not if it's gonna become a once a week thing.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    Can't help, when we go we get the big popcorn, the nachos and the soda lol. Why can't you just make room in your calories for your favorite snacks?

    I'm on 1200 cal in an attempt to lose a pound and a half for a while, so making room would basically mean eating 200 cal before 7pm :tongue:
    jbee27 wrote: »
    Can you pair it down to just one split candy, and build that into your calories for the day?

    I LOVE popcorn, particularly movie theater popcorn, so I typically splurge a little when I go the movies and have some.

    I wish! I eat way faster than him in general, so we've tried to share popcorn, etc and he gets all defensive over his 'half'. We no longer share food! :lol: I'm thinking buying a cheap zipper tote bag and bringing in low-cal popcorn and diet sodas and stuff, but I wanted to know if anyone had more creative ideas. Usually I'd accept the splurge but not if it's gonna become a once a week thing.

    That is an aggressive goal for what I am assuming by your user name to only lose 25ish pounds. Try eating more calories and still lose without feeling deprived.
  • shinycrazy
    shinycrazy Posts: 1,081 Member
    I like to bring in a mix cheerios (original, none of that blaspheming flavored stuff :D , but YMMV), nuts (portion those out as they are high calorie) and a few dark chocolate m&ms. It's crunchy and satisfying. Mmm.. I might do this for Star Trek Beyond this weekend!
  • hannahsadler_tn
    hannahsadler_tn Posts: 77 Member
    What's wrong with beef jerky? Sodium aside, it has lots of protein and is so tasty. Speaking of protein/sodium snacks, I love bringing pork rinds with me. It's got a crunch like popcorn but more protein.
  • HorrorGeekLiz
    HorrorGeekLiz Posts: 195 Member
    I have been known to bring in a bag of grapes. This requires a slightly larger than an evening purse, but nothing ridiculous.

    When I spent a week at a film festival I also did:

    1. Mini-cucumbers
    2. Lettuce wrapped hot dogs
  • Packerjohn
    Packerjohn Posts: 4,855 Member
    Why not skip the snacks, it's only 2 hours. Mindless eating in front of a screen usually isn't good.
  • JenHuedy
    JenHuedy Posts: 611 Member
    I've been known to bring pints of grapes or blackberries. Low cal and last quite a while when you eat them one at a time.

    Pistachios are also nice. I'll get a little single serving bag and can take quite a while to eat when you have to pop them out of the shell.

    One time the kids were picking out some movie snack at Target and the freeze dried fruits were right next to them. I grabbed some freeze dried peaches. They had an interesting texture and flavor and made a fun movie snack. The kids even liked them - I had to tell them to back off and eat their candy!
  • yiyoung
    yiyoung Posts: 1 Member
    I sneak in a baggie of raw veggies like broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and cucumber and also a small container of fat free ranch dressing as a dip. The fiber and crunch is filling and satisfying. If I'm extra hungry, I'll bring a piece of string cheese and some beef jerky for protein.
  • lucys1225
    lucys1225 Posts: 597 Member
    I usually bring a single serving bag of Enlightened Sriracha Roasted Broad Beans
  • BigTandthesquatters
    BigTandthesquatters Posts: 151 Member
    I usually skip the movie snacks and have a decent dinner or dessert and coffee after the movie. If you do go with movie theater popcorn might I recommend getting it plain. Then sneak in some nutritional yeast and flavor it that way. Nutrtional yeast + popcorn = goooooooooooood stuff.
  • kbmh611
    kbmh611 Posts: 110 Member
    Packerjohn wrote: »
    Why not skip the snacks, it's only 2 hours. Mindless eating in front of a screen usually isn't good.

    Or eat dinner before the movie then you won't be hankering for snacks. That's what we did the other night and neither one of us wanted anything at the show.
  • CooCooPuff
    CooCooPuff Posts: 4,374 Member
    Can't help, when we go we get the big popcorn, the nachos and the soda lol. Why can't you just make room in your calories for your favorite snacks?

    I'm on 1200 cal in an attempt to lose a pound and a half for a while, so making room would basically mean eating 200 cal before 7pm :tongue:
    jbee27 wrote: »
    Can you pair it down to just one split candy, and build that into your calories for the day?

    I LOVE popcorn, particularly movie theater popcorn, so I typically splurge a little when I go the movies and have some.

    I wish! I eat way faster than him in general, so we've tried to share popcorn, etc and he gets all defensive over his 'half'. We no longer share food! :lol: I'm thinking buying a cheap zipper tote bag and bringing in low-cal popcorn and diet sodas and stuff, but I wanted to know if anyone had more creative ideas. Usually I'd accept the splurge but not if it's gonna become a once a week thing.

    That is an aggressive goal for what I am assuming by your user name to only lose 25ish pounds. Try eating more calories and still lose without feeling deprived.
    I do have to agree. For twenty-three and only 25lbs to go, 1.5 lbs a week sounds too aggressive. You'd generally want to stick to a pound a week at that range and go to half a pound once you've hit 10-15lbs left. Slow and steady wins the race. :wink:

    Also, please don't bring anything too crunchy and noisy into the theater. The sounds from bags and crunching is far more distracting during a movie than cell phones will ever be.

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  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    yiyoung wrote: »
    I sneak in a baggie of raw veggies like broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and cucumber

    This is as annoying as hell to everyone around you. I absolutely can't stand listening to someone loudly crunching carrots during a movie. Ruins the whole movie for everyone else. Leave the loud annoying snacks at home for when you're watching dvds. I get the smallest size popcorn without butter.
  • arditarose
    arditarose Posts: 15,573 Member
    I have a diet soda. One time I brought pork rinds in which were awesome for my macros, but they're really loud..
  • StephanieOugh2014
    StephanieOugh2014 Posts: 35 Member
    I once brought in a fruit bowl from superstore. It was actually great. I'd go it again.
  • st476
    st476 Posts: 357 Member
    Popcorn! Not from the movie theater though, it's loaded with butter. I like the 100 calorie packs, I just put it in ziplock bags and sneak it into the movie theater lol. Maybe pretzels (not soft pretzels)?
  • StephanieOugh2014
    StephanieOugh2014 Posts: 35 Member
    But we went last night and I had a medium Coke Zero and about a half cup of popcorn. Sometimes I go all out though.
  • Gisebs81
    Gisebs81 Posts: 2 Member
    Roasted chickpeas are a good alternative to pop corn.
  • jbee27
    jbee27 Posts: 356 Member
    yiyoung wrote: »
    I sneak in a baggie of raw veggies like broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and cucumber

    This is as annoying as hell to everyone around you. I absolutely can't stand listening to someone loudly crunching carrots during a movie. Ruins the whole movie for everyone else. Leave the loud annoying snacks at home for when you're watching dvds. I get the smallest size popcorn without butter.

    Haha! Agreed! Same with the person who suggested pistachios above. If someone were cracking pistachios next to me in a movie that I've paid $10 to see....
  • pondee629
    pondee629 Posts: 2,469 Member
    Gisebs81 wrote: »
    Roasted chickpeas are a good alternative to pop corn.

    Roasted chick peas are good and easy to make at home.
  • extra_medium
    extra_medium Posts: 1,525 Member
    edited July 2016
    Can't help, when we go we get the big popcorn, the nachos and the soda lol. Why can't you just make room in your calories for your favorite snacks?

    I'm on 1200 cal in an attempt to lose a pound and a half for a while, so making room would basically mean eating 200 cal before 7pm :tongue:
    jbee27 wrote: »
    Can you pair it down to just one split candy, and build that into your calories for the day?

    I LOVE popcorn, particularly movie theater popcorn, so I typically splurge a little when I go the movies and have some.

    I wish! I eat way faster than him in general, so we've tried to share popcorn, etc and he gets all defensive over his 'half'. We no longer share food! :lol: I'm thinking buying a cheap zipper tote bag and bringing in low-cal popcorn and diet sodas and stuff, but I wanted to know if anyone had more creative ideas. Usually I'd accept the splurge but not if it's gonna become a once a week thing.

    Is it an option to add in a work out/more time at the gym and earn a few more calories back? Your idea of sneaking in food is probably the best otherwise. That is if just enjoying the movie and each other's company isn't an option:)
  • laur357
    laur357 Posts: 896 Member
    Sneaking in your own is my vote, but understandably you may not want to do that: fun-sized candy, smaller bags of Cheez-its, Chex Mix, trail mix. Lower calorie toppings for popcorn - buy popcorn there (dry), and add your own low calorie dry spice mix. I've seen them available at Target - parmesan herb, cheese, ranch, etc.

    Buying at the theater:
    Diet soft drinks, iced tea, or water
    A fancy coffee to sip on (We now have full on coffee counters with baristas at some of our theaters. It's getting intense. Also, my idea of fancy is usually doesn't include sugar so it's just a bit of protein/sugar from dairy.)
    Beef jerky - maybe not the Slim Jim sausage-type sticks, but regular jerky (around 70 cals per ounce - Jack Links and a few other make different flavors too)
    Twizzlers - lower calorie, takes a while to eat (helps me with portion control)
  • eep223
    eep223 Posts: 624 Member
    yiyoung wrote: »
    I sneak in a baggie of raw veggies like broccoli, carrots, cauliflower and cucumber

    This is as annoying as hell to everyone around you. I absolutely can't stand listening to someone loudly crunching carrots during a movie. Ruins the whole movie for everyone else. Leave the loud annoying snacks at home for when you're watching dvds. I get the smallest size popcorn without butter.

    Is this really any louder than popcorn? I would get a small popcorn/ no butter and get some more exercise that day. Alternatively, you could pop it at home, which is pretty low cal, even if you oil pop.
  • kaybrose730
    kaybrose730 Posts: 143 Member
    I just went the other night and I brought my own popcorn! I stole a few of my boyfriend's sour candies and had a water.. A little simply salted Oroville popcorn is better than nothing! Still need to enjoy yourself! Everything in moderation :)