What Are Your Food Alternatives
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Instead of eating the entire 3 item combo panda express meal I either split it with my wife or save the rest for another meal. Versions of that for everything else I eat basically.1
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I love sweet potato chips from Trader Joes. I just try to limit myself to how many I eat!
Dark chocolate is actually pretty good for you. Lots of meal plans allow it. Maybe get a bag of individually packed dove chocolates.
Turkey bacon from Trader Joes is pretty good! I love me some bacon and I think theirs is pretty flavorful.
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I don't substitute anything. I just have the high calorie stuff less often and don't have seconds.
And I make a point of only having the"treat" foods I really love. If someone is handing round mediocre chocolates, I can happily decline. Before, I'd have taken a few and probably eaten them all, even if I didn't enjoy them.4 -
I don't sub anything. If I want to eat something, I will eat the real thing.3
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It doesn't work that way. I don't think about single foods as more or less healthy anymore, and I don't do one-to-one substitutions. I didn't overeat certain foods because I loved them, but because I couldn't stop. I haven't cut out anything, but my diet is overall so much better, and I don't fear foods, so I never feel any strong urges for lots of things I used to consume in great amounts. I will eat potato chips and chocolate on occasion, but I don't think there's been an occasion for over a year now? I had bacon less than a week ago. I had fried potatoes for dinner today and I have hot cocoa and other chocolatey foods/drinks regularly.2
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Beer. Beer is my alternative to food.
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Not a big fan of chips anyway. When I want something salty, I'll have popcorn. A microwave popper is great, you can add just a bit of oil (helps salt stick).
Dark chocolate is a great substitute. More chocolate, less sugar. It gives me more chocolatey goodness for fewer calories.
I don't do bacon....always gives me heartburn.0 -
My problem with the frozen banana thing instead of ice cream is by the times you have added the granola and whatnot so it dosent just taste like banana there is more calories in it than the ice cream you were trying to avoid.4
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NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Tomk652015 wrote: »maybe turkey bacon...but all things are in play within your calorie goal.
I refuse!!! I have a feeling it just wouldn't taste as good. Hahaha.
i eat turkey bacon almost every day. I agree it doesn't taste exactly like bacon, but it does taste pretty good. Jennie-O and Oscar Mayer brands are the best. I also have been eating egg whites instead of regular eggs to bring down my cholesterol levels.
However, if there's something that I really want to eat, I'll eat it. Just fit it in to my daily calories and I'm set. I don't deprive myself.0 -
Omg! I love candy bars and cookies! I eat CLIF protein bars and they are organic, sweet, and deliciously healthy!0
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808Trish808 wrote: »NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Tomk652015 wrote: »maybe turkey bacon...but all things are in play within your calorie goal.
I refuse!!! I have a feeling it just wouldn't taste as good. Hahaha.
i eat turkey bacon almost every day. I agree it doesn't taste exactly like bacon, but it does taste pretty good. Jennie-O and Oscar Mayer brands are the best. I also have been eating egg whites instead of regular eggs to bring down my cholesterol levels.
No it doesn't.
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Chef_Barbell wrote: »808Trish808 wrote: »NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Tomk652015 wrote: »maybe turkey bacon...but all things are in play within your calorie goal.
I refuse!!! I have a feeling it just wouldn't taste as good. Hahaha.
i eat turkey bacon almost every day. I agree it doesn't taste exactly like bacon, but it does taste pretty good. Jennie-O and Oscar Mayer brands are the best. I also have been eating egg whites instead of regular eggs to bring down my cholesterol levels.
No it doesn't.
well that's your opinion. I happen to like it alot0 -
NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Do you guys have any go to alternatives for the not so healthy food you love?
Instead of potato chips what do you have?
Multibag packs of chips, not the big family bags ...my go to are Walkers Pops smokey bacon and cheese and Quavers (both under 90 cals) I also like basic Walkers multipacks (130 cals)
Instead of a chocolate bar what do you have?
A chocolate bar or a few pieces of dark chocolate or strawberries dipped in dark chocolate and left to set, or a nestle fab ice lolly (all around 100)
Instead of bacon wh....there is no substitute for bacon!
Bacon ..2 grilled back bacon rashers are 120 calories
Would love to know your healthy alternatives.
But old pile of no need for substitutes0 -
NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Do you guys have any go to alternatives for the not so healthy food you love?
Instead of potato chips what do you have?
Instead of a chocolate bar what do you have?
Instead of bacon wh....there is no substitute for bacon!
Would love to know your healthy alternatives.
Never been a big potato chip eater. I do have popcorn regularly.
I have a stash of dark chocolate kisses. When I want chocolate I have one of those.
I am not big on eating bacon. When I want bacon, I just have regular bacon. I don't hate turkey bacon but it isn't as good in most cases.
I might susbstitute milk for cream in a recipe... reduce oil or salt in a recipe. Use less cheese in a recipe.
I would choose spinach instead of iceburg lettuce. I don't think iceburg lettuce is unhealthy but it doesn't have as much flavor or nutrients as darker greens.1 -
NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Do you guys have any go to alternatives for the not so healthy food you love?
Instead of potato chips what do you have?
Instead of a chocolate bar what do you have?
Instead of bacon wh....there is no substitute for bacon!
Would love to know your healthy alternatives.
1) Parsnip chips
2) Dark chocolate - 90% and above. The more bitter the less I'm able to binge eat it.
3) Bacon, just plain regular ol bacon!
4) Instead of mashed potatoes - Mashed cauliflower whipped with garlic, cream cheese and butter. More vitamins, more fiber, more filling and better for you.
5) Instead of take out pizza - Fathead pizza, or if you're not doing low carb, mini pizzas using english muffins as the "dough". So easy and better for you.
6) Instead of wheat spaghetti - spaghetti squash. Bake the whole thing for an hour, then chop it in 1/2 and scoop out "spaghetti". I pan fried it in garlic and butter once I had scooped it all out and it was delicious.1 -
My problem with the frozen banana thing instead of ice cream is by the times you have added the granola and whatnot so it dosent just taste like banana there is more calories in it than the ice cream you were trying to avoid.
Not the same amount though. I use frozen bananas, frozen berries and mango then add a mix of seeds/nuts/dried fruit that's 210g altogether for 223 calories. Most ice creams are a lot more calories for 210g of ice cream.0 -
NicoleMichael62 wrote: »4) Instead of mashed potatoes - Mashed cauliflower whipped with garlic, cream cheese and butter. More vitamins, more fiber, more filling and better for you.
That sounds so unique. I have never tried mashed cauliflower. Is the consistency and texture just like mashed potato?0 -
chocolate rice cakes with peanut butter on top...delicious!!!0
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@NicoleMichael62 It tastes similar if you add enough cream cheese, yes. I liked it more than mashed potatoes. I chop up a whole head and steam it in the microwave on high for 10 mins at a time until I can poke it with a fork and it easily goes through a piece. Then I put it in a food processor with garlic powder, salt and add at least 4oz of cream cheese, adding more if needed until it's fluffy and there's no lumps left. Once it tastes right I add chives at the end and put it away - it makes a huge container and lasts me about a week.
Here's a recipe for it: http://www.food.com/recipe/mashed-cauliflower-with-cream-cheese-511772
You can also make a mock version of Mac n cheese with cauliflower instead of the noodles! I haven't tried that one yet but I need to because I love Mac n cheese.0 -
NicoleMichael62 wrote: »
No. It lacks the starchiness that makes mashed potatoes what they are, so it's not a successful substitute. And it tastes of cauliflower, not potatoes. It's good though if what you want is cauliflower.1 -
I don't think of things as substitutes. Some foods I do have rarely (like chips) whereas other similar foods (like roasted potatoes) I have more often, but roasted potatoes aren't supposed to be chip replacements. Chocolate I have when I want it, but smaller pieces of high quality chocolate (or a serving of chocolate ice cream/gelato when I have the calories). I also have some low cal unsweetened ground chocolate that makes a coffee-like drink that's reasonably low in calories--that's more a hot drink then a chocolate fix thing, though. Bacon I can usually take or leave, but if I want it, I have it. Like others have said, it's not that hard to fit in (less so than I used to think when I used the wrong entry, since mine doesn't come in a package).
I sometimes choose to go with lower cal options like winter squash instead of pasta as a base for a pasta sauce, or a lower cal root veg or another veg option instead of something like potatoes, but again this isn't as a replacement -- just another option I also like that happens to have fewer calories.2 -
I don't substitute anything. I just have the high calorie stuff less often and don't have seconds.
And I make a point of only having the"treat" foods I really love. If someone is handing round mediocre chocolates, I can happily decline. Before, I'd have taken a few and probably eaten them all, even if I didn't enjoy them.
Yes, this!1 -
amusedmonkey wrote: »NicoleMichael62 wrote: »
No. It lacks the starchiness that makes mashed potatoes what they are, so it's not a successful substitute. And it tastes of cauliflower, not potatoes. It's good though if what you want is cauliflower.
Although I personally think cauliflower tastes better non-mashed (and I like cauliflower just as much as I like potatoes -- both are delicious, just different). I am always mystified by the effort to make a perfectly good food like cauliflower dress up like other foods that it's not really like. If you think potatoes are too many calories, eat less of them or eat something else, don't pretend like the something else is potatoes, IMO. But of course everyone is different, I just don't get it. It's like cauliflower isn't good enough unless it's masquerading as something else.4 -
It's so good when it's done up like potatoes! I like it because it fits my macros and my calorie goals - potatoes don't. This thread is about alternatives so that is one of my favorite alternatives. It does make a good snack raw on it's own too though.0
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NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Do you guys have any go to alternatives for the not so healthy food you love?
Instead of potato chips what do you have?
Multibag packs of chips, not the big family bags ...my go to are Walkers Pops smokey bacon and cheese and Quavers (both under 90 cals) I also like basic Walkers multipacks (130 cals)
Instead of a chocolate bar what do you have?
A chocolate bar or a few pieces of dark chocolate or strawberries dipped in dark chocolate and left to set, or a nestle fab ice lolly (all around 100)
Instead of bacon wh....there is no substitute for bacon!
Bacon ..2 grilled back bacon rashers are 120 calories
Would love to know your healthy alternatives.
But old pile of no need for substitutes
Quavers! Now I must get some for my snack stash. Currently got Space Raiders in there.NicoleMichael62 wrote: »Do you guys have any go to alternatives for the not so healthy food you love?
Instead of potato chips what do you have?
Instead of a chocolate bar what do you have?
Instead of bacon wh....there is no substitute for bacon!
Would love to know your healthy alternatives.
5) Instead of take out pizza - Fathead pizza, or if you're not doing low carb, mini pizzas using english muffins as the "dough". So easy and better for you.
What makes the flour, yeast, salt and water in an English muffin better for you than the flour, yeast, salt and water in pizza dough?
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Also, I am always pleasantly surprised by how much mashed potato I can have! As long as it isn't 1 part potato to 1 part butter that is. I don't eat potatoes much, not my go to but I sometimes get a Gousto/Hello Fresh box with a recipe with mash and am always astonished at the volume of mash.
Also, when making cauliflower into mash, don't you have to boil it to 80s levels of mush and therefore lose all of the nutrients?
I am here in defense of the humble tatty!1 -
I don't have a lot of them, but often do pork rinds instead of chips. Satisfyingly crunchy, no carb and high protein!0
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VintageFeline wrote: »Also, I am always pleasantly surprised by how much mashed potato I can have! As long as it isn't 1 part potato to 1 part butter that is. I don't eat potatoes much, not my go to but I sometimes get a Gousto/Hello Fresh box with a recipe with mash and am always astonished at the volume of mash.
Also, when making cauliflower into mash, don't you have to boil it to 80s levels of mush and therefore lose all of the nutrients?
I am here in defense of the humble tatty!
I agree mashed potatoes are only "scary" because of all the butter, but I do like a cauliflower mash sometimes when I want lower calorie cauliflower that is other than roasted (all the other variations I adore are pretty high in calories). I have learned the hard way that boiling is a big no. The result is a watery grainy cauliflower "soup". Microwave is the way to go.1 -
For me ... no chips. If I eat chips I turn into Mrs. Potatohead in the closet stuffing my face with a whole bag of them. LARGE family sized bag. Don't know what the deal is with those but I can't touch them. I have no control.
The rest, I eat! Mmmmm bacon!!1 -
I love salty snacks, so transitioned from chips...to pretzels...then to pickles and olives for my daily salt fix.
Dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate because I tend to eat less and more slowly.
Unsweetened iced tea instead of lemonade.
Wine instead of margaritas.
Mind you, I still sometimes eat all those "bad" things, just not as often.1
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