Low cal filling food options besides meat?

Lullaby2021

I need ideas of other food besides meat.That will keep me full long. I'm 135lbs and want to be 130.0. It's been hard and I'm tired of eating meat all the time. What food combinations or single food fill you all up. For an extended period of time? That doesn't include meat?

sollyn23l2

High fiber foods. Whole grains... millet, brown rice, cormeal. Fruits and vegetables of any kind.

AnnPT77

What's filling is going to be somewhat individual. Did you figure out that meat was filling for you by experimenting with various options, and settling on that? Expand the range of experiments.

How far have you cut calories to lose that 5 pounds? Trying to lose too fast can make the problem unsolvable. With 5 pounds to lose, I'd recommend shooting for half a pound a week loss (or slower), which would be a 250 calorie daily deficit (or smaller).

I haven't eaten meat since 1974 . . . and I'm not frequently hungry. (I don't think it matters, but I do weigh 130 pounds.)

I do find protein filling, but also volume. On the protein side, some filling but lower calorie things are Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, hard boiled eggs, beans, dry roasted soybeans or crispy chickpeas/broad beans. I find oatmeal with berries and Greek yogurt especially filling. For volume, it's usually large amounts of veggies and fruits: I routinely eat 800 grams (1.75 pounds) of varied veggies/fruits daily.

Some people find fats filling. If that works for you, nuts, nut butters, avocados or cheese could be good choices . . . in reasonable portions, because fats are calorie dense.

In research, one of the commonest foods people found filling was baked potato. Potatoes are nutrient dense, and not that high in calories for the nutrition. (It's the usual toppings that add the calories.) Whole grains are another possibility: Wheat berries, brown rice, that oatmeal or steel cut oats, barley, etc.

Timing of eating may matter, too. People feel most satisfied on anything from one meal a day to all-day small-snacks grazing, and everything in between. That's another thing to experiment with.

For me, the overall filling pattern is a solid breakfast with plenty of protein, then protein through the day; plus at least one meal with high volume (usually the fruits/veggies, and usually dinner). If I start feeling hungry when a meal isn't coming up soon, it works better for me to have a small snack, usually something with protein, but occasionally fruit/veggies. (Some other people do better if they stick to 1, 2 or 3 meals with no snacks.)

Best wishes for figuring out your personal formula!

neanderthin

Meat is hard to beat for satiation on a per calorie basis. There's a broad range of foods that qualify for meat and from my experience most people only eat a couple of them. Maybe explore more animal protein sources and expand the recipe portfolio. Lowering carbs in conjunction with protein, specifically animal protein has a pretty decent satiating effect, so you might explore that as well. Sorry I'm not a plant eater basically, and why I'm bias. Baked potatoes was mentioned and they also are considered the most satiating single food on the planet, and I do eat from time to time but unfortunately the only times they're palatable is when I put animal products on them like butter and sour cream, although a good extra virgin olive oil is pretty tasty as well, and potatoes with these condiments or piling on condiments can make any plant taste better, that's for sure, grains too me are the same, they need enhancing, otherwise not the greatest taste or mouthfeel lol, imo so for a meat eater like me that needs to be taken into consideration as well as the total calories when doing this and there's not a lot of bang for the buck in the protein dept either.
Cheers.

Rockymountainflyer

I love zucchini cut into thin strips crisped up in the air fryer with a spray of olive oil. I put homemade tomato sauce on top. Under 100 calories and fills me up just enough to get me through and feels "treaty" with the crunch.

tulips_and_tea

sherrilynn1985 wrote: »

I love zucchini cut into thin strips crisped up in the air fryer with a spray of olive oil. I put homemade tomato sauce on top. Under 100 calories and fills me up just enough to get me through and feels "treaty" with the crunch.

Same! Particularly this time of year. For me I like a bit of sea salt and balsamic vinegar.

OP, what about tofu? Have to experimented with it? The texture is quite different, but if prepared properly, it is filling and much cheaper than meat.

Lullaby2021

@sherrilynn1985
I have tried a little tofu before. Maybe I'll try it again. To experiment more into it.

Lullaby2021

sollyn23l2 wrote: »

High fiber foods. Whole grains... millet, brown rice, cormeal. Fruits and vegetables of any kind.

Thank you : ), I'll try all of these too.

Lullaby2021

@AnnPT77
What's filling is going to be somewhat individual. Did you figure out that meat was filling for you by experimenting with various options, and settling on that? Expand the range of experiments.

(Yes) Only high fat meats fill me up. Lean/low fat meats tend to leave me hungry all day.
As a situation a few days ago.I eat a lot of chicken breast. Still was very hungry hours later.
Good for protein sure but not fat.. Fat is what I thrive on.

How far have you cut calories to lose that 5 pounds? Trying to lose too fast can make the problem unsolvable. With 5 pounds to lose, I'd recommend shooting for half a pound a week loss (or slower), which would be a 250 calorie daily deficit (or smaller).

I aim for 1,200-1,400 calories perday. Skipping the exercise calories at times.

I haven't eaten meat since 1974 . . . and I'm not frequently hungry. (I don't think it matters, but I do weigh 130 pounds.

(Nice you are my goal weight )

Timing of eating may matter, too. People feel most satisfied on anything from one meal a day to all-day small-snacks grazing, and everything in between. That's another thing to experiment with.

Snacks in between meals. I think will be a good thing. So the wait isn't so bad to eat food.