What Go To Foods are in your Home at all times?

MrsG31

You can absolutely have hot wings and ribs. Just make sure they fit into your calorie allowance for the day. I eat what my boyfriend is eating and I usually add a low calorie vegetable side. For the wings I would have added carrot and celery sticks. For the ribs a salad or roasted broccoli.
You can eat the same delicious foods, just eat less than you normally would.

I agree! There is no reason you can't eat the same foods! You don't have to eat the same portion size or the same exact sides. (I know my husband eats big portions and there is no way I could keep up with him and stay within my calorie goals) When we go out for wings, I usually get a salad for my side and maybe steal few fries from him. But don't drown your salad in dressing either. I also try to eat "smarter" the rest of the day if I know what we are having for dinner will be high in calories or maybe get some extra walking in to allow for it.

In general, I keep the following on hand for snacking and easy sides when we don't feel like cooking or the kids (or I) don't want to eat the same thing:

-Raw vegetables: baby carrots, grape tomatoes, sliced cucumbers, snap peas
-Hummus - any veggie can be dipped in hummus
-Fruit: cut up pineapple, apples, grapes, peaches, strawberries (I have a son who could live off fruit if I let him)
-Dried Fruit
-Mixed Nuts
-Fiber One 90 calorie bars (these are my usual mid-morning snack)
-Pickles
-Frozen veggies (can be microwaved under 10 minutes) or the frozen streamable bags of veggies
-Salad

LunaGreen

Baby carrots, raw nuts, BRUSSEL SPROUTS!!, and in case I get a sugar craving I always have apples and almond butter (I microwave the apple and sprinkle cinnamon then drizzle almond butter on top, my fiance loves it too!)

happysherri

Eggs, they're so quick to make. you can make them so many different ways

Some ways I have them - veggie omelette, over easy, breakfast burrito, scrambled (sometimes with a little hot sauce or ketchup), egg sandwich with some 35 calorie bread, boiled......

rachface1234

For me its important to have fruits and veggies on hand in the crisper, healthy fats in abundance, and some lean proteins. A little of other stuff can sneak into the diet and its fine as long as its mostly the prior. My usual produce and healthy fats and lean proteins look like so in my grocery basket:

onions/garlic
spinach or kale
squash or zucchini
carrots
avocados
peppers
Brussels or broccoli or cauliflower
bananas, apples, oranges

frozen berries and almond milk- for protein powder smoothies

chicken
lean pork or beef
fish - salmon or tilapia usually
eggs

canned low sodium beans - black beans or garbanzo or white cannellini beans
low sodium stock - for soups or flavoring /cooking proteins and veggies
greek yogurt - for protein packed snack or to replace sour cream or cheese in soups

coconut oil
peanut or almond butter
small amounts of good full fat cheese
nuts in pre portioned packages (so I don't go crazy on them, its easy b/c they are delicious)

This list covers snacks, ingredients for basic healthy meals, soups, etc!

synapse0782

Wow thanks everyone for all the great ideas! Sounds like I just need to have some options in the house to supplement what's already on the table.

Holly_Roman_Empire

Quick dinners:
Cereal
DiGiorno Pizza
Tyson chicken nuggets
Tacos

Easy snacks:
doritos
granola bars
peanuts
popcorn

alasin1derland

things you can always find at my house
bio protien bars
tilapia or basa loin
frozen chicken breasts
Lean steak
fresh broccoli spinach watermelon pineapple bananas clemintines baby carrots peppers mini potatoes yogurts lettuce
mrs dash

kettle brand baked potato chips
popcorn
black licorice cigars
dark chocolate

I make the same meals for everyone but I put cheese and butter on the sides of other peoples meals like potatoes and broccoli but I eat mine plain. I buy all my groceries at costco except potato chips are in health section of grocery store. A chicken breast, 4 mini red potatoes and broccoli is a complete meal with minimal calories. Probably under 200. Leaves room for beer and popcorn later.

wrenegade64

There is a way around EVERYTHING. Jess spoke earlier about eating what your husband is eating, and I do agree with that, but another thing you can do is "tweek" what he is eating for yourself.

Example----when he is grilling or smoking ribs, have him grill or smoke a rack of baby backs for you. They have a lower fat content than spare ribs and don't baste them with sauce; have the sauce on the side and consider thinning it down with a little water to reduce the sugar content.

When he is grilling burgers and brats, have him throw on a couple of turkey burgers (turkey breast---lowest in fat) and turkey or chicken brats (there are lots of them out there with different seasonings that are AWESOME)

Keep plenty of small packages of steamer veggies to go with your meals. 4 or 5 minutes in the microwave and you have the perfect item to fill up half of your plate to help fill you up

I AM ALL ABOUT THE GRILL (bet you couldn't guess that) and when I grill, I pretty much always do 2 things
1) I grill enough for 3 or more meals
2) I under cook what I am going to put in the fridge/freezer just a little bit so that way when I reheat it, it will finish cooking it and it won't be dry.

Hope this helped young lady :-)

whitehaze

I go into the weekends knowing my wife and I are going to eat some unhealthy foods that aren't going to fit into my plan. I deal with this by getting a good cardio workout on Saturday and Sunday mornings to bank the extra calories. Once the workout is done you don't have to worry as much with the extra calories you might take in later in the day.

rockmama72

I'm the main cook and I have three kids, ages 4 to 16 (a hungry boy!). We had BBQ ribs, red-lobster-style biscuits, and greens simmered with ham hocks last week. It was a hefty dinner, but I just had a bigger serving of greens and a smaller serving of meat and one biscuit. Everyone gets the same dinner. Half the time I make lighter meals and I make a little extra for those who are more hungry, or I set out cut veggies with hummus before dinner to help fill everyone up. I might go a couple hundred calories over if I'm eating lasagna or ribs or burgers, but it all balances out, and keeps me from feeling deprived at all. There's always the option of going for a walk after dinner too.

DesdemonaRose

Another "vote" for the frozen vegi steam bags. You can even find some cheesey ones with some pretty impressive calorie counts. Eat the meat and some cheesy cauliflower or broccoli for the side. Then it will seem less like you are "missing out." Of course if you like vegis as is you can still go with the plain ones for even less calories.

I also have bags of precut vegis (I buy them that way at Trader Joes and they are not really expensive) that let me make quick salads. Some of my fav dressing on top, and "wala" a great meal that's not high in calories. Just make sure you don't dump lots of full fat dressing (like Ranch) and a lot of cheese on it.

If your not too scared of fat bacon is a tasty low cal option that is also good for spicing up salads, vegis, etc. You can find bacon bits that are made with real bacon and taste pretty good (though they'll cost you a little more than the dry crumbles, or make a stash of your own). It's a high flavor food so you don't need 1/2 a package, just one or two strips.

I also do the extra workout on days where I want to eat more calories and enjoy them.

callyart

Typically if my partner is eating junk food I will prepare something different for me - like frozen veg, salad, easy to bake fish/chicken and jacket potatoes - or soup!

If I am eating the same, I try to get alternative healthier options in or just have a smaller portion!

rabblerabble

Try to always have lots of fresh prepared veggies (celery, sliced cucumbers, sliced bell peppers, snap peas) to munch on and to put into a baggie to take to work for my break, and lots of fresh fruit (apples, bananas, berries, grapes). Also keep large cartons of cottage cheese and greek yogurt on hand.

When I want a snack, I can choose a healthy option at any time.

skinnyinnotime

We all eat the same meals at home.....Monday-Friday lunches are varied as kids are at school and husband at work.

katorihanzo

yogurt, eggs, hot chocolate (for a low calorie chocolate fix), tuna, cheese slices (two pieces of bread with a scrape of butter and a cheese slice is a filling, quick, cheap and low cal lunch, though not overly nutritious), chicken breasts, hummus, and a TON of veggies! I'm not sure why everyone here seems to stock up on frozen veggies. I know they're just as nutritious but they don't taste nearly as good. I keep fresh baby potatos, carrots, parsnip, onion, peppers, brocolli, zucchini, cauliflower, mushroom and baby tomatos on hand ALWAYS and when I need a low cal and delicious/nutritious dinner or side, I toss 'em all (or a selection of some) in olive oil or coconut oil with herbs and roast. So filling. I eat some every day so they don't go bad and if I'm worried they will, I make a big soup out of them. I find spinach goes bad quickly, so luckily my boyfriend is a baby spinach fiend who will just eat a bowl of baby spinach plain.

Cilantro goes bad quickly too but I just found out about infused herb oils and how easy they are to make! No more throwing away whole bunches of herbs anymore


ETA: reading that, I realize I need to up my fruit game. Unlike most people, I like veggies a lot more than fruit. I add a banana and frozen raspberries to my yogurt but I guess I should start eating more of it.

krawhitham

I am in the same boat as you! My boyfriend is thin and fit, he's a runner and it's not that he can eat "whatever" he wants, but hes basically in maintenance and every weekend (especially if football is on) is a free for all.

When I realized I couldn't control myself when he would get pizza, wings, fries etc... I started making my own meals entirely. I keep frozen veggies and chicken in the freezer, I always have yogurt on hand, eggs, and lime seltzer water (no sugar added)

Since I've gotten into this habit, I don't have my hunger dependent on when my bf orders crappy food. Now I have more of an understanding of *when* I'm hungry and *what* I'm hungry for. I realized that more often than not, I'm not hungry for 4 slices of pizza.

This past weekend he got a pizza, and I made my normal healthy meal, and as a snack I had one slice of his pizza. I made sure to stay within my calorie limit AND I got to eat some of his food. Best of both worlds!

salembambi

go to foods

rice cakes
peanut butter
frozen berries
broccoli/cauliflower
small potatoes
english muffins
cantaloupe
oatmeal
carrots
tofu
green apples
popcorn kernels for air popped
vegan margarine
basmati rice

I do not have to make food for anyone but me..no one else to make food for..

KatieWH

Good snacks to have around - premixed tuna pouches (tuna creations), cheese sticks, skinny pop, homemade soups (I usually have at least one of these in the fridge - this week it was stuffed pepper, last week veggie beef). There are tons of recipes on skinnytaste.com that are delicious. I also keep protein bars and shakes handy. Frozen shrimp is another go to. you can eat 8 oz of shrimp and a 1/4 cup of cocktail sauce for just 250 calories and tons of protein. This gives me the feeling of getting a 'football weekend' kind of food without the calories of wings, etc.

Apples with cheese and kalamata olives is also very satiating and salty.

Good luck!

chopper_pilot

tortillas
eggs
pasta
avocados
peanut butter
beans
chicken
brussels sprouts
rice
crab
ground beef
yellow squash
asparagus
bisquick

wickedgiggle

I find it hard to stay on track on the weekends also, because I eat with my family or go out. That is ok. What I do is eat my maint. Cal lvl which is 1750 and eat lower calories durning the week. I still lose weight and I dont beat myself up about it.