What are your favorite "insteads"?

swimmermama

I am all about what I can "insteads" -- things that can stand in for other, less healthy options. For example, I have a long commute home a couple of days a week and pick up a subway sandwich on the way. I was always very tempted by the chips until I started bringing a bag of baby carrots with me. Now I have the same crunch I get with chips and a tasty treat with my sandwich but without the empty calories and carbs. Plus I get an extra veggie!

My other major "instead" is Thomas' Blueberry Mini Bagels. My biggest weakness is baked goods. Give me a blueberry scone, slice of banana bread, or cranberry walnut muffin over a pie, cake or other treat. One of those bagels for 110 calories is almost as good as a blueberry muffin! I don't even feel the need for cream cheese on it. With a cup of tea or coffee, it makes me insanely happy as an afternoon snack.

So, what are your "insteads"??

theatr3geek

Avocado instead of mayo!! Sounds weird but I'm telling you...

LisaLN

Any of the Blue Diamond almonds. They're fabulous! I never used to like them...but then I tried the Smokehouse ones. Wonderful. Today I tried the Butter Toffee and Mint Dark Chocolate. 6 net carbs, 5g of Sugar and 5g of Protein. Great alternative for any type of chip of "snacky" food! You can get 100 calorie packs for on the go, too. I've gotten the cocoa powder coated ones and they're wonderful.

monstertwelve

grapes instead of candy/chocolate/anything with sugar

jodielee3

sounds good

SparkleShine

spaghetti squash instead of pasta . With some spaghetti sauce on it and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese....mmmmm!!!

thecanface

cucumbers instead of anything crunchy. i am a huge sucker for crunchy salty foods like chips, crackers, etc.. but the crunch of a cucumber satisfies that, and the awesome part is i can get my sour/salty craving out of the way too because cucumber with salt and lime is the BEST!

ashlee954

spaghetti squash instead of pasta . With some spaghetti sauce on it and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese....mmmmm!!!

Oooooh yeah that's a good one! LOVE the stuff!!

ashlee954

Sweet potato instead of fries, vita muffins instead of cookies, frozen grapes instead of anything small and "snacky", and pop chips instead of any other chips.

tummymummy

Without a doubt my low fat hot chocolate to replace the chocca mochas I was consuming far too regularly!!

CuteMommy88

ground turkey instead of ground beef

I use it for chili, tacos, basically anywhere you would use ground beef

swimmermama

Jacki70, I have been meaning to try spaghetti squash! I will definitely do that soon.

miznel80

Chips and salsa are my greatest weakness. Today, I picked up some rice cakes They made me happy, I think I just just missing the crunchy salty goodness. You could even make salsa and toss it on your rice cake. I haven't tried it, but salsa isn't terrible IF you make it yourself

ashlee954

Chips and salsa are my greatest weakness. Today, I picked up some rice cakes They made me happy, I think I just just missing the crunchy salty goodness. You could even make salsa and toss it on your rice cake. I haven't tried it, but salsa isn't terrible IF you make it yourself

Store bought salsa is very low cal.

swimmermama

Chips and salsa are my greatest weakness. Today, I picked up some rice cakes They made me happy, I think I just just missing the crunchy salty goodness. You could even make salsa and toss it on your rice cake. I haven't tried it, but salsa isn't terrible IF you make it yourself

Store bought salsa is very low cal.

I have found that it can be full of sugar, though. I ADORE salsa but have to watch how much of it I eat.

stargzrlily

I picked some of the Smokehouse Blue Diamond almonds up today for the first time. I was craving a salty snack and these were perfect. I know it sounds weird but between the smokiness,saltiness and crunch it reminded me of bbq potato chips!
I ate 5 of them and was satisfied.

stargzrlily

do you have a good recipe for homemade salsa?

heathersmilez

Werther's Original Candies. They taste like the inside of a score bar which is soooooooo good! So smooth and sweet. 2 of them makes me instantly happy, more so than a 300+ cal chocolate bar and they are only 23 calories each.

Kminor67

As far as Nacho chips and salsa, I buy Red Gold brand. It's low in sodium and sugar. I also get the baked chips instead of fried ones. I also love to sub ground turkey for ground beef, and I enjoy sherbet instead of ice cream, and frozen berries or edy's fruit bars instead of popsicles or candy. The one thing I WISH I could find a suitable substitute for is a chocolate bar!

heathersmilez

Chips and salsa are my greatest weakness. Today, I picked up some rice cakes They made me happy, I think I just just missing the crunchy salty goodness. You could even make salsa and toss it on your rice cake. I haven't tried it, but salsa isn't terrible IF you make it yourself

Store bought salsa is very low cal.

I have found that it can be full of sugar, though. I ADORE salsa but have to watch how much of it I eat.

Tostitos salsa only has 1g sugar per tbsp and since the average person I can’t imagine eats more than 4-6 tbsp per snack 6g is nothing to worry about. I've been having salsa lately with Whole Grain Mini-Wheats, 100 cals per 12 crackers and I am NOT a salt person, it’s just b/c I want some carbs.

heathersmilez

As far as Nacho chips and salsa, I buy Red Gold brand. It's low in sodium and sugar. I also get the baked chips instead of fried ones. I also love to sub ground turkey for ground beef, and I enjoy sherbet instead of ice cream, and frozen berries or edy's fruit bars instead of popsicles or candy. The one thing I WISH I could find a suitable substitute for is a chocolate bar!

Have you tried 3 Musketeers? It's fluffy and yummy tastes kind of like Mars but w/o the caramel and has 35% less fat than regular chocolate bars I believe. I remember it was only 5 WW points years ago.