I love salt, like a deer drawn to a salt lick....

acm130

I have always considered myself a "clean eater" I don't eat a lot of pre-packaged food, I hate sweets and I love vegetables... but I also looooooooooooove salt. I've had up to 12 lb wt fluctuations throughout the month and an obvious contributory factor is my sodium intake. Generally > 2500 mg allowance, plus I don't log the diet coke or table salt I add...... So basically I'm a hot (salty) mess. Big culprits of sodium seem to be bread and deli meat. I love a good turkey sandwich. Does anyone have suggestions for quick easy lunches and snacks that are low sodium? Thanks!

Elizabeth_C34

When I remember to do it, I make my own lunchmeat in the crock pot with chicken breast (fresh not frozen). You just put 3-4 large breasts in the crock pot, fill with water, and let it go for 8 hours or so on low. When it's done, it will flake really easily with a fork so use a serving fork to break it up and shred it. Scoop it out and drain it, and voila. Very low sodium lunchmeat. You can add all kinds of other herbal seasoning once the chicken is done.

I also usually cook up some black beans in the crock pot the same way I do the chicken. Just toss the beans in, fill with water, and let them cook all day. I usually store the beans and use them for a side item for dinner or lunch.

MoreBean13

I have always considered myself a "clean eater" I don't eat a lot of pre-packaged food, I hate sweets and I love vegetables... but I also looooooooooooove salt. I've had up to 12 lb wt fluctuations throughout the month and an obvious contributory factor is my sodium intake. Generally > 2500 mg allowance, plus I don't log the diet coke or table salt I add...... So basically I'm a hot (salty) mess. Big culprits of sodium seem to be bread and deli meat. I love a good turkey sandwich. Does anyone have suggestions for quick easy lunches and snacks that are low sodium? Thanks!

I salt too. I have low blood pressure and no other medical indication that I need to watch it, but I started monitoring it out of curiosity, and I was pretty appalled. I found that just the act of logging it cuts my salt intake. I took my digital scale, and measured how many twists of my salt grinder it takes to get to a gram, and so now I can log it. I've switched to using "lite salt" which is half sodium half potassium chloride, and "no salt" which is all potassium to replace some of the salt, which is also good for post workout electrolyte recovery.

P.S. Another HUGE contributor to my sodium was hot sauce. I put that *kitten* on everything!

NoAdditives

Read labels while grocery shopping. Find products that are lower in sodium. You could also try getting more electrolytes in your diet. Salt is an electrolyte, and if you aren't getting enough potassium, calcium, magnesium, etc. you might crave salt. Coconut water has a lot of electrolytes and is low in calories. also, make sure you are drinking the right amount of water. Too much or too little can cause electrolyte imbalances, which will make you crave salt.

Elizabeth_C34

Read labels while grocery shopping. Find products that are lower in sodium. You could also try getting more electrolytes in your diet. Salt is an electrolyte, and if you aren't getting enough potassium, calcium, magnesium, etc. you might crave salt. Coconut water has a lot of electrolytes and is low in calories. also, make sure you are drinking the right amount of water. Too much or too little can cause electrolyte imbalances, which will make you crave salt.

Agree with this also.

Most whole vegetables have a lot of potassium also especially black beans, bananas, and potatoes.

justjenn1977

if you have a cardiac history in your family I would be careful about the potassium chloride... it isn't likely that you can eat too much to increas your potassium enough to be dangerous.... but really high potassium can cause heart issues

DrKittyCat

Maybe you should cook with less salt, gradually, so you get used to the taste. I know people that were heavy salt eaters, but in an effort to get healthier they began reducing their salt intake and use. Now they hate it when things are salty.

When shopping, just look at the labels.

MoreBean13

if you have a cardiac history in your family I would be careful about the potassium chloride... it isn't likely that you can eat too much to increas your potassium enough to be dangerous.... but really high potassium can cause heart issues

I'm good. My dad's a heart surgeon and he gave me the thumbs up.

acm130

Thanks great idea, i will try the crock pot homemade lunch meat with turkey and chicken!!! All great tips! I have no familial hx of HTN or heart dz but the fact that H20 gain/fluctuation is so significant leads me to believe I need a change! Thanks everyone:)

carld256

I was a big salt-aholic too, love the stuff. I finally just had to set the salt shaker aside, and go cold turkey. I'm still a bit over on my sodium intake some days just from food, and I shudder to think how much I was taking in back when I dumped a ton of salt on everything.

I couldn't come up with any easy or painless way to do it other then just to quit salting my food and sticking to it. Using other spices and sauces does help somewhat, but there's no real replacement for that wonderful salty taste.

Elizabeth_C34

Thanks great idea, i will try the crock pot homemade lunch meat with turkey and chicken!!! All great tips! I have no familial hx of HTN or heart dz but the fact that H20 gain/fluctuation is so significant leads me to believe I need a change! Thanks everyone:)

My weight fluctuated a lot when I was heavier, but I'm on a higher sodium diet for my heart (yes, opposite of what you normally hear, but I have extremely low blood pressure naturally).

Even on the higher sodium intake, I try to keep it below 3000mg per day and balance it with plenty of potassium. Sofar so good. Fluctuations are much less dramatic when I keep my potassium intake over 1500mg per day.

susannamarie

I really haven't noticed a lot of issues from high sodium intake, (my tracker doesn't reflect my true intake, it's higher than tracked by quite a bit). I don't even notice serious weight fluctuations. I think it's because I take care to keep my potassium intake high and it's usually well over 3500.