Very Low, or Zero Cal Foods.

Faericn_Rising
Faericn_Rising Posts: 235
in Recipes
Basically, i am feeling hungry a lot. But i think im getting a good amount of cals.

I stalled out this week because i ate poorly. So, i am looking for things i can have a lot of, without really hurting my progress.

This topic is all about quantity, over everything else, as it is my biggest weakness.

I know i have to get over it, but, im not there yet, and meanwhile, i dont want to offset the progress i have worked so hard for. :-) What do you eat, when the munch monster attacks?
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Replies

  • 35khris
    35khris Posts: 33 Member
    Listerine!! It stops All cravings...Right Now!!
  • norabeth
    norabeth Posts: 176 Member
    baby carrots
    watermelon
    steamed broccoli
    string cheese
    pre-measured trail mix
    peanut butter
    apples
  • hottottie11
    hottottie11 Posts: 907 Member
    Veggies are your best bet. Large salads with plenty of veggies.

    Increasing protein and fiber intake will help with hunger.

    Zero calorie is not really food.
  • MissBernie73
    MissBernie73 Posts: 115 Member
    Hommus and vegetable sticks are always are good things to munch on, or a big bowl of steam vegies with lemon juice. Plain popcorn is also good.
  • OddChoices
    OddChoices Posts: 244 Member
    Steamer Broccoli
    Grilled eggplant
    Grilled squash
    Greek yogurt
    Non fat frozen Greek yogurt
    Humus
  • chrisc16
    chrisc16 Posts: 94
    Salad with vinegar (about 30 calories or less per 2 cups), celery (a whole bag can't be a lot of calories), water.
    Of course, this assumes that you are getting nutrition during the day (this stuff is lacking nutrients).
  • Dee_84
    Dee_84 Posts: 431 Member
    Tomatoes
    Cucumber Slices
    Chicken Breast (baked or grilled)
    Celery
    Bell Peppers
    Mushrooms
    Oranges
    Berries
    Teas & Broths
  • microwoman999
    microwoman999 Posts: 545 Member
    Bump!
  • gaylynn35
    gaylynn35 Posts: 854 Member
    Baby carrots
    grapes
    Strawberries
    Apples
    Broccoli
    Salad
    Fresh spinach

    Any fresh fruit or vegetable and you can't go wrong.
  • spangey13
    spangey13 Posts: 294
    I hear ya. At the moment I'm knocking back a coke zero. It is what I do when I'm starting to get desperate. I know that I'll get told off for soda/fake sugar stuff/coke etc - but it works for me when the only other option at work is junk in the vending machine.
  • mattsgrl98
    mattsgrl98 Posts: 46 Member
    Air popped popcorn is my go to food when I am hungry and dont wanna use alot of calories. I can have 5 cups airpopped with zero cal spray butter and I switch up popcorn flavor seasonings all for under 80 calories.
  • Faericn_Rising
    Faericn_Rising Posts: 235
    Thanks all, keep them coming... im going to try and plan out my meals, in frequent, small bouts, for the next few weeks, and i want to make sure im comfortable. I know zero calorie foods are not really foods. but the point of those, to me, is to be able to ingest things when im weak, without hurting my numbers or progress. Most likely after, i have all my nutrients for the day. night is my worst time.

    Keep them coming and thanks !
  • Dedicatediva
    Dedicatediva Posts: 32 Member
    First I drink water to make sure I'm not just thirsty. Some of my favorites snacks are greek yogurt with bananas and almonds, sundried tomatoes and wasa crackers, better oats oatmeal, pretzels, fruit salad with peaches,apples,kiwi and strawberries, banana with almond butter.
  • Faericn_Rising
    Faericn_Rising Posts: 235
    Air popped popcorn is my go to food when I am hungry and dont wanna use alot of calories. I can have 5 cups airpopped with zero cal spray butter and I switch up popcorn flavor seasonings all for under 80 calories.

    I cant believe its not butter? Carfeul with that... it says no cals, but its 30 cals, for 30 sprays, and 3 grams of fat. I used to put that stuff on EVERYTHING. i had to give it up to break my last plateau....

    Though, i have heard a LOT of great things about air popped popcorn...
  • dez_yaoichan
    dez_yaoichan Posts: 454
    cheese cubes during the day while i can still watch my calorie intake.

    frozen fruit at night, after i've finished for the day and just need a little something to munch.

    these work best for me because they take longer to chew then other things, making it seem like i'm eating more then i actually am.
  • mattsgrl98
    mattsgrl98 Posts: 46 Member
    I usually only use the 10 sprays the label says! I have heard that you need to count the extra cals if you go overboard on it.
  • JanaCanada
    JanaCanada Posts: 917 Member
    Aaaah, the Munchie Monstewr...He attacks me at night, too. For me, it's the CRUNCH I need.

    OK, I try to keep snacks under 100 cals. So...besides the usual good-for-you-yet-borrrrrring stuff like fruits and veggies, here's some stuff I've tried:

    Salsa with soda crackers or other lo-cal, lo sodium crackers (Kashi crackers are divine!) Or use rice cakes....which I calll "air cookies". :laugh:

    Popchips...OMG, these taste almost like the real deal!

    Orville Reddenbacher "Smart Pop". I sprinkle it gently with dillweed. Seriously. Tastes like pickle chips.

    Breadsticks, with our without the always fabulous Kraft Herb & Garlic Light cream cheese spread, or lo-cal salad dressing as a dip.

    Any kind of turkey pepperettes. 50 cals each. Gotta love 'em.

    Popcicles. They curb my craving for sweets.
  • zzzzdoc
    zzzzdoc Posts: 6
    Half-Sour Pickles
  • Faericn_Rising
    Faericn_Rising Posts: 235
    Thanks all. I am going to try and plan my meals for the first time, with our next shopping trip. I have a pretty good system worked out i think. Thanks Again. :-)

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  • thezoom27
    thezoom27 Posts: 1
    If your like me and you NEED a handful of something salty and delicious, see if any of your grocery stores have Plantain Chips! They are amazing and not even nearly as bad as chips or cookies. I don't feel guilty after having some. There fairly low in calories (about 150 calories per 32 chips). The garlic flavored are by far my favorite. They have that crunch and taste of chips so it gets rid of that craving 9 times out of ten. I hope that helps ( they sell them at Winners in Canada!)
  • quillsHP
    quillsHP Posts: 91 Member
    Carrots carrots carrots. They're so filling and by the time you're done chewing one, you won't be hungry anymore. If you want to eat something savoury, maybe the 100-cal chip bags?
  • kimcalica
    kimcalica Posts: 525 Member
    0 calorie noodles.. shirataki noodles... miracle noodle brand.. www.miraclenoodle.com be careful it's all fiber and to eat too much can give you a stomach ache.
  • BiscuitsNDavy
    BiscuitsNDavy Posts: 212 Member
    Sip on lemon water all day. It will help as it's an alkaline and does seem to curb hunger, which reminds me I should drink it more often.
  • Shadowknight137
    Shadowknight137 Posts: 1,243 Member
    Gherkins.
  • gingerveg
    gingerveg Posts: 748 Member
    I try to make veggie soup about once a week. I start with a light spray of oil to cook the onions then deglaze with a little water and add the other veggies. I usually include some red lentils and one potato to thicken the soup but other than that the rest are low calorie veggies (frozen mixed, a nice big piece of ginger, garlic and whatever I happen to have on hand). Because I only use a tiny bit of oil it is under 100 calories a bowl and it is both filling and delicious.
  • claritarejoice
    claritarejoice Posts: 461 Member
    Natural Flavored mineral water! Same nutrients as regular water but the carbonation and flavor makes it more fllling. Pickles!
  • Corjogo
    Corjogo Posts: 201 Member
    Special K cracker chips - 120 cal...but that is for 30 chips, with a bit of hummus you can make it last a long time. Have some water - one glass of water and chips and hummus on a plate so you know exactly how many/much you have indulged in. Makes me feel like I'm not watching every morsel I put in my mouth.
  • fonitoni
    fonitoni Posts: 98 Member
    I can't believe how many people have said hummus- it's 70 calories for 2T.
  • msbunnie68
    msbunnie68 Posts: 1,894 Member
    I try to budget for an after dinner nibble plate when I log for the day - so I plan out my meals to leave myself a little evening nibble plate of either my favourite fruits (strawberries, kiwifruit and half and orange, slice and arranged nicely) or some rice crackers, a little hot chilli salsa and one approx 20g serving of my favourite cheese or some strawberries and a small serve of a sweet yogurt as a dip (for example I use half a pot of ski activ digestion yogurt - a 125ml pot is worth 110cal for the passionfruit flavour so I use half the pot one night, and half the next giving me 60 cal of yogurt and I make the rest up to 100 with strawberries and either half an apple or similiar fruit to dip it in)

    I eat really well during the day, and I prepare this plate while I am making the evening meal. I take the time to arrange it nicely on a nice plate and I have that when everyone around me is having desserts or their munchies. It is my little touch of luxuries plate or post dinner plate that I have without any guilt whatsoever as it is in my eating plan. If I feel really peckish when I am having this plate I wash it done with a sparkling mineral water. It seems to help.

    I guess for me the whole munchies thing may be a feeling of being 'on a diet' and 'deprived of goodies' so I take that out of the equation by pre-planning a treat that fits in around 100 cals and presenting it in a way that please the eye rather than a guilty handful of nuts that I stand in the pantry and chew out of desperate hunger.

    Hope this helps.
  • zebisis
    zebisis Posts: 157
    I can't believe how many people have said hummus- it's 70 calories for 2T.


    I thought this too!
    Watermelon is VERY high in sugar, as are bananas. Peanut butter (and other nut butters and Sunbutter) are VERY high calorie, and it is SO easy to eat half a jar! (Sunbutter is a slippery slope for me!) Trail mix is also very calorie dense, so you don't get much bang for your caloric buck.

    I really love making salads with LOTS of baby spinach.
    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/recipe/edit/15039102
    If you make sure your main meals are nutritious and filling, you should help curb the need to snack a ton.

    We eat when we are bored, tired, angry, sad... I found I needed to detach from the emotional eating I was doing and eat only when I am really actually hungry.
    I like to make a big cup of hot tea, 2 bags of tea, 16 oz H20 (I love chai) with liquid sucralose and a T of light cream or half and half. Drinking that before eating really helps keep my calories in check.

    I learned to ask myself "would I eat a dressing-free green salad right now?" when I think I want to eat something. If the answer is 'NO, that doesn't sound good at all', then I know I am NOT really hungry!! And then I wait, have a cup of tea etc.

    If you are finding that you are hungry ALL the time, you may try cutting out carbs for a bit. I found that keeping my net carbs under 20g a day for a few weeks got rid of my "constant hunger" which was totally mental, and a side effect of the carbs I had been eating so many of. It also kind of changed my relationship with food- only eating low carb veggies, eggs and lean protein really made me look at food as FUEL, and not fun, not a boredom buster, not as comfort. It made me really think about what I was putting in my mouth. It also made healthy food taste great! Before doing my low carb thing, a salad was blah. After 2 weeks of 20g or less net carbs a day, a salad was DIVINE!
    Coming onto MFP made me start looking at the calories I was eating, and made me accountable for daily exercise.

    That is another thing... exercise! A solid 30 min on the elliptical will make you NOT hungry for an hour or more after getting off the machine, and make you feel awesome to boot.

    Add me if you like!!

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