Potato Chip addiction - HELPPPPP

I've been doing so good eating healthy and watching my portions but the last few days I can't seem to get away from CHIPS!! Any suggestions on a good replacement/alternative that helps these cravings?
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Replies

  • Sashoi
    Sashoi Posts: 295 Member
    Sorry can't help u cause I eat chips.... Long as they fit into my cals I will eat it.
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    There is a thread in the recipe section where someone is sharing a recipe for roasted green beans and says they taste like french fries so maybe give that a try.
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
    How is it that you have arranged your life to be in the same room as a food over which you have no control? I don't have any danger foods like that anywhere near me.
  • mmipanda
    mmipanda Posts: 351 Member
    I've been doing so good eating healthy and watching my portions but the last few days I can't seem to get away from CHIPS!! Any suggestions on a good replacement/alternative that helps these cravings?

    I had a huge obsession with them too. Plain salted ones, I'd walk up the street just to buy a bag of them whenever I felt like it.

    I just had to cut them out completely for a while. Like a few months or so. Now I can eat them sometimes, but I don't crave them like I used to. Now I think more about how crap and bloated they make me feel after consuming, rather than how they taste.
  • whierd
    whierd Posts: 14,025 Member
    I've been doing so good eating healthy and watching my portions but the last few days I can't seem to get away from CHIPS!! Any suggestions on a good replacement/alternative that helps these cravings?

    If you're just eating them in moderation, then you're fine. But if you're binging on them and blowing your daily calorie goal because of them, seek crunchy, salty alternatives like dehydrated or roasted veggies. Something like dehydrated corn, peas, green beans, etc tossed in a bit of olive oil with salt can help as a lower-calorie substitute until you are able to get the cravings under control. Most of your craving is likely behavioral, you enjoy the satisfying crunch and the "ritual" of eating them.
  • bridgie101
    bridgie101 Posts: 817 Member
    I've been doing so good eating healthy and watching my portions but the last few days I can't seem to get away from CHIPS!! Any suggestions on a good replacement/alternative that helps these cravings?

    Have you been going all low sodium? Because your body needs sodium and it'll send you all sorts of messages like 'buyyy chiiips, buyy chiiiiiiiiiiiiips!' if you don't get enough from elsewhere.

    Eat your salt. Do not fear it. And just think how wonderful your brain must be to somehow work out what's wrong with you and then flash pictures of a way to get it before your eyes. That's a pretty impressive brain, that is!
  • RonW956
    RonW956 Posts: 105 Member
    The only chips that I eat are Beanitos black bean chips... I've gone cold turkey on potato chips and now, when I do have one, they taste very salty to me... too salty.

    The important thing I think is dont deprive yourself from the foods you like, just eat less of it... Its not so much as what we put in our mouths but how much....
  • mockchoc
    mockchoc Posts: 6,573 Member
    I use to like salt and vinegar flavoured chips, now I eat salt and vinegar rice cakes and can't stand chips anymore. Maybe try the same.
  • crackur
    crackur Posts: 473 Member
    I love CHIPS! You got to keep them out of your house thought, like put them in your stomach and they are gone...don't have to worry about them until you buy them again. Hopefully, the next day.
  • joyfuljoy65
    joyfuljoy65 Posts: 317 Member
    Chips - or crisps as we call them in the UK - are my one treat. I eat the lower calorie versions, but I feel like I am NOT ON A DIET if I can eat them. We have baked ones that taste just as good as the fried versions. As long as you don't binge on them, I dont see a problem.
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    stop buying them and don't keep them in your house = problem solved...
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    I've been doing so good eating healthy and watching my portions but the last few days I can't seem to get away from CHIPS!! Any suggestions on a good replacement/alternative that helps these cravings?

    Have you been going all low sodium? Because your body needs sodium and it'll send you all sorts of messages like 'buyyy chiiips, buyy chiiiiiiiiiiiiips!' if you don't get enough from elsewhere.

    Eat your salt. Do not fear it. And just think how wonderful your brain must be to somehow work out what's wrong with you and then flash pictures of a way to get it before your eyes. That's a pretty impressive brain, that is!

    OP is not afraid of salt, she is afraid of mindlessly eating a bag of chips.....
  • fhargis0002
    fhargis0002 Posts: 113 Member
    I am obsessed with vegetable straws. They have sea salt flavor and ranch so far. They are 38 straws=130 calories. They are gluten free blah blah blah, so just about everyone can eat them. I get mine at Wal-Mart in the cereal aisle, I don't know where else sells them, but I def recommend at least trying them cause they are delish! My husband and my 3 picky eating kids even love them!
  • action_figure
    action_figure Posts: 511 Member
    I agree with other people. If you're binging and you're out of control, treat the object of your binge just like you would treat cocaine if you were an addict. Make a clean break and get rid of it completely. No substitutes and crap like that. Because you'll be munching on kale chips and the whole time you'll be feeling deprived and thinking "This isn't as good as X brand." After a couple months "clean" then (unlike a drug addict) you can see if it has a less powerful hold on you and maybe you can reintroduce reasonable portions into your plan.
  • nikkylyn
    nikkylyn Posts: 325 Member
    Take your chips and pre portion them out into little baggies. Then eat your chips.. chips are yummy.

    I believe no food should be off limits unless your allergic to it. LOL.

    Balance it out with good foods I think you will be fine.

    I used to crave cookies all the time. But instead I just limit it. Some days I have one or two some days none. When we tell ourselves we cant have it we want it more.

    Either that or dont buy any more chips. But really in life can you really say you will never eat chips again, I know I couldnt. Moderation!
  • bridgie101
    bridgie101 Posts: 817 Member
    I've been doing so good eating healthy and watching my portions but the last few days I can't seem to get away from CHIPS!! Any suggestions on a good replacement/alternative that helps these cravings?

    Have you been going all low sodium? Because your body needs sodium and it'll send you all sorts of messages like 'buyyy chiiips, buyy chiiiiiiiiiiiiips!' if you don't get enough from elsewhere.

    Eat your salt. Do not fear it. And just think how wonderful your brain must be to somehow work out what's wrong with you and then flash pictures of a way to get it before your eyes. That's a pretty impressive brain, that is!

    OP is not afraid of salt, she is afraid of mindlessly eating a bag of chips.....

    yeah somehow I managed to work that out.

    she's having a fixation. You know, when you can't stop thinking about something you really want to eat.

    Why is she having the fixation? probably lack of sodium. Your body does this. it tries to get you to eat things that you lack. :p
  • ruthrowlett1
    ruthrowlett1 Posts: 82 Member
    Whay are they stil in my house - It's called having teenagers and a husband! I try to learn self control. I don't deprive myself of anything. I'm doing portion control.

    A lot of you had some good ideas. I'm not binging nor lacking salt. Just looking for an alternative to get away from them. I hadn't ate any chips forever and now they are just tooo darn good!! Kind of like peanut butter. I could eat the whole jar and cannot just NOT buy it. I have other family members to feed! I have learned to use PB2 and it helps a lot.

    I'm going to try the roasted veggies - that sounds good. Kale chips might get that crunch too. Rice cake I find just as high in calories as some chips but I do have the smaller bags at home for when I want them.

    Thanks all!!
  • Lizzy622
    Lizzy622 Posts: 3,705 Member
    I bought the nori seaweed mini sheets (20 sheets 60 calories) and my daughter actually likes them also. They satisfy that crunchy and salty snack need.
  • Smallc10
    Smallc10 Posts: 610 Member
    Kale chips are amazing and you can make them yourself. Also Garbanzo beans can be baked to make them crunchy and you can add pretty much any seasoning to them.
  • crackur
    crackur Posts: 473 Member
    I want some chips now.......with a nice dip.......or cheese.......I'm hungry. I have no chips, therefore, I cannot eat them.
  • LoniS
    LoniS Posts: 46 Member
    try kale chips. the nacho ones are really good and they are raw. http://rhythmsuperfoods.com/
  • krouse83
    krouse83 Posts: 182 Member
    I love potato chips too. And instead of cutting them out completely, I just buy the reduce fat/ sodium chips. More importantly though, I immediately open the bag and divide it out into individual portions in snack bags so that I don't over indulge. Eating smaller controled portions doesn't make me feel as guilty about enjoying some every now and then!
  • ashley11scott
    ashley11scott Posts: 63 Member
    My husband was the same way dont bring the chips into your house and look for other salty crunchy snacks to replace it with.
    - wasabi peas (crunchy and hot so takes long time to eat very little)
    -kale chips with light seas salt (crunchy and salty!)
    -buy only halloween sized or a small sized bag when you must have some and the craving has lasted hours.
    -try water and wait 30mins at lest see if you can get past the craving

    its hard but over time you will get use to the smaller portion and it will have less cravings!

    you can do it!
  • odo136
    odo136 Posts: 6 Member
    Fellow Potato Chip Addict:

    I have tried roasted chickpeas and they don't scratch the itch

    If there is a Trader Joe's near you they have Sea Salt and Pepper rice crisps that are sort of a cross between a cracker (but not crumbly) and a potato chip. They are pretty good are 38 pieces in a serving.

    I also go to the individual snack sized microwave popcorn bags and use the Pop Secrets seasoning in the shaker.

    If you seek the satisfying crunch- Costco and Trader Joe's have these sticky rice rolls that are about 45 calories each and are very crunchy.

    I have tried PopChips and PopCorners and they are good but pretty close to Potato Chips but you feel a little better about your choice.
  • SoDamnHungry
    SoDamnHungry Posts: 6,998 Member
    Stop buying taters, precious.

    Or you could buy the single serving bags and only eat one a day if you have trouble controlling yourself with the big bag open.
  • FitCanuckChick
    FitCanuckChick Posts: 240 Member
    Hello - Chocolate addict here married to a chip addict. My husband has just started his weight loss journey. The food thing is overwhelming for him and I have been logging and weighing food for 4 years now, so I am meal planning. I give him a certain amount of "snack" calories per day that he is in charge of....he uses a big chunk of them on the mini rice cakes - they are flavoured like chips (bbq, ketchup, sour cream and onion, sea salt and vinegar) and a single serving is 90 cals (I think for 20g - which is a nice sized little bowl). Here's the thing - he has a double serving - so 180 cals and it totally and completely satisfies any chip craving he has. He also says he can't eat more than that becasue by the end of the bowl he starts to get that rice cake "dry mouth". And, if he ever did totally go on a binge - the whole bag is around 500 cals - which is much better than a whole bag of chips. Good luck.
  • Its the sodium that keeps me from eating them as much as I would like... but I still eat them lays originals are my favorites
  • qtgonewild
    qtgonewild Posts: 1,930 Member
    well i enjoy the special k cracker chips sea salt flavor ones. they are 30 chips for 110 calories. and like i said, i like how they taste.
  • cadaverousbones
    cadaverousbones Posts: 421 Member
    Chips are not a drug so you arent "ADDICTED"

    If you can't control yourself with chips around, STOP BUYING THEM. When you have yourself under control, you can start maybe buying small packages of them. But honestly what I do if I know I will binge on something is NOT BUY IT so its not around to eat.
  • Paula5130
    Paula5130 Posts: 27 Member
    On Pinterest there are simple recipes for chick peas ...sweet and savoury nibbles, or make yourself kale crisps (kale, olive oil, seasonings, cook about 10-15 minutes at 180, not bad, or go for carrot sticks, celery, beet root chips etc x hope this helps