Grocery Shopping Please Help!

Options
Michelle240022
Michelle240022 Posts: 6 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I'm on a 1,520 calorie daily limit & within the next week I plan to do grocery shopping for the month. I've never truly dieted before now and I'm wondering:

1) What are some good low to no calorie drinks that I can get. I love water but sometimes I just need a tasty drink too.

2) Almond milk, skim milk, or soy milk? Which is better for someone who LOVES milk & Which brands of them taste the best?

3) What is the best butter alternative for cooking and taste?

And finally,

4) What are some yummy low calorie sweet or salty snack alternatives (either store bought or recipes)?


I'm a newbie at all of this so any additional tips or recommendations will be greatly appreciated!

Replies

  • mom2rpkp
    mom2rpkp Posts: 182 Member
    Options
    Here's what works for me - everything in moderation, and staying within my calorie limit. As far as groceries, it just takes practice to learn how to eat as nutritiously as possible without busting your budget. Although we prefer fresh, for budget reasons and to avoid waste, we use a lot of frozen veggies - the taste is great and I've read they are processed very quickly after harvest, which would mean they retain a lot of nutrients. Cabbage and carrots can be purchased in large quantities fresh because they last a long time. When we get home from the store, I wrap fresh produce in a coffee filter then put in a zipper plastic bag - reducing the moisture makes then last a lot longer. Still, you'll have to shop more often than monthly, because any fresh foods would have severely reduced nutrition after that long. Try making a meal plan and a list. This, too, takes practice. One more note: Make friends with the bulk bins for staples and spices.

    1) I'd just drink water - like brushing your teeth, it just becomes part of your day. I found that sometimes when I don't feel like drinking water, it's because I don't want cold water, so I'll have herbal tea instead, or just add a clove and a little cinnamon to a cup of hot water. The first of many small changes my daughter and I made was to stop buying any pop or juice. Our only beverages are water, herbal tea, and skim milk (I add a big chunk of lemon to a quart-sized mason jar every evening, then fill the jar so it can flavor overnight). There is a lot of difference of opinion in the MFP community about artificially-sweetened beverages. I can only speak from my experience that I do better without them - I find that the overly sweet taste makes me crave sugar.

    2) Which milk so you like? If you love milk, drink milk - just eat within your calorie limits. You clearly get more protein per gram of fat when you use 0% or 1%, but if you manage fat consumption elsewhere even higher fat wouldn't matter. The way we raise livestock in the US scares me, so I buy organic milk whenever I can afford to so. I have never found a difference in taste between brands of milk.

    3) What's wrong with butter? It's way better than fake food. Just use a tiny bit. We use a good non-stick pan for sauteing, and parchment paper for baking so we at most need a little olive oil cooking spray. For adding to foods, a tiny but of real butter goes a long way so taste. There are good alternatives, though - we always try for the shortest list of ingredients. I like Smart Balance Omega.

    4) My favorite sweet and salty snack is toasted salted almonds with raisins - a measured portion of each.

    Just keep at it! You'll do great. We try to make it fun and a little of an adventure to find ways to make favorite foods more nutritious and to have the best quality nutrition we can on a very limited budget. Good luck!
  • ottermotorcycle
    ottermotorcycle Posts: 654 Member
    Options
    1. I drink most of my water by making somewhat diluted diet iced tea, using powder. It's not the most natural solution but it keeps me hydrated.

    2. Honestly, regular cow's milk has the best nutritional profile. More protein, more nutrients you need. Especially if you already love milk, there's nothing wrong with it for dieting. As long as it fits in your goals, you can have 1%, 2% or even whole milk.

    3. The best butter alternative is butter. Just use less of it if it has too many calories for you. There is no acceptable substitute for butter (though whipped butter will give you more volume and spreadability)

    4. It depends on how you like to have your snacks. Fruits and vegetables are always good choices, alone or paired with other things like greek yogurt dip, hummus, guacamole/avocado, nut butters, etc. And popcorn is a great snack, salty or sweet, and if you buy the regular kernels it has very few calories and sort of little taste, but you can season it as you'd like. Chocolate milk isn't such an unhealthy sweet snack as it may seem, especially if you make it with a no sugar mix (note that hot chocolate mix is the same thing, and Carnation Instant Breakfast is the same thing with protein, fiber and vitamins.) Take a look around the recipes section for some ideas too!
  • Michelle240022
    Michelle240022 Posts: 6 Member
    Options
    Thank you for all your advice! I'll definitely go for more fresh and frozen veggies now. To be honest, I always used canned vegetables! Oops! I've been told many times that when it comes to dieting, you cant put such strick regulations on yourself or you'll end up caving in and binging on whatever you "Can't have" so I think I'll take your advice on doing everything in moderation!
  • Maleficent0241
    Maleficent0241 Posts: 386 Member
    Options
    1) I like tea or coffee as an alternative to water, and I will drink diet soda too. I know there is controversy surrounding some of those things, but it works for me so I don't sweat it.

    2) +1 on cow's milk. Unless you are lactose intolerant, just make it fit in your day and keep enjoying it. If you are, Lactaid milk works for a lot of people too.

    3) Butter. We switched to Kerrygold about a year ago - it tastes so much better than regular butter. I find that I can use less of it to impart flavor in something. You can also switch up recipes with olive oil and other oils, but that's more about consistency and flavor for me more than health. Again, just work it into your day.

    4) I like salty things, so I love dill pickles, jerky, and the like for snacks. I also love edamame as a snack. For sweets, berries with whipped cream is delicious. Plain greek yogurt with semi-sweet chocolate chips and a dash of vanilla extract makes for an awesome dessert. I also don't ban regular desserts if I have the calories left, and probably eat more than I should, but I try not to sweat it and try and do better the next day.
  • missabeez
    missabeez Posts: 280 Member
    Options
    A good rule to follow is to shop on the outside of the grocery store walls. That's where the fresh fruit veggies meat dairy frozen etc things are and that will get you the best bang for your buck.

    Personally, I drink water and loose leaf tea. If I want some thing more, I will add lemon or frozen berrries to water and make an infused drink. Also, sometimes I just want juice so if that's the case I picked up some v8 fusion that ha veggies and fruit in it. Today I really wanted orange juice so I just squeezed the juice from an orange and drank that.

    For sweet things I try to make things with protein powder and Greek yogurt. Bars, muffins, ice cream, anything. And peanut butter. I also have a specialty chocolate store called purdys and another called Laura secord. I get small bite sized chocolate from them and have one or two in the eveing if I'm feeling frisky lol.

    For milk and butter - try to find the best ingredients for your price range. For a while I was drinking almond milk buy we t back to regular since I was the only one drinking it.
  • zella1100
    zella1100 Posts: 19 Member
    Options
    I seem to do well on Almond milk but i'm lucky i'm not allergic to nuts. I found a youtube channel called Psychetruth and they had some great recommendations for shopping and diet food stuff.
  • asianrunner
    asianrunner Posts: 42 Member
    Options
    Can't speak much about your first few questions, but I'll share my snack ideas!

    crackers+babybel cheese
    string cheese
    fruit
    cottage cheese and fruit
    graham crackers and pb
  • sshintaku
    sshintaku Posts: 228 Member
    Options
    My "special" drink besides water is sparkling water. But then, I'm a really big water drinker to begin with so I don't know if thats a good alternative for you,

    I also don't have much of a sweet tooth, but I like M & Ms as a small chocolate treat that's not too crazy on calories, or I'll buy Popsicles if it's warm out - most are usually under 100 calories.

    For snacks, I LOVE pickles, apples and peanut butter, popcorn (but it makes me bloated), string cheese, yogurt, veggies and hummus.

Categories