Low-cal but filling meals?

Stir-Fry, just use light oil or no oil.

I've been doing burrito bowls lately and find them very filling. About half a cup of rice, half a roasted chicken breast, roasted peppers and onions, lots of lettuce, cucumbers, tomatoes, salsa, plain yogurt, hot sauce, lime juice. If I have the calories in my budget I sometimes add guacamole and/or shredded cheese.

I've been using this recipe for the roast veggies and chicken!

http://www.budgetbytes.com/2013/02/oven-fajitas/

hard boiled egg is a great snack. ALso, you don't have to eat a lot of nuts. 7 almonds plus a small piece of fruit like a plum is filling or small apple or pear.

Lean meats. If you get 95% fat-free beef, you could do half a pound (pre-cook weight) of, say, taco meat for under 400 calories. Grilled chicken is another great option. Even regular spaghetti can be very filling for its calories if you don't add too much sauce or cheese.

Proteins are very filling in general, and complex carbs like pasta and potatoes keep you full longer than simple carbs because they digest slower.

I like to cut a cheese stick into 4 pieces and then wrap each piece in a slice of deli meat (so four slices....usually turkey). I will then add some pretzels, fruit (like grapes) or vegetable (like pickles or carrots) to round it out. I do this as a meal and it is about 350 cals. It is a nice filler to get me through the work day.

However you could just do the cheese and meat for around 150-160 calories or not eat everything at once and just graze through the items listed above throughout the day.

I make chicken fajita bowls using chicken, onion and bell pepper and I make a spicy fajita seasoning to stir fry it up (with about 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil)..

I use Misson carb low carb tortillia's (6 net carbs) and put them in bowls and toast them in the oven and fillup with my stir fry and cooked chicken.. you can add cheese, salsa or low fat sour cream... I usually leave these off.

Stuffed peppers. Lean ground meat cooked with onions then baked in peppers. I use a bit of tomato sauce and when I have extra calories add a bit of rice and some cheese. I don't like mushrooms but you could add those too.

Last night I made zucchini noodles sautéed with garlic, tossed with roasted eggplant, mushrooms, tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, and parm. It was a huge bowl for under 300 calories.

My dinner was a bag of frozen cauliflower mashed with a wedge of light Laughing Cow cheese and 3 slices of deli ham. 195 calories. Another option is a bag of frozen broccoli with some grated parmesan and 3 ounces of cooked shrimp.

Im on a bit of a zoodle kick right now--Tonight I am trying zoodles with a light pumpkin alfredo, mushrooms, ground turkey, onions and sage. From what I have preplanned in MFP it should just under 400 calories I cant wait to leave my office!

gia07 wrote: »

I make chicken fajita bowls using chicken, onion and bell pepper and I make a spicy fajita seasoning to stir fry it up (with about 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil)..

I use Misson carb low carb tortillia's (6 net carbs) and put them in bowls and toast them in the oven and fillup with my stir fry and cooked chicken.. you can add cheese, salsa or low fat sour cream... I usually leave these off.

One of my favs! I could eat this for days. I don't use the low carb tortillas but I get the fajita size because they are smaller but still satisfying. I also use plain greek yogurt instead of sour cream and no cheese because I just don't like it. I'll sometimes add in some tomatoes or other veggies I have on hand.

Tonight, I had an acorn squash, roasted and stuffed with ground turkey, apples, onions, celery, and mushrooms with seasonings and it was SO GOOD. Around 375ish calories depending on what you use/quantities. I paired it with roasted brussel sprouts because YUM lol.

Soups are always a good choice because you can make them extra brothy to fill you up and add any veggies you want. I don't really do creamy soups but I love veggie and chicken based soups and you can use up extras in your fridge.

I also advise getting lots of friends with open diaries and stalking their meals for a while to get ideas!

This is more a like a snack but I love cucumbers with lime and a bit of salt. I usually slice two full cucumbers, shower them in lime juice and sprinkle a bit of salt. I like to eat those while watching a movie or just after exercising. It's very filling and extremely low in calories. Sometimes I add chili powder too but that's because I'm Mexican