Food Sacrifices and Substitutes

asianrabbit31
asianrabbit31 Posts: 6 Member
edited October 2016 in Food and Nutrition
As part of my dieting journey, i've picked up the habit of counting my daily calorie intakes. From this, i discovered just how calorie-packed my lifestyle was :#
This eye-opener led to me sacrificing specific foods/ingredients and finding subs for them. Through this post i hope that we can share our own food sacrifices amd subs.

I'll definitely be using this as a reference to make healthier food choices because saving that extra 50 calories through an alternative is an awesome cheat in my diet :D Also, i hope this will be helpful for others!! Thanks a whole bunch

Replies

  • asianrabbit31
    asianrabbit31 Posts: 6 Member
    Sacrifices:
    -CHEESE, they are like 100 cal per slice! I remember the days when i used to top my spaghetti with like 2 or 3 slices. This habit just had to go because i could be spending my calories much more wiser. (If im motivated enough, i might excerise a big more to reward myself with a slice of pizza)
    -TAPIOCA PEARLS, im a big lover of bubble tea and was shocked to find out that 1/4 cup of tapioca pearls (dry) was 140 cal. With no nutritional value and very high carbs, it was clear that i had to cut this out TT

    Substitutes:
    -ALMOND MILK, instead of drinking my usual skim milk, i changed to unsweetened vanilla almond milk. A cup of unsweetened almond milk has just 40 calories, compared to 90 calories in a cup of skim milk. Also, it contains no cholesterol and saturated fat. (But i gotta say, it might not taste the best.)
    -EVERYTHING WHOLE GRAIN, corn tortillas instead of flour tortillas (less saturated fat, sodium, calories, carbs); brown instead of white rice; whole grain instead of white bread. Generally, whole grains have a bit more fiber and less carbs.
  • cnbbnc
    cnbbnc Posts: 1,267 Member
    I use cooking spray instead of butter/oil sometimes.
    Thin bagels instead of rolls for sandwiches.
    Shirataki noodles in place of pasta sometimes.
    Splenda instead of sugar.
    Frozen Nonfat Greek yogurt with fruit/Splenda for a frozen dessert.
  • neldabg
    neldabg Posts: 1,452 Member
    I totally understand. I use substitutes/alternatives when I don't think taste will be compromised and then just exercise portion control for everything else.
    For example, I don't hate Shirataki noodles, but they just don't do it for me. Instead, I just use regular noodles and portion out around 3/4 of the recommended serving size and add a lot of veggies and some meat.
    Generally, in stores, I take the time to compare nutrition labels and opt for the product that offers the lowest calories PER GRAM/PORTION (labels can be tricky) and the best protein and fat ratio per serving. To break a tie, I examine vitamins and minerals provided, and the winning product is the one that's the cheapest.
    For ice cream, I *did* like Halo Top as a substitution, so much that after reading reviews here on MFP and trying them out myself, I went through nearly a pint a day for a few consecutive days. Well, as the saying goes, too much of a good thing is too much of a good thing, and after those fews days, I got sick of Halo Top. I get a little nauseous whenever I think of the ice cream. Haha. Now I stick to regular ice cream.
    I second the bagel thins, however I sometimes just buy regular bagels if there's a good sale and just eat half a bagel.
    I love sweets and still do eat them, but I also love protein bars just as much, so I'll often eat a protein bar as my sweet treat. I get the sweetness of candy bars while also hitting protein goals.
    As for cookies, I've been spoiled by Lenny & Larry's Complete Cookies. They're very dense and provide slightly more protein per serving than bakery/packaged cookies. Even though I have to eat only half a cookie at a time, I honestly find them much more tasty and satisfying than regular cookies.
    I don't miss regular milk at all. I use coconut/soy milk in place of regular milk, and recently, I've been using protein powder for my cereal.
    Protein pancakes in place of regular pancakes.
    Burrito/tortilla wraps, flat breads, and/or mushroom caps instead of regular prepackaged crust for homemade pizza.
    Turkey/chicken versions of sausages, bacon, pepperoni, and hamburgers.
    Jennie O's ground turkey.
  • EspressoLvr
    EspressoLvr Posts: 100 Member
    edited October 2016
    Sacrifices
    Breads
    Fatty dressings
    Ground beef
    Cheese
    Sugar: cookies, chocolate

    Substitutions
    spring roll wrappers
    Mustards of all varieties
    Yogurt based dressings (Bolthouse is excellent - U.S.)
    Ground Turkey
    Feta - use less, get plenty of cheesy goodness
    MyWholeFoodLife - amazing recipes with natural sugar substitutes, like dates.

  • flagrantavidity
    flagrantavidity Posts: 218 Member
    edited October 2016
    It depends on what your food philosophies are. Some people refuse to eat foods that have, what they consider, unnatural ingredients. These could include some sugar free sweeteners, processed foods, gmo's ect. Here are some substitutions or options I go with that have helped me. You may also want to look into a book series, I think they have a website now too, called Eat This Not That.

    Substitutions:
    Greek Yogurt instead of Sour Cream
    0% Milk instead of Whole Milk/2% Milk. (Or homemade almond milk, since almond milk is expensive and it only takes three cups to make about a gallon.)
    Sugar Free options in place of regular (Such as puddings, ice cream, ect.)
    Laughing Cow Cheese Wedges instead of regular cheese.
    Shirataki/Miracle noodles instead of regular pasta. (Warning: they do have an earthy flavor to them.)

    Fudgesicles are a low calorie treat.


    Make your pizza, cheeseburgers, and other normally "bad for you" foods at home from scratch. If you make the sauces and dough for a pizza from scratch, you can control what's in it. Toppings like pepperoni or salami will still need to be purchased pre-made, but you can control the amount you put on top. If you make a cheeseburger, get lean beef, get thin sliced cheese or laughing cow cheese, make it an open top burger or get some romaine lettuce and wrap it with the lettuce cutting out the bun.

    There are a lot of low calorie, high flavor condiments/flavorings as well such as:
    Jalapenos and other peppers, balsamic vinegar, Yellow Mustard, Tahini, Kimchi, Siracha and most hot sauces, Harissa, (some) BBQ sauces - make your own, Teriyaki/Soy sauces, Hoisin sauce, Lemon Juice, pepper, chilis, cocoa powder.

  • purebredpolly
    purebredpolly Posts: 318 Member
    My entire diet changed after Easter. Virtually everything I eat is heart healthy now. I would have to say the very best switch I have made has been dessert. Good golly miss molly am I saving calories making that switch. Hungry Girl has the best swap recipes for desserts that I have found. I have even created a few of my own along the way.
  • flagrantavidity
    flagrantavidity Posts: 218 Member
    Oh, I almost forgot. Get some cucumbers, slice them up and use them to dip in salsa or another good for you food like hummus.
  • crzycatlady1
    crzycatlady1 Posts: 1,930 Member
    edited October 2016
    The only thing I've substituted is diet soda for regular. Besides that I still eat the foods I used to, just in the correct serving sizes/calorie amounts.

    eta: oh, and I now chose light mayo at Subway instead of the regular I used to get :)
  • amy_kee
    amy_kee Posts: 694 Member
    hummm.....cucumber pieces dipped in salsa. I like that idea.

    I substitute:
    ground turkey for ground beef
    plain Greek yogurt for sour cream
    I love some lettuce wraps, instead of a bun or bread
    I love zucchini spiral noodles instead of spaghetti pasta
    I like roasted veggies instead of boiled veggies with butter and salt
  • lemurcat12
    lemurcat12 Posts: 30,886 Member
    Less oil, less butter, less cheese (and low cal strong flavored cheese like feta often, although I still eat artisan cheeses for dessert sometimes). Also, nothing I didn't care about.

    Reviewing my day and getting rid of that stuff shocked me in how many calories I was able to ditch, without it feeling like a sacrifice at all.
  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
    Less oil. A lot less oil.

    More fruit for snacks instead of crackers.

    I barely eat cheese any more. I lost my taste for it along the way. When I do, it's usually feta or Parmesan. I used to eat a LOT of cheese.

    Everything else is just smaller portions.
  • rainydayvivi
    rainydayvivi Posts: 12 Member
    edited October 2016
    No cookies, crackers, breads, pastas, simple carbs unless extenuating circumstances and I have the calories to spend.

    When making tuna salad I use half light mayo and half 0% plain non-fat yogurt. Tastes the same and more protein / less fat. I also add lots of chopped celery, red onion, and some relish. Then eat with lots of raw veggies. Very filling.

    Cool whip sugar-free for a sweet taste, a spoonful or two out straight out of the freezer.

    Canned diced/chopped tomatoes instead of caloric pasta sauces, using broccoli instead of pasta. Squash works here too.

    The softer the cheese the less fatty. Spreadable creamy goat cheese from Trader Joes is very low cal/ fat and tastes great. I put just a little with my egg/eggwhites to make myself eat the eggs.

    Kay's Nacho Cheese Chili Protein chips save my life with high protein / low carb they replace salty snacks, along with Seasnax Seaweed Nori snacks.

    Keeping around celery sticks to munch on.

    Drinking a lot of coffee with the 30 cal per serving almond milk. A lot. of. coffee.

  • dragon_girl26
    dragon_girl26 Posts: 2,187 Member
    For me, it really hasn't been about substitutions so much as it is about eating less.
    I will substitute plain Greek yogurt for mayo in chicken salad, in place of sour cream, or in place of oil in cake mixes if I'm not taking the cake out of the house. Otherwise, I eat what I want in the appropriate portions. I also have cut out most of my cheese usage, and bread, but only because the calories aren't worth it to me.
    I've also learned that I can bulk up things. A single serving of cereal looks a lot bigger with a banana or strawberries sliced up in it. Pasta servings look huge when I have only 3/4 of a portion of the noodles, but a plentiful mix of carrots and broccoli added to it. It's almost like a mind trick that way. A tiny looking portion makes me think I'm still hungry, but a larger looking portion does the trick.

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