What are your favorite diet hacks?
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This is not a diet hack more of a mental hack. If I am really craving dessert or chocolate after dinner at night, I tell myself I can have it for breakfast. Then at breakfast, I never want to eat a dessert of course.
I would love to do this but I LOVE cake and sweet things for breakfast so this would backfire on me3 -
Powdered peanut butter. What is this sorcery? I've just had a stack of protein pancakes full of chocolate-flavoured peanut butter for 410 calories. Does not compute xD6
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Healthyversal wrote: »Powdered peanut butter. What is this sorcery? I've just had a stack of protein pancakes full of chocolate-flavoured peanut butter for 410 calories. Does not compute xD
Oh yeah, I love peanut butter powder! It's amazing mixed with cinnamon as an apple dip. Yesterday I put some with soy sauce and hot sauce and made a spicy peanut sauce for some spring rolls.
My favorite dessert is now a protein bar - Built bars are absolutely amazing and each one gives 17 grams of protein and about 6 grams of fiber at 130-180 calories depending on the bar. I buy them direct from the manufacturer at this point.3 -
Using my food scale to see how much is in an actual serving! You'd be very surprised. I usually use it the first couple times, but after years I can eyeball a lot of different serving sizes now.5
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For me it's using things I like at lower portions instead of "healthier" or lower calorie options I don't care for. Eg. I prefer to use 1/2 tbs mayo instead of 1 tbs of the low fat version. I prefer parboiled rice over brown rice. One chocolate bar once in a while over a Fiber one bar once a day.
I'm finding it easier to maintain my losing weight better this way. Normally I would be really good a week or two then fall off but this time I am one month and a half in and 17 lbs gone.17 -
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I love using my air fryer! I can crisp up potatoes and veggies with little to no calories from oil5
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Make the smart choices easier than the indulgent ones.
I'm lazy. So, I preload for that. I used to keep snacks downstairs, where I spend most of my time. The whole bag/box/whatever. If I want a snack now, I have to WALK MY BUTT to the kitchen upstairs and get one. My snacking has decreased 70% from that alone. Add in 'put the chips in a bowl and bring them back so now I have to walk the bowl back upstairs and wash a bowl' it's down probably 95%. My candy lives in the freezer. If I want it I have to go get it and wait for it to thaw or eat it WAY more slowly because it's frozen. If I want more of anything I have to walk up a flight of stairs and through the house and back AGAIN.
My grocery orders are online. My previous orders are a the bottom. It is easier to rebuy things or purchase ingredients with none of the 'that looks good' impulse purchases that come from walking past it in the store. To get candy/cake/treats I have to SEEK THEM OUT AND ADD THEM, when I am not looking at them. Less emotional investment as well as zero impulse control being needed.
I put my running shoes on every morning. I am 95% more likely to go jog or walk if my SHOES ARE ON. If I'm walking around in socks inertia wins and I will do nothing. Shoes on is easy but keeps me moving via momentum.
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I have to say it.... Actual Keto Bread that tastes just as good or better then actual bread (I'm sure no-one will believe that unless they tried it... but it's true). And the exact same amount of Calories.
https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10825652/best-low-carb-bread-no-flour-was-used/p13 -
Two things I have done is making a variety of things to have with each meal. I don't like just eating a salad or one big item. Ill put together things like slices of turkey and cheese, some fruit and carrots for a meal.
The other thing I do is to tell myself that I can have the sweets and junk food I want. By not telling myself "I can't have that" I'm less likely to eat or drink the bad stuff. while I still drink the occasional soda, I drink it SO MUCH less often.1 -
I do lots of what has already been mentioned.
I do love using my mandoline - it makes the dish appear way more voluminous. I eat a ton of salad/meal bowls and soups too - always using my mandoline for all the veggies.4 -
Coming on here and reading about successes and hacks instead of nibbling while I wait for my food to finish cooking.8
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DIET BREAKS.
I'm posting this all over this morning because my temptation now that I'm barely more than 5lbs from my first major goal (healthy BMI) is intense and I just. Impatient and going hard is not how I've done it so far and it's not what I'm going to do close to the end.
But diet breaks help train me how to maintain and make things easier and sustainable and I need to keep doing that, darn it!6 -
Honestly, being a student who's gone from a lot of exercise to none nearly over a year, I've actually been very poor at diet managing. Since I've always been very finicky, I tended to use nicotine gum between meals as an appetite suppressant and just generally eating large meals with my friends (with whom I live), I've started to wisen up to the fact I've lost muscle and gained fat.
I've found the best hack is including one thing with a lot of fiber in each meal I eat. For dinner, I'll have beans as a base instead of rice, sometimes with chicken sausage or hot dogs cut up in it- works out for around 75p per serving and staying in my room or eating entire heads of lettuce as a snack. Only problem with this is that digestion is a trouble, and it makes me feel like I've overeaten. Each meal is around 500 kcal, cheap to make and really nice.
Personally, if you have disposable income I'd really recommend that when you make scrambled eggs or an omelette, to utilize egg whites instead of normal eggs. It removes most of the fat and, for the weight of one egg, you can have nearly twice that amount, so its filling as well!3 -
I often get munchy at night, and I deal with it two ways: one is to save some calories for an evening snack, and the other is to tell myself, "You're not hungry, you're munchy cause you're tired and sore. Take your night pills and have a hot bath and go to bed instead." And as that's usually what's going on, that works.
Going to bed on time really helps. If you eat around six and snack around nine, you're fine if you go to bed at ten. But if you stay up til midnight or later, you'll be past that three-hour window and want to eat again.8 -
I am a rice addict. Cauliflower rice doesn’t do it for me. Scrambled egg white as a rice substitute is my go to. I put my stir fries over it and it fills me up. Not the same as rice but it does the trick. High protein and vegetable. 🤗 Ps. I don’t add milk to my eggs like some.8
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Putting fat free cottage cheese in the blender and whipping it is a fabulous substitute for sour cream. Air Fryer for potatoes makes great fries with a tiny fraction of calories. Cinnamon on air fried sweet potato fries is magnificent. Old Bay seasoning on anything has 0 calories.2
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Eat off a smaller plate. Instead of a 13" eat off a 9". After finishing off a full 9" plate, mentally you've "cleaned it" and have no need to feel like you've wasted food whereas on a 13" plate you might feel that way if food is still left on it.
A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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Great ideas!
Fortunately, I love salad - so I keep a great garden salad in the fridge and when I fix the rest of the family something higher calorie or heavy on carbs I can just throw some of the protein in a salad for me.
I also pre-log meals and exercise so I know what I'm getting myself into before it's too late in the day.
I LOVE french fries and chocolate peanutbutter cups (and, honestly, Lynchburg Lemonade) and while I'd like to think those can still be a regular part of my diet, I have found that what works for me is seeing those as a very rare treat. For me, regular inclusion of high-calorie or high carb foods, even in small amounts, is a slippery slope into a place I don't want to go back to.5 -
This is not for everyone, but prepping a bunch of the same meal and eating that for a couple meals a day (or more). I pick things I enjoy eating frequently, like taco bowls, stir fry, etc and then have it ready/easy to assemble in the fridge.
I have more of a need for something quick (and less decisions I have to make in a day
) and variety isn't a huge concern. It's so much easier to stay on track and then I can work in things that I want but I don't have to think too hard about every meal. 13 -
These are some of the things that have helped me balance out my diet, improve my lifestyle, and give me the energy and satisfaction to keep at it:
Herbal teas - healthy, calming, delicious...
Skyr - thick, creamy, filling, and low-cal snack/dessert.
Hard boiled eggs -Make a batch every week from older eggs, an excellent quick snack.
Poached Chicken Breast - Make a batch at the beginning of the week so lean protein is always available. I can add it to almost any dish or enjoy on its own.
Eliminating Alcohol - So many calories and no longer compatible with the long-term healthy lifestyle I envision for myself.
Caffeine only in the a.m. - By limiting caffeine to morning times, I find I sleep better and wake up with more energy and clarity in the mornings.
Healthy and balanced family meals - Requires more shopping, planning, and patience (with picky eater kids) but is so worth it for everyone.
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Eat off a smaller plate. Instead of a 13" eat off a 9". After finishing off a full 9" plate, mentally you've "cleaned it" and have no need to feel like you've wasted food whereas on a 13" plate you might feel that way if food is still left on it.
I never believed this would work until I actually tried it. It's a mental thing for me. The plate LOOKS full so it must be a lot of food. A serving of pasta for example looks tiny on a big plate, but on the smaller plate it looks correct. Perception! I am actually tempted to buy more small plates due to this.11 -
miracle noodles and a bouillon cube1
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elsie_fair wrote: »This is not for everyone, but prepping a bunch of the same meal and eating that for a couple meals a day (or more). I pick things I enjoy eating frequently, like taco bowls, stir fry, etc and then have it ready/easy to assemble in the fridge.
I have more of a need for something quick (and less decisions I have to make in a day ) and variety isn't a huge concern. It's so much easier to stay on track and then I can work in things that I want but I don't have to think too hard about every meal.
This is exactly what I do. I can not stand that idea of cooking everyday so I meal prep on Sundays for the week and will just make larger portions of breakfast, lunches, and dinners so I don't have to think about food. This has saved me from making poor impulse choices when I'm hungry and don't want to cook6 -
How to make chicken breast that isn't terrible:
1) I brine it in lightly salted water for anywhere from 30 mintues to 3 hours before I eat it (I'll eat the breast for lunch so throw it in water after breakfast and weighing it)
2) Drain and pat dry with paper towels.
3) use my hands/fist to push down on the thickest part of the meat to flatten it a bit, for better cooking.
4) brush with about a teaspoon of olive oil on each side, add salt and pepper.
5) throw in a hot cast iron/Dutch oven (a heavy bottom / not non-stick) pan with another teaspoon of olive oil) and sear for 6-7 minutes per side until done, bouncy with a nice crust.
6) For other flavors I:
-use other dried seasonings (garlic powder ,onion powder, chili powder, etc) with the salt and papper. Using these will get them pretty blackened on high heat, be warned)
-brush the top side of the chicken with a teaspoon of hot sauce while the other side grills, then repeat after flipping.
It's a great chicken breast with a nice crust, flavor, and NOT dried out at all! It's about a tablespoon of fat that I always measure out / count on MFP, but often you can sauté some veggies in what's left on the pan as teh chicken is on its last few minutes, so you make it count.
Swtich up the seasonings and it can be a not-repetitive lunch everyday. Once I'm back in the office I'll have to see how making ahead of time turns out, but I'm hopeful!3 -
For now, having started logging food into MFP only 3 weeks ago, and wanting to lose 130 pounds, I'm doing these 5 things at this point:
1. Measure/weigh everything and log it in MFP honestly. I had no idea I was eating 2 to 3 times a single portion size, at nearly every meal! It's helping me realize I can feel full with less food, and feel fuller longer with healthier options (fruit instead of cookies, for example).
2. Other than cutting out sweets, brownies, and cookies, which I LOVE, I'm eating normal foods and not doing any low carb or high protein or gluten free thing. Just logging what I eat and see where it falls in carbs, proteins, and fats. Learning from the charts to slowly adjust meals/food towards eating less fat, for starters. Keeping it simple while I see and learn from the nutrient chart.
3. Entered my profile as sedentary and goal of 1.5 pounds a week for a daily calorie goal. But I also know what my calorie limits are for 1 pound and 2 pounds per week. This way I can eat less or eat more than the 1.5 pound calorie limit in a given day, still be in a safe, steady weight loss range, and not freak out or feel guilty. (I expect my weight loss to slow or plateau at times).
4. I don't enter calories burned per type of exercise, since I think that really can't be figured out accurately. Instead, I log exercise or movement simply so I know I did it and how often. Again, with the sedentary profile, any extra movement is a plus.
5. On day 1, took before pictures from both sides and front and back, plus a few other views, and took measurements. Will repeat the same pictures and measurements once a month. Using a spreadsheet to calculate pounds and inches lost per month and in total over time, while weighing in weekly. I saw so many wonderful before and after pictures here, I decided I want those, too!
These are things I am doing for now while I get used to developing new habits, like eating zero to few processed sweets, managing cravings, and moving more.
Once I get better at those basics, I may reset goals or use other tricks or hacks to change things up and stay motivated.10 -
elsie_fair wrote: »This is not for everyone, but prepping a bunch of the same meal and eating that for a couple meals a day (or more). I pick things I enjoy eating frequently, like taco bowls, stir fry, etc and then have it ready/easy to assemble in the fridge.
I have more of a need for something quick (and less decisions I have to make in a day ) and variety isn't a huge concern. It's so much easier to stay on track and then I can work in things that I want but I don't have to think too hard about every meal.
This is exactly what I do. I can not stand that idea of cooking everyday so I meal prep on Sundays for the week and will just make larger portions of breakfast, lunches, and dinners so I don't have to think about food. This has saved me from making poor impulse choices when I'm hungry and don't want to cook
Thirded! I basically try to do all of my thinking about food on the weekends. I prep and pre-log breakfast and lunch, and plan dinners that will yield a day or two of leftovers, so on a given day i only need to weigh out dinner ingredients and maybe cream for my coffee if i have cold brew handy. Breakfast is burritos, and I have a six-week rotation of lunch and dinner meals that i revisit once a month-ish.7 -
My new thing is always keeping 2-4 coarsely grated carrots in an airtight plastic container in the fridge. Not only does it make it easier to grab a handful to add to cooked dishes and salads, but it's become my go-to snack to munch in front of the TV. I don't know why, but grated carrots seem to taste so much better than simply eating the same amount Bugs Bunny style.7
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I’ve started using Herdez tomatillo salsa as salad dressing. It has a nice flavor and a good texture for dressing, for only 7.5 calories per tablespoon!5
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When I'm in serious weight loss mode, I brew a pot of decaf after work. Sipping on a cup eliminates the urge to snack.
I also have a cup after dinner to eliminate the dessert cravings!7
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