Low calorie foods BUT filling.....HELP!!!

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  • linnyrhea
    linnyrhea Posts: 105
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    Agreed. Maybe reset your goals so you have around 1500 calories for the day. Then you wont feel so hungry.

    As far as filling foods go, try spinach salads, greek yogurt is higher in calories then regular yogurt but its loaded with protein, so it helps to keep you full. Almonds and peanut butter are good too, in small amounts :)
  • MoooveOverFluffy
    MoooveOverFluffy Posts: 398 Member
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    IF you are working out, PLEASE read this:

    http://www.myfitnesspal.com/topics/show/539980-people-who-have-had-success-by-upping-their-calories
  • lizard053
    lizard053 Posts: 2,344 Member
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    High fiber, high protein foods help keep you satisfied longer. Look for fruits and veggies with high water and high fiber content like lettuce, celery, apples, pears and melons. Lean sources of proteins, including nuts, are also great for helping you stay full and feel satisfied.
  • Captain_Tightpants
    Captain_Tightpants Posts: 2,215 Member
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    Protein will keep you feeling fuller for longer. Fat will satiate you. So a mix of protein and fat is the winning combo - lean meats, nuts, eggs etc.
  • Silver_Star
    Silver_Star Posts: 1,351 Member
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    Okay, here's the problem...I'm a newbie so please bear with me.

    Before I joined MFP I would eat whenever the mood so took me. Call it what you like, I grazed, picked, pigged out, well just ate for comfort basically. I'm really trying to exercise some self displine but lasting on 1200 calories per day is very challenging.

    I'd just be grateful for any tips/advice that you do to make your calories go so much further.

    I'm not a fussy eater and love all food. But would love some tips so that my menu is more varied.

    Thanks in advance x

    Im a food lover too and im on a 1220 cal per day too....and i get hungry all the time!
    What i found worked for me is:

    Whey Protein shakes
    Adding beans to my diet
    Eating more chicken....as is MORE PROTEIN..it keeps me full for a lot longer

    Drink lots of water and separate your cals into several smaller sections and eat those throughout the day.
    and DONT keep any high sodium and sugary snacks at home! get rid of them. They are so unsatisfying in small amounts so the urge to scarf all of it down is overpowering.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    Protein, fats, fiber, complex carbs ALL keep you full. Eat the foods you enjoy, but see if there is a "healthier" swap to make.


    Example: White bread vs. wheat bread. The more processed "Wonder" bread has much less fiber & protein than wheat. Look for higher fiber & protein cereals .... Kashi has several.

    Yogurt - greek yogurt has less carbs, and more protein than regular. This is a good swap.

    Whole fruits usually have more fiber than fruit juices.

    Nuts and nut butters are healthy fats (have some protein too). These are healthy choices.

    Finally, I love a big bowl of hot air popped popcorn. Even making it with a little oil is still healthy, lots of fiber.
  • graelwyn
    graelwyn Posts: 1,340 Member
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    I have a tbsp of peanut butter followed by some water sometimes to fill me up.
    I also eat things like rice noodles, brown rice, baked potato, lots of vegetables, a piece of fruit a day, boiled or grilled fish, avocado, cottage cheese, Total greek yoghurt(which tastes nice with low calorie drinking chocolate stirred in), beans, soups, dried prunes(for regularity and they are very filling with liquid) and eggs. I avoid bread and wheat products as much as I can, personally, as I feel better for it and get less bloated.

    I agree with others, try starting at around 1500 calories, and see how that goes. If you aren't losing weight on that, then reduce it a bit. Make sure to get some exercise in, it buys you extra calories and tends to take up time you might otherwise spend eating. Drink lots of water, trust me, it makes a difference. I always find a low calorie hot chocolate drink fills me up a lot too if I get hungry or crave something sweet before bed.
  • 19Snowflake57
    19Snowflake57 Posts: 4 Member
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    The more exercise that you do the more you get to eat. Hope that helps. I couldn't stay on 1200 calories a day either if it weren't for logging in my exercising. Even if you are just walking or cleaning the house or mowing, it all counts! Good luck.
  • robin49505
    robin49505 Posts: 38 Member
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    Good comments from everyone - in lieu of repeating all the food choices everyone gave you, I would strongly recommend "friending" people and looking at their diary's. I do it and it provides great food ideas when I get bored! Feel free to add me!
  • amymimi12
    amymimi12 Posts: 51 Member
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    I totally had the same problem. I'm an elbow bender, I like to have more volume, so here are a few things that have helped me so far (15 pounds down but still a ways to go)...
    Lots of water - make sure you get 8 glasses per day. It's hard at the beginning but helps you feel full. And it makes your skin look good! Add fruit or veggies to EVERYTHING - i.e.: eat a salad with lunch & dinner, add extra veggies to any packaged foods, add fruit to cereal or oatmeal, all the fiber helps me feel full and makes me feel like I'm getting more bulk. Make sure you get a bit of protein with every meal & snack. Egg, greek yogurt, lean meats, etc. And prepare snacks that are healthier... my favorites are frozen grapes, string cheese or light Babybel, baby carrots/cucumber/bell peppers with hummus, freeze dried fruit (not just dried fruit with all that sugar, try Crispy Greens or Crunchies), and the 100-cal bags of microwave popcorn. Most afternoons I eat a nonfat greek yogurt with a cup of berries and that keeps me full between lunch and dinner.
    I LOVE peanut butter and almonds and cashews, and a lot of people say they help you feel full, but they're too high in calories for me to have them very often, because I just don't have the self control yet to stop eating them!
    Also - exercise and then eat the extra calories. As long as you maintain your deficit, you can eat the calories you've earned through working out. And it helps my will power too because I don't want to undo with food what I've done with exercise. Good luck, we're all in this together!
  • Musikelektronik
    Musikelektronik Posts: 739 Member
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    Cottage cheese, protein shakes, and Balance Bars (all varieties). All of these are high in protein, which may be why they keep you filled up for a long time. They work great.

    Good luck!
  • lbcruzin
    lbcruzin Posts: 15 Member
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    GG Scandanavian crispbread with almond butter or peanut butter, or with turkey breast and olive oil mayo...
  • HollywoodDJ
    HollywoodDJ Posts: 296
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    Hard boiled eggs work really super great for me as well as snacking on sugar snap peas. (Don't let the word "sugar" fool you,
    it's still a veggie and low in calories and super yummy. Another thing that is working for me is Vanilla yogurt with a banana. It taste like banana cream pie w/o the crust and it is very satisfying.

    I am new here too and have had my nights where I feel like I am climbing the walls and like a drug addict that wants that next "hit" and I have looked at my profile to see where I was at for Vitamins/ Fats, Calcium and etc. and I see where I am low and I have a snack in the area that I am super low in. I noticed one night I was shaking I wanted to eat so bad even though I had just had supper...I was almost frantic and feeling defeated and I went to my MFP and saw I was low in Calcium and Potassium and so I thought...ok I will have a cup of milk and a banana and afterwards I was still somewhat hungry but I wasn't freaking out, climbing the walls. It worked and I was able to get through the rest of the night just fine.

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  • Lusciousss
    Lusciousss Posts: 8
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    Wow! Thanks so much for everyone’s advice/tips and general suggestions – I really do appreciate it.

    My calorie intake was set by MFP but I will definitely be ‘earning more calories via exercise’ and I also will not beat myself up if I go over that limit at times.

    Well, I love peanut butter :) and am currently eating 3 meals a day. I will be trying all the suggestions e.g. peanut butter, Tofu Shiratake noodles, raw veggies dipped in soy sauce/low fat Ranch sauce, more lean protein, pretzels, Greek yoghurt, nuts/granola, fat free cottage cheese, various beans, fruit with high water content......well, the tips are endless but everything posted has been useful for me and I will be referring back to the post to put the ideas into action. I can't wait to go food shopping!

    The variety from all these wonderful options available to me doesn't make it all seem so impossible now but actually very achievable.

    I’m overwhelmed by the support (thanks for all the friend requests and also for those that have accepted my friendship - "befriending" really does make the journey less daunting) and will make more use of the message boards now that I know so much help is out there. I’m truly, truly thankful.
  • yesthistime
    yesthistime Posts: 2,051 Member
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    Popcorn, egg whites, milk.
  • Kell_Smurthwaite
    Kell_Smurthwaite Posts: 384 Member
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    Exercise doesn't just increase your calorie allowance, remember it increases ALL the areas rigth across the board, so if you're finding you're a little over in any area, log a little activity and see if it give s you some wiggle room. I did that with my protein today - I was going to go over my allowance, but once I'd logged my activity, I came in just under and was green across the board after all. :)

    As a general rule, low cal filling foods tend to be fruits and vegetables because they have a high water content. If you make fruit and veg the bulk of your menu, followed by lean meat and some carbs, you'll be filled up without breaking the calorie bank.

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  • newwoj
    newwoj Posts: 1
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    I'm on a 1200 calorie diet. The first few days you feel like your stomach is eating itself,but your body adjusts quickly. I typically stay with 1200 until I lose 10 lbs, then up it o 1500-1800 and try to maintain for at least 2 weeks and then start all over again. It woks for m.
  • gxl1989
    gxl1989 Posts: 3 Member
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    Green Bean soup - 200calories
    Pumpkin cubes - 200 calories

    They are filling enough to be a meal by itself!
  • jemini83
    jemini83 Posts: 1 Member
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    Vegetables!

    I made a "goulash" without any noodles or rice and it was 20 oz. ground turkey, 4 zucchini, a whole package of baby spinach and 2 cans tomatoes, season as you like (salt, pepper, italian seasoning, etc) and then you can eat like 1/3 of that which is a bunch of food and it's only like 330 calories.

    I also make tuna fish but put in a TON of celery, cucumbers, onions, tomatoes, etc to bulk it up and then split it into meals. Eat it on low calories bread or you can through it on top of a salad of greens and put on some low fat dressing, yummy, easy and less than 400 calories.

    I found the more you bulk up your food with veggies or just eat tons of veggies (and I mean tons) you won't be hungry but you'll feel full...

    Also I like squash, like a half an acorn squash with a small amount of light butter and salt and pepper (162 calories) ... and you can cook up some of that turkey and spinach and put it on top of the acorn squash and have a whole meal!

    Hope I wasn't rambling and you found that helpful!
  • emirror
    emirror Posts: 842 Member
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    I like tilapia. I can have half a pound for 200 calories and 40 grams of protein. I make mine in microwave steamer bags with a tablespoon of salt free Mrs Dash chili lime seasoning. It takes 4.5 minutes to cook. It's simple, quick, and will keep me full for hours.

    I also like scrambled eggs with a bit of sausage gravy for breakfast. Salsa is another good topping for scrambled eggs. Eggs are high in protein, which will fill you up.

    Otherwise, vegetables are good, but grains, sugary foods (including fruit), and dairy all add up quickly in calories.

    If you have a lot of weight to lose, I wouldn't start with such a low calorie allotment. You have to see how much you have to lose, and how long it will take you to get there. Are you going to be able to stick with such low calories? It is tempting to go all in when you are starting out, and sometimes that works for people, but you need to decide if that will truly work for you.

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