Diet Saviors! please share yours.

We all share a common goal- to drop the pounds! Some of you are just starting out and some (like me) have been working on this for a loooong time.

What are your absolute diet saviors! The things/foods you just could'nt do this without? Perhaps with sharing these nuggets of information we can make food that bit tastier and losing that bit easier.

I will start:

My steamer- a MUST have for fish & Veggies

1 Cal spray oil- For roasting and stir frys. They do a caesar dressing version and an olive oil too. BIG savior for me :o)

Laughing Cow extra light- great for crackers, using instead of butter on sandwiches, mashing into potatoes, dipping cucumber sticks into.

Lean Pork and Turkey mince (ground)- I use these in place of beef/lamb for burgers, chillis, bolognese etc.. tastes like beef if you crumble in a couple of beef stock cubes whilst browning!

Turkey! (In general)- Turkey sausages, turkey ham, turkey bacon, turkey breast steaks. Super low fat, lean and low calorie.

Fat free plain yoghurt- To make tasty dips/ dressings like tzatziki, raita, lemon etc.. good with jacket potatoes, salads, sandwiches, ryvitas, barbequed meats, dip for veggie snacks etc...

Empty Coke Bottles!!!- 2 Litre bottles filled with water. they make GREAT free weights. SCULPT THOSE GUNS!!!

Right, now I feel I've imparted a little wisdom. Please do share yours :o)

Ditto on the spray butter!  It's perfect for 100 calorie pop popcorn!

V8 with 2 pickle spears.  That will tide me over until dinner!

Whole wheat Low Carb tortillas, Lots of fiber and protien...Put some chicken, lettuce and salsa in one of those and I'm good to go!  (or breakfast burrito!)

Skinny Cow Ice cream.  At about 150 calories it's worth eating compared to a big bowl of full fat Ice Cream!

Instant oatmeal / apples and cinnamon, 130 calories.  That's lunch!

I'm gonna try some of the other things everyone else has suggested!

Tea. No calories: but I tend to have it with a digestive (sometimes a chocolate one) because, for some odd reason, hot tea + biscuit completely fills me up. about 80 calories, thats more filling for me than a proper meal. I kid you not.

Sadly, I'm off dairy atm, and I hate black tea. So - and don't laught - I've turned to running.

I run better when I'm not full, and afterwards I don't get hungry for a good few hours. At least three. So if I'm hungry shortly after lunch, the second I can I'll go for a run. Often I have to make myself eat at supper because I'm so not hungry, but its better later after the run has worn off. Then I don't snack on toast and porridge and noodles.

For those I have to have some sweets I get 'no sugar added' pie filling and some cottage cheese. 1/3 cup of the pie filling has 35 cals and with the cottage cheese its like eating cheese cake.  I also use it to sweeten my steel cut oatmeal. Yum!

Nutty Flax gluten free cereal

Light Vanilla Silk soymilk

Iced (or hot) green tea (especially mint!)

Tangerines/kiwis/apples

EnviroKidz crispy rice bars (really good after working out)

Dried cranberries/prunes (great to add in cereal)

Baby carrots - they are so filling

Wow, so many awesome ideas! Here are some of my saviours:

- egg creations/ egg beaters - 30 calories for 1/4 cup  I use 1/2 cup and make scrambled eggs in the microwave with no extra calories from oil

- avocados, high in calories and fat but the good kinds and so good for you! I use them in lieu of butter or margarine sometimes on sandwiches or in lieu of cream cheese on bagels

- fruit dip!  I use 0% Astro or Danone yogurt - 40 calories a serving and 3 tbsp of light cool whip - 30 calories; 70 calories in all for a generous serving (no need to eat it all at once but don't feel bad if I do) of creamy, delicious dip to spice up fruit

-salsa, yum! so low in calories and awesome on eggs, baked potatoes, carrot stick

- hard-boiled eggs and hard boiled whites - filling and quick if I need a snack with little calories

- light peanut butter - 1 tbsp 80 calories so good melted and used as a dip for an apple or a banana

-Breyer's No Sugar Added Real Fruit Popsicles, 25 calories each!

-Splenda, good on berries, and in my coffee

- Popcorn 90 calories for 3 cups!  I know it sounds weird but I sometimes sprinkle on some splenda and cinnamon for a sweet treat  or I use Kernels popcorn seasoning - 32 calories for 1 tablespoon

- my veggie peeler - not just for produce anymore!  I use this to slice cheese very, very thinly.  It really stretches out an oz of cheese making me feel like I have more than I do

- sugar-free gum

- water, water, and more water  I am the kind of person who mistakes thirst for hunger and this has really helped me

- Food Prep: on weekends I wash, dry, prep and package a lot of veggies, some fruits, chicken, and hard-boiled eggs on the week.

Freezing Leftovers: if there's leftovers from a meal I portion and freeze what's left and take it to school or re-heat for a quick and nutritious meal.  In just one week I have so many options to choose from such as pasta dishes, casseroles, soups

Snack Basket:  Keep a snack/food basket in the fridge with low-calorie and healthy foods such as: hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, and single servings of grapes, broccoli, carrot sticks, cheese and crackers

1)  "Over The Moon" fat-free milk.   This milk has a richer, creamier taste - tastes more like 2% or "low fat" rather than watery fat-free.  Evidently, the secret to it being so rich & creamy is that they add more calcium & protein which is (& I quote:  "naturally found in milk, so you can have the full, delicious taste of milk with no sacrifices, and no compromises."   I compared to regular skim milk and it does have a little more protein and calcium, and has just 100 calories per 1 cup.  Also has a money back guarantee, where they will refund your money if you aren't "completely satisfied with it".  I found this brand at Super Wal-Mart.    2)  Serve your dinner on a smaller plate, like a salad plate.   3)  This next one is from my personal trainer:  Be realistic & if you want to drink alcohol once in a while - don't panic, it's ok!  Just stick to hard liquor & mix with a DIET soda (for example: Bacardi & Diet Coke, etc).  Try to refrain from wine, beer, and those "fruity drinks" with the little umbrellas - although imbibing once in a while will not derail you as long as you immediately go back to your healthy eating habits & excercises.  Caution:  when you drink, you more than likely will "loosen up" and may lose your resolve & "will-power" (or should I say "won't power"?) and snack, snack, snack, or over-eat (or like some skinny people I know, you may not - you may get full from the drinks).  If you do over-eat, remember, don't panic...just go back to your healthy lifestyle the very next day, and if it makes you feel better, do an extra 30-minutes of cardio that week.  Also, rather than one drink after another (which, as many of us know is easy to do once you start feeling a little "tipsy") drink a full glass of water in between each alcoholic beverage.  Don't "down" the water, just drink it slowly, while socializing.  This helps keep you hydrated & full, plus keeps you from getting tanked!   3) Keep healthy snacks handy - don't let yourself get famished in-between meals.   4) If you find yourself at a party face to face with yummy, fattening desserts, grab a very small plate and put a very, very small sample of each of your favorite desserts on your plate to enjoy.  That way, your taste buds are satisfied while keeping a butt-load of fat & calories off of your belly & thighs!  5) Drink lot's and lot's of refreshing water!  For every 12 oz diet soda that you drink, drink at least 32 oz of water.  Your water intake should be MINIMUM 64 oz per day - that is MINIMUM.  For faster weight loss, you should drink more water.  Run away from regular soda and sugary drinks, & minimize drinking juices (orange, apple, etc., as they are loaded with natural sugar).  If you like tea, the Citrus flavor Lipton Diet Green Tea is yummy and good for you.

Corn tortillas - 2 for 100 calories, I use instead of bread a lot of the time.

Kashi GoLean Crunch with Vanilla Yogurt - breakfast of champions!

Overnight No-Cook Oatmeal - lazy breakfast of champions!

Laughing cow light

Homemade soups - I can make a full meal out of my soups - with pasta, veggies, meat, spices - 2 cups for around 180 calories!

Raw Zucchini - for snacking, I can't stand it cooked, though!

Homemade Pizza - with whole wheat boboli thin crust and TONS of veggies, came in at 98 calories a slice!

Sun Dried Tomatoes - surprisingly low in calories

Tweaking recipes - I've made pizza, chinese food, pasta, mexican food, all low calories just by substituting and eliminating ingredients!

Chocolate milk I know it sounds weird, but it helps me with the sugar/chocolate cravings without getting too crazy, and its good for protein which i have trouble getting enough of because i'm a vegetarian.

No Sugar Added fudgesicles and fruit popsicles they're only like thirty or forty cals each and they're delicious

veggie soup I love it, its so low cal I can eat a ton of it so I feel really full.

I really want to get some of that laughing cow cheese. I tried it once it was really yummy.

Original Post by danaofdoom:

I really want to get some of that laughing cow cheese. I tried it once it was really yummy.

I found it at Costco on my last grocery run - $8 for 4 rounds of it!

lets see...

Skim milk,

Fat free plain yogourt and pre mixed seasonings or onion soup mix (to make dip with put on a baked potato etc...anything sourcream can do!)

100& wheay protein VANILLA...I LOVE this stuff!!! Ill mix it with pure green tea (or chai, )( coffe goes well with both) for a grean tea or chai "latte" wihtout the milk or carbs! TOTAL:

 Cals: 130.

carbs:3

fat:2

Ill mix it with oJ before a workout or as a snack when Im craving something  something sweet or I am down on energy... (tastes like orange julip! sooooo good!TOTAL:

cals:185

carbs:17

fat:2

I mix it with my plain fat free yogourt to make a vanilla pudding style snack...

sugar free jello pudding mix's as a desert with fatfree coolwhip!

anything from www.idealprotein.com (my mom sells them)

leg lifts I do them behind the counter whenre i work when its quiet lol... bum chlenches too.. \

Aslo i like vita slim multi vitamins becouse of the high content of egcg, chromium and b vits (all of with aid in the metabolism and block the absorption of carbs and fats...not to mention boost metabolism.

popsicles! i forgot those! lol

My Foreman grill. Man, I could not live without that thing!!

Lean turkey burgers, high fiber Atkins bars, Weight Watchers bagels and Pitas, High fiber olive oil wraps, Wasa crackers.

I use Hungrygirl.com all the time!  she has all sorts of takes on regular foods you would find in restaurants and what not. 

www.hungrygirl.com

She's not a doctor, but has YEARS of weight loss solutions she shares.  Great foods at low calorie alternatives. 

I just bought that laughing cow cheese! I used it to make a veggie wrap it was yummy.

don't laugh...lean cuisine.

I can always eat a healthy breakfast and lunch.  It's when a get home and it's time to cook dinner that the trouble starts.  Normally, I will put off cooking until I make a bad choice.  I HATE cooking, and my husband doesn't know how to cook without excessive amounts of oil or butter. 

Now, I just pull out a lean cuisine, nuke it, and dinner's done!

Original Post by dovelette:

Fresh fish.  Living on an island fish is usually abundant and cheap (like a kilo of fresh-right-out-of-the-ocean-sold-on-the-beac h tuna for about $3.00...that's like $1.45 a pound).  RIght now the ocean is weird so we're only getting mackerel, but next month we'll be back to having red snapper, grouper, tuna, serra, and amberjack nearly every day, all for less than the cost of the tuna I mentioned!

 Okay, I'm officially jealous.  Dovelette, do you need a room mate, by any chance?  :D  It would probably only take me ... oh ... six ... or eight ... months ... to get a Visa and all that stuff arranged!

My diet saviors are, basically, Muay Thai and Skinny Cows.

AFAIK, Muay Thai is not actually edible (I don't imagine my classmates would be keen on being eaten, anyway!) -- but it gives me solid motivation to eat better, and I find a good workout on a regular basis helps regulate my appetite.  I also notice that I snack less when I'm exercising more -- I think it's because I'm pretty hyper by nature, and I used to snack in order to have something to do with my hands.

Skinny Cows keep my occasional-but-intense desire for ice cream from dive-bombing my daily calorie limit, LOL.

New found diet saviour!......

Pureed fresh herbs in a squeezy bottle. In the UK they are found chilled in the vegetable section of most supermarkets (Probs in US too).

The basil one is my favourite!! I LOVE pesto, and like a little bit on poultry, steamed fish, roast veg etc... But we all know most pesto is full of oil. If you use this pureed basil instead, mixed with a little salt, fresh balck pepper and small amount of parmesan it tastes delicious. tweak the recipe to taste :o)

I like the person who posted frozen grapes. I also do frozen blueberries, raspberries, and sliced strawberries. Give me a frozen fruit salad and a piece of string cheese and I'm good to go!

I'm also officially addicted to Crystal Light - especially the peach tea and lemonade!!

I use ground turkey instead of ground beef, but my hubby complains that he can tell the difference too much. Next time I will try adding a beef stock cube. Thanks for the tip!

PS, I just found this site today and I'm super excited. I've been working out pretty steady for about 2 months and I think this site will help my motivation get to the next level. Yay!

Cereal!

Specially KAshi golean

Quinoa, yogurt, boiled broccoli, salmon, and water!

Aside from all the great things already mentioned, dry roasted edamame is a great replacement for peanuts and pistachoes!