This whole thing really irritates me! When you buy hundred calorie packs, you are basically just getting single portion packaging. You get many less oz. and pay far more for it. I know it's convenient, but I find it much more cost conscious to just buy normal or light products and split them into baggies of the correct portion!

Yes, I see your point.  I think many people just buy it for convenience.  Some beacuse, they can't control opening a bag of something and taking only a "portion" out.  This is a little helpful, of course assuming you don't grab 3 bags.

It is all crap anyway.  I would suggest grabbing a banana, orange an apple instead.

Take care.

I for one am NOT buying into it.  I totally agree with you.  It pre-portioned junk that never leaves you satisfied and is never enough. 

I bought some of the 100 calorie packs for convenience, but they aren't that great.  If it's regular stuff I can measure it out myself.  The reduced fat or "diet" ones don't taste that great... I'd usually rather eat the real thing, just less.

However!!!!!  The 100 calorie packs of microwave popcorn are genius.  If I make a regular bag of popcorn, I could either eat the whole thing, or measure out a serving and then have stale popcorn leftovers (until I threw it out, because I hate stale popcorn).  So, some of them are good as far as I'm concerned.

I like them b/c I can buy a box of 100 calorie say....Sunchips or oreos...and keep them for awhile. I don't eat chips or cookies often (anymore!), but if I have a craving, I can just get my little pouch of 100 calories. If I buy a whole bag of chips or cookies, I feel it will go to waste b/c I don't eat them everyday. If you're buying them all of the time and eating that kind of stuff all of the time,  I can see it getting way too expensive and pointless. However, it works for me!

haha, i know right?

i realized this a while ago and thought it was kind of ridiculous.

personally though, i think the 100 calorie snack pack portion sizes are humorously small and not worth it anyway. well all except for the popcorn mini-bags; they're different from regular popcorn anyway and the serving size, for 100 calories, is at least worth it.

Im thinking simplicity and certainty.  I avoid them - theyre always not my type snacks (carbs typically) plus unwilling to pay for the individual packaging. 

I make exceptions for the occasional small packs (not exactly 100cal) nuts but I accept the cost because of not having a full can of nuts home - too tempting.

I LOVE the 100 popcorn packs, it really is the perfect amount and they don't tend to be overly expensive like other 100 calorie pack things.  I used to get them at college because if I bought larger packs of things people would eat them on me if they were in the cupboard for a while, and I didn't want to keep open food in my room.  The 100 calorie packs were great because I could put them in my room and they were perfect to carry in my bag to have between class.  That said they are way overpriced, not to mention all the plastic waste the produce...

I do not buy 100 cal anything because I cannot control myself around it and I cannot afford it. Simple

I don't bother with the 100-calorie packs any more... you're paying more for less and that irks me! I do wish they had 100-calorie peanut packs though - it takes too much self-control not to devour the whole darned jar at once! lol

Yeah, and alot of them don't even taste good. More like cardboard!

The only 100 calorie thing I buy is the Smart Pop.  Love it!!!

Original Post by amilagirl:

The only 100 calorie thing I buy is the Smart Pop.  Love it!!!

 Ditto.. I can't not eat a whole bag of popcorn if I pop it, plus baggies of old popped popcorn just sound nasty.

I normally don't buy those snack pack things either, but the other day I bought 100 cal little tubs of ice cream. Ice cream has always been a weakness for me and I know if I buy a tub, as I'm measuring out my portion, I'm likely to snick a little extra taste or two.

So, I guess it depends on your own personal poison lol.

And yet, the idea of marketing instant portion control is a BRILLIANT "$$$$$$$" CONCEPT!  I also don't want to pay more for less, and yet when I mentioned that I use little baggies to portion my own snacks, some troll chastised me for filling our landfills with all this trash that would never disappear.  We can't win!  To each his/her own, I guess, but freshness is a factor, and sometimes when I split up a bag of Trader Joe's Reduced Guilt Pita Chips (6 servings) by the time I go for the last couple of baggies, they're already stale - how is that a bargain?????  For some, 100-Cal foods are great, but it's a premium I'm not usually willing to pay.  I am another person who is trying to do the grab-n-go thing with apples, bananas, pears, mini carrots...  I agree about the nuts (because they're so calorie-dense) and Smart Pop's 100-cal pack - I even give my popcorn a quick spray of Butter Flavored PAM.  Yum!

Tina, have you tried using reusable containers to split your portions?  Like those cheep Glad or Ziplock tubs you wash and use again?  I do that when i'm making somthing like pasta - I make too much on purpose and then have 2 or 3 little containers in fridge that are already measured out to the proper amount for another meal.

I've never tried them for things like chips or popcorn, but can't see why they wouldn't keep it fresh.

I try to use reusable containers and reuse ziploc baggies.  But where are the 100 calorie packages going? lol, The only single serve things I buy are tuna cans and Pringles for my son.  Otherwise that stuff goes to waste.  We don't buy 100 calorie packages ever.  It's a bad idea and expensive too. 

 

My two cents... I am a 100 calorie snack junkie!  For me, its allll mental. I am making a conscious difficult mental decision to lose weight, I am doing pretty good, lost a lot of weight but do not consider that I am on a diet.  I do this by eating mostly what I want, just small portions of it (plus tons of exercise).  So, when I started buying the 100 calorie packs, mostly sunchips, oreo cookie bites and the small sweet things, I got what I wanted but small portions.  So, for me its mental.  I eat the 1 bag and move on.  Now, I know I could always eat 5 bags of the item, but since I am desperately trying to lose weight I hold myself accountable to me through eating just one. I dont think I could open a regular size bag of M&M's, divide it up into smaller portions and NOT eat more.  Sounds crazy but for me its true. 

OH, and if I do have a blow out and eat 5 bags... at least I know its 500 calories LOL. 

 

 

Most of the food in those 100 calorie packs are junk. Processed crap! I personally don't buy them and I can make my own "100 calorie" packs if I want.

That is just my opinion though. I eat "clean" most of the time and try to avoid the processed food as much as I can.

I use an air popper for popcorn and it is natural and healthy. Can eat a lot of popcorn for very few calories and also control the sodium content.

The binge eating disorder is the #1 eating disorder in the US. Not sure the stats for other counties, but that's just how it is.

100 cal packs sell. I buy them. I have popcorn, chips, sour patch kids, etc. Why? Because I can't open a bag of chips without downing the entire thing. And I can't open a bag of sour patch kids without downing the entire thing. You get my point. Some people can control their portions, while others have a problem with open packages :) I even have to come home and portion out my cereal into ziplocks so I don't binge on it.

So that's my 100 cal pack reasoning. Junk or not, we're only human.

I don't purchase these specifically, but I definitely support their manufacture and the rights of consumers to purchase them - I only have to feed me, so I appreciate that their are small serving sizes available (such as pudding cups!).  I also have certain foods, such as ice cream, where I binge - so I am thrilled to see single-serve packages of those coming to market (and may actually buy some!).