Calorie Counters - Protein ideas

After reading the limiting carbs thread, I took a look at my % of calories on my livestrong.com tracking. I really could use some more protein in my diet.

Any protein ideas for snacks? I like cheese and nuts, but they're so high fat, and I tend to end up eating a ton.

yogurt
cottage cheese
hard boiled eggs
a couple slices of lean ham or turkey

A celery stick or apple slice with peanut butter.

I cook up a bunch of chicken breasts at a time (just grilled plain) and cut myself off a slice for a snack - much prefer them to the sliced chicken meat you can buy.

Skim milk smoothie with frozen berries.

Thanks!! I especially like the smoothie idea. I somehow tend to block it outta my brain that milk is protein.

Doh! Just noticed that the snack ideas thread said "low cal non carb" ideas. Oops! Sorry!

do you like flaked light tuna??? it's VERY high in protein and very low in calories and fat. I mix it with ff mayo and a little bit of dill pickle relish and put it in a ww wrap. Mmmmm

I think most, if not all, fish and seafood are good. Even if they have higher fat content (like salmon), it's the good for you kind of fat.

And shrimp and scallops have TONS of protein, but low low low calories and fat.

greek yogurt is high in protein and lower in carbs and calories.

greek yogurt is high in protein and lower in carbs and calories.

I second Greek yogurt. Each cup has 15-20 grams of protein, which is a lot more than any American style yogurt (Dannon, Yoplait, etc.) If you're looking for lower calorie cheeses, feta, cottage cheese and low fat Swiss are good options (I think low fat versions of other cheeses just aren't tasty...) Kashi GoLean has something like 10 or 12 grams of protein per cup. And of course you can make your own protein bars. I use rolled oats, almond butter, flax meal, Kashi GoLean, protein powder and a little milk. Mix it up, press into a baking pan, freeze and cut into bars. Super good!

Love all the ideas!! Thanks so much. :) Not familiar with greek yogurt - I"ll have to check that out.

hemp (complete protein), quinoa (complete protein), greek yogurt, cottage cheese (look for lowest sodium; I like low-fat daisy), almond butter, spinach (almost all the carbs are fiber), sprouts, beans, eggs (I do a one whole egg to 2 whites), smoothie/sludges (raw food forums are actually very helpful for these), buy a roasted chicken from the deli and shred the meat for future consumption.

Light string cheese! Only .5 carbs, 60 calories, and 8g protein per stick. Think like 2g of fat per stick, not 100% sure.

Everyone has such great suggestions! I find that even days when I eat completely on plan, I'm low on protein. I usually have fruit & fiber one for breakfast, lunch is rice & veggies and dinner is grilled chicken or steak.

So I use Protein powder shakes. https://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10052&productId=667647&catalogId=10002&krypto=QJrbAudPd0vzXUGByeatog%3D%3D&ddkey=http:ProductDisplay I use Wegman's brand Chocolate flavor. But there's a bunch out there that taste pretty good. I make mine w/coffee, splenda & a little milk and it's only 100 calories with 18 grams protein, 3 carbs & no fat. I'll have one in the morning to replace my morning coffee, after a workout, or when I just want a chocolate fix. Hope this helps!

Good luck!

I tend to not eat enough protein as well so I make sure I have:

almond butter
string cheese
hard boiled eggs
cottage cheese (served on a canned 1/2 pear in its own juice is delicious)
canned tuna
1 oz. cheese (they make handy single servings in a bag for easy control)

those are my favorites :)

How aout some beef jerky for snack. I actually made this at home in my own oven (there are plenty of internet sites that show you how) and found it to be incredibly easy. Best part is you can totally control what goes in it (using grassfed beef) and limit things like sodium, preservatives, etc. Also, beef jerky works best with the leanest cuts of meat so it's low in fat as well.

edemame, is my fave. I know its high in sodium when you add the salt, but yum. It's also fun to eat and interactive so it lasts longer than a little peice of cheese

@Kduffer How do you count the calories in your homemade jerky? I've been debating trying that but I was thinking I would probably have to calculate the calories in the entire batch then reweigh it after drying and recalculate. Is there an easier way?

I just guestimated by using calories for natural beef jerky I found at the store. Has about 85 calories per ounce. I know it's not exact but I think there is always room for error anyway in these things.

@Kduffer How do you count the calories in your homemade jerky? I've been debating trying that but I was thinking I would probably have to calculate the calories in the entire batch then reweigh it after drying and recalculate. Is there an easier way?