I find planning my meals and preparing dishes in advance is a huge advantage. It also helps me make out my grocery list.
Someone mentioned having a hot drink after their meal to help with that "I'm still hungry" feeling. My biggest hurdle is snacking after dinner so I'm gonna try the hot drink trick. I know from experience that if I have a bowl of hot soup before my meal I can't finish my meal. So a hot drink after dinner makes sense to me.
I buy small bags of raw almonds, found in the baking aisle. Walmart has them for like a dollar each. They are 2.5 oz per bag and 400 cals in the whole bag. I eat half a bag per day. (Sometimes I eat a whole bag per day though!)
Brushing Teeth. I find that when I feel like snacking, but I know I don't need a snack, if I brush and floss my teeth I don't want to get rid of that fresh brushed feeling. Happened just a few minutes ago. Now my pearly whites are clean and even though I'd love to grab a snack I am not going to do it.
We also use smaller plates and those soup bowls with rims for our dinner often; I also use parfait spoons (they are the size of baby spoons) so things take longer to eat. About 15-30 minutes before dinner, as I'm cooking, I will have a small yogurt or tangerine or salad or applesauce, so I feel full with my smaller dinner.
Before OR for my lunch, I will have a cup-a-soup or broth or salad OR eat my fruit first, then my lunch for the same effect: this is a French trick that they do all the time. Instead of gravy, they make a broth soup with lean meat juices and serve this before the main meal.
I often put my yogurt or desserts or fruit in the freezer too. I ALWAYS make up single servings and toss them into the fridge or freezer for snacks: also cheese or break up whole wheat soda crackers as a sub for chips & nachos.
I have salad of some kind every day (either coleslaw or romaine): and use 1 % sour cream as salad dressings (20 cals per tbl). Save a fruit or low-cal dessert for evening snack. I also have a huge cup of tea every evening and if I am still hungry after that, then I'll try fruit or cheese. Last resort, is a slice of wheat bran bread with peanut butter, and that usually clinches it.
I use olive oil all the time now; and little if any, margarine or butter on anything. I use mustard or lite mayo or light cheese spread mostly now on sandwiches and no butter. I use only thin deli meat or fish for sandwiches.
Buy xtra-lean meats and drain & rinse all fat off first, then add seasonings and veggies (onions & garlic +) and finish the meal as usual. You'd be surprised how much is there.
Yes, I also buy those small 100 gram bags of nuts in the baking section: there's no salt and if you eat them all you can still stay within a reasonable amount of calories for the day.
The only baking I do now is small low-fat/low-sugar bran muffins once a week and put the rest in the freezer; I eat only one unless it's for breakfast (can have two as they are small) and never overeat these. For the same reason I buy popsicles (60-90 calories) or single POLAR ice cream bar for 100 calories for a dessert or occasional treat esp in the summer.
Freeze leftovers in single microwave dishes for lunches.
You guys are full of great ideas! I wish my teeth were not so cold sensitive, I would love to try the frozen yogurt/fruit tips. Only good thing about sensitive teeth is that I don't, (can't) binge on ice cream like I did when I was younger.
I also have never really tried "hot" tea, except for a few occasions. I usually drink iced tea, (with no ice...lol) or coffee. I do have an awesome tea kettle that basically just sits on the stove as a decoration.
I'm also going to try the small dishes on the larger plate for my son. He's not watching his weight, he is tall and lean, but for some reason he hates it when his food touches.
I log all my calories into the Daily Plate. I just finished supper, and have some spare calories left. I plan on going to Tim Horton's with a friend later for a cup of coffee and a "gawk" (checking out the locals; mingling). I just went into Tim Horton's website to check the calories on each treat to decide what to have later with my coffee.
I also eat my desserts with a small spoon. I have a few tiny silver spoons that force me to take small bites. I have no idea what these spoons were intended to be used for, but it works pretty great. Also, I eat frozen sugar-free jello cups for dessert. It's 10 cals, and it takes a good 20 minutes to eat.
One of the things that Angie and I were doing real well until (Last night...I blew it) was our Friday Night Splits (although we did it last night...Saturday)
We split our meals in half, when we go out, right off the bat and bring it home for lunch the next day. OR....we share a meal....unheard of in the past...I wasn't big on sharing my food!
Love this thread!
A few tricks I do:
After a meal, if I still feel a bit snackey, I pop a piece of sugar free gum, and make myself a cafe mocha (half amount of instant coffee, and a heaping tsp of carnation diet hot chocolate in a mug of hot water. Stir and add a splash of milk) The whole thing is about 30 calories , which is way better even than a "regular " coffee if you like it with any light cream. And it sure tastes yummy!
I also eat every 2.5 hours. I'm never famished so I never feel like bingeing.
When I eat out I plan it an advance so I can look forward to it, and I have a chance to pull their menu from online and look up the nutritional info/// Who would have thought that the grill chicken salad at Pizza Delight has over 1000 calories not including the dressing?!? Knowledge is power; I got the chicken sizzler instead at 220 calories
Lastly, I always balance my carbs with protein. For me, it really helps keep me in balance. If I have a carb heavy meal I find I end up craving.. but when I have enough protein I stay satisfied way longer.
One of the things I have been doing since starting my journey is taking full body pictures every couple weeks to compare them to the last so I could actually see my progress...I think that has helped a lot, especially when the scale wasn't moving
I don't think there are really any tips except to always stay in control of your plan...if you plan a splurge meal, make it only a meal. Think of it as a lifestyle change and not as a diet. Drink lots of water.
i personally struggle with exercise. but, i have recently discovered a true fondness for running, mostly due to that runner's high. i'm thinking it's all the endorphins, but that pick me up is enough to get me on the treadmill...another thing that's helped me is breaking up my exercising. rather than looking at a whole hour of working out, i do 30 min in the am, and 30 min in the evening. for some reason, doing it all it once make it daunting for me and i'm more likely not to do it.
as far as food...i also make room for an off plan meal every week/every other week. its something i look forward to, truly enjoy, and i don't feel guilty about it. it's helped me stay focused also, because i know i can feed my craving for -insert fave food here- and i don't feel like "oh, i'll never have this again..." etc. that's really helped a lot.
eg. a workout routine/exercise, a food to eat to stuff yourself without the calories, buying a dress one size too small...
Thanks!
This may not be a trick, but a tip. Try to get yourself accustomed to the idea that you shouldn't stuff yourself even with a healthy food or a calorie-less one. The stomach stretches and shrinks. If you're eating more even of low-calorie or healthy food, you are creating a bigger stomach capacity and prolonging the point at which you will be sated with less food. I started out slowly reducing everything, including liquids, in order to gradually naturally shrink my stomach capacity. (And it has worked very well - I get full very quickly on far, far less food.)
I think that even drinking tons of water is a mistake. Yes, drink enough water to hydrate well, but drink it in small amounts throughout the day. Skinny champion eaters who take part in competitive eating keep their stomachs huge by drinking gallons of liquid. This is not a goal that is helpful for those of us trying to lose weight.
I find that when I feel like snacking, but I know I don't need a snack, if I brush and floss my teeth I don't want to get rid of that fresh brushed feeling. Happened just a few minutes ago. Now my pearly whites are clean and even though I'd love to grab a snack I am not going to do it.
