The past few days of tracking my calories on Daily plate I noticed something I never had before...my sodium intake!
Right now i'll have a serving of fat free pretzels as a morning snack, not bad on calories but high in sodium. Then i will either have a lean cuisine (which isn't bad on sodium) or a turkey/cheese sandwich that turns out to be 2x the sodium as my lean cuisine! So I want to switch to a snack that is lower in sodium in addition to looking at my lunch ingredients.
I used to do an apple, but when they are out of season they really suck around here. Luckily they are coming back into season so i can add them to my snack rotation again. Also for some reason I can't do baby carrots anymore, they give me extreme sharp stomach pain, not sure why. I need something that will keep in my desk preferably. I also keep raw almonds in my desk but I like those as my afternoon snack.
Anyway, I thought I'd post here for some ideas. I see you have a sticky for fave breakfast/lunch/dinners but not one for snacks.
A cucumber...mmmm. I love 'em, and they're practically zero calories. A bowl of iceberg lettuce (fairly nutritionally worthless, yes, but it's cheap lol), some sliced cucumbers, and maybe a few tomato wedges or onion slices spritzed with a salad spritzer can make a fairly satisfying snack for hardly any calories. It might not hold you over for too long, but it's a safe option when you just need to eat something, lol.
Or air popped popcorn. You can make a big bowl of popcorn for about 150 calories. Takes longer to eat than most meals. I have an air popper and I spritz it with I Can't Believe It's Not Butter spray as it comes out of the popper. Then I might sprinkle some cheese popcorn flavoring or maybe even a couple Splenda packets and cinnamon. Then it tastes like cinnamon toast crunch...mmmmm. And hey, popcorn is great fiber
I agree with Megan on cucumber, that's my favorite veggie snack. Favorite fruit snack (and one you could keep in desk) is dried calimyrna figs. Favorite kill-the-hunger snack is peanut butter on whole wheat toast.
Nuts. Yes not low cal, but you'd be amazed what a 100 cal serving of nuts will do for your hunger. My fav thing right now is 100 cals of almonds w/ a 90 cal container of greek yogurt - yum! Hours of fullfillment!
Snacks! I look forward to them the most because I keep such a variety around. My favorites are:
fruits (especially berries w/ creme fraiche)
carrots, hummus, and pita chips
carrots, salmon dip, and pita chips
tortilla chips and salsa (I'm a little picky about these. The stone-ground, yellow corn ones from Trader Joe's have only 25 mg of sodium and taste freshly made. The salsa must also be pico de gallo style. I add guacamole if I've bothered to make any recently.)
tortilla chips and sour cream artichoke and spinach dip
fruit strips
fiber bars
fruit and yogurt smoothies
string cheese
sardines w/ rice and furikake
sardines w/ pita chips and hot sauce
no-sugar added, all fruit popsicles
hot chocolate
low sodium salami
One benefit of living near a retirement community--low sodium options everywhere.
I to tend to look forward to my daily snacks. I tend to make most of my own snacks as I also watch my sodium. Here are some of my favorites.
Cucumbers and carrots with homemade roasted red pepper hummus
Organic pita chips with Organic Black Bean & Corn Salsa
Golden Delicious Apples
Organic Bagel Chips with homemade Eggplant Caviar
Laughing Cow Light Cheese with grapes (sounds odd I know, but good to me)
Homemade Applesauce
Banana Walnut Freeze
Cucumber Salad
1/2 cup of Fage 0%fat greek style yogurt on top of 100 calorie bread thins (by Orowheat) toasted and red onion on top. Yum! I also will take two slices of organic turkey cold cuts if I'm particularly hungry and need a protein boost. I also like to just have oatmeal (150 calories) as a snack. I also LOVE, LOVE, LOVE popsicles from Costco by Ciao Bella in Bitter Orange flavor. They're only 60 calories and they are very good and a bit bitter too so that you get that yummy sensation while at the same time you feel like you've had enough! I also love hot chocolate by Swiss Miss (60 calories). Finally, I like chocolate flavor Full Bars. I also get these at Costco and they keep me full for hours as long as I have one with lots of liquid (160 calories). Oh, I have a friend who mixes cottage cheese with greek yogurt and she says it's great, but I haven't tried it.
My go-to filling snack is sugar free Jello & Redi Whip fat free canned whipped cream. 1 cup of Jello is 20 calories...6 squirts of Redi Whip is only 15...so yeah!!! 35 calories and I'm stuffed!!!! Satisfies the sweet AND creamy cravings! I always have a box of raspberry or cherry prepared in the fridge & several cans of that redi whip handy. I also love the redi whip on coffee. I was using Coffeemate sugar free creamer but it was a whopping 75 calories and wasn't nearly as sweet and creamy as I like. I switched over to adding 1 serving of Hills Bros. Cappuccino sugar free Double Mocha to my coffee and then a few squirts of the redi whip. That's only 60 calories and it's as thick and flavorful as any Starbucks sinful treat! The hot coffee helps me feel full & gives me the kick I need to get my butt to the gym. The jello is 110 mg of sodium for 1 cup....the Hills Bros. is 105mg. Not sure where these fall in a low sodium diet but I try to only have one of each, each day, if that. With all of the sacrifices made with dieting, I've decided to pick my battles and moderate when in doubt.
Last edited by FatDogLane; 08-19-2010 at 01:20 AM.
Thanks for all the great ideas! I am going to have to pick a few to buy for work next week. I really can't wait for decent apples. I LOVE apples!
I think I'll just do nuts today since I don't have much else at home. I did bring a bag of microwave popcorn with me but I hate doing that at work because everyone can smell it and comment. I hate when people comment on what I'm eating. lol Even though most of the time its 'you eat so healthy...' I hate when people half my size who eat junk constantly, offer me things and when i say no they feel they can comment on what I do eat. :P
kcx-What bread did you find for 35 calories? I have a great bread for 40 calories a slice Village Hearth Light 12 grain! It's grainy and yummy but still only 40 calories. I'm always looking for more yummy breads, most light bread is so blah.
Thanks again! Keep the ideas coming if you have them though.
Elizabeth - Your comment on most light breads reminded me that when one of my 5 year olds tried her Dad's bread she said it tasted like leaves. She totally cracked me up.
I eat yoplait light yogurt frequently for a snack. Another favorite is fresh fruit, I love my apples too. I also like go lean crunch, either in the yogurt or on its own. I keep fiberone and cascadian farm granolla bars around, to grab for a quick snack on the go. Today I am going to pick up some Nature Valley Granolla thins to try out.
- two slices of 35-cal bread = 70 cal
- 1tbsp sugarfree Smuckers jam = 10 cal
- 2 tbsp PB2 peanut butter = 45 cal
A whole PB&J = 125 cal
I know this isn't a snack, but I've made huge french toast meals with that 35 cal bread, egg whites, skim milk, Splenda, cinnamon, and sugar free syrup. Not exactly carb friendly, but shoot, it sure feels like a major cheat treat and it can be worked into a normal day of on plan calorie counting.
What is your fave filling low cal snack??
) are 100 calorie popcorn mini bags, light laughing cow cheese wedges w/triscuits thin crisp, bite size tortilla chips with hot salsa, graham cracker with 1tbs natural peanut butter, 1 slice ww bread w/1tbs npb and a banana sliced up, low fat string cheese & small apple, low fat cheddar cheese w/triscuits. 
