I'm just shy of 3 weeks into my calorie tracking/deficit. I've been shocked at how much simpler this has been than anything I've tried in the past, though I admit I've not tried a lot.
I've been pleasantly surprised with the normal meals I've been able to fit in, just managing portions. I weigh everything with a digital scale or measuring spoon if that's the best way. Counting every single but of everything, down to my gummy multivitamin.
I wanted to share my most helpful meal for me, and some of the other things that have really helped me shift my eating habits.
My favorite replacement has been these mini pizzas. The picture from the calorie app is for 6 of them. It is a lot of food! I use Mission sundried tomato and basil zero net carb tortillas (street taco size) (I don't care about carbs myself, but these are the best on calories for taste), Contadina squeeze pizza sauce for ease, fat free shredded mozzarella (soaked and patted dry, makes all the difference!) and minced green pepper and 2-3 turkey pepperoni each. A crazy amount of food for 375 calories.
I had regular pizza last night and instantly regretted it. It wasn't filling for the 2 servings, wasn't all that tasty, and used up all the remaining calories for my evening.
Some other things that have been extremely helpful for me:
As someone who HATES yogurt, I've found one I love. Chobani no sugar added 20g protein. It is crazy thick like a paste, not a pudding consistency like I'm used to yogurt being. I stir in some frozen wild blueberries (nuked for 20-30 seconds just so they aren't completely solid), pair of with a slice of Aunt Millie's 3 carb cinnamon swirl bread, topped with a tablespoon of peanut butter.
I found a French toast recipe that I still can't believe it's real. 3 slices of low cal bread (I love the Bettergoods brand at 30cal/slice or Aunt Millie's low carb cinnamon swirl bread at 35cal/slice), 40g egg white, 40g unsweetened almond milk, 20g sugar free syrup, cinnamon. Dip the bread in the mixture, fry it. Top it with another ~15g sugar free syrup and you've got 3 full size French toast peices for ~160 calories. And it is GOOD. I usually pair it with 1-2 turkey sausage links for some extra protein. I don't really like them but dipped in the leftover syrup makes them much better!
I make protein Ranch from a single serve Chobani plain Greek yogurt with ranch seasoning added. Great for veggie dipping, wasn't so great as a salad dressing. Pretty thin/runny.
I keep hard boiled eggs on hand and have been eating more baked potatoes than I ever have before.
My favorite "I'm out of the house and need to pick something up" meals have been Panda Express String bean chicken with white rice, taken home and weighed/portioned out (was my favorite choice there anyway, no compromise there for me!), 3 regular or 2 supreme beef crunchy tacos from Taco Bell, and Chick-fil-a grilled nuggets paired with a small mac if I'm feeling like a bit of a splurge (financially, not so much calorically!).
I'm learning that I can eat a lot of what I did before just being smarter about it. I've been on a consistent decline in weight (my personal goal) and don't feel like I'm hungry all the time or having to eliminate any specific things outright. I'm mostly proud that I've made it this far without stocking up on specialty diet products. I've always been a sucker for those in the past. Lots of sugar free or low fat, but none of the meal replacement type stuff.
I'm looking forward to picking up some new tips here in the group!
by Ficcient