Photo by nanaow2006I have this aversion to plain, raw carrots. I chew and chew, but they never go away. Hey, you don’t have to tell me that’s gross. I live it. That’s how much I dislike carrots.
Add a little dip (and calories) or cook them with a roast (again with the calories), and they’re fine. But raw? And plain? No thanks.
Thankfully, our society is so overweight and diet-obsessed that I have lots of healthy eating options. And we talked about our favorite “diet” foods at my Weight Watchers meeting last week. It made me want to go shopping right away!
The meeting also reminded me of some of the tricks I’d forgotten to losing weight. Here are a few of the foods I rely on when I’m on program, as they call it at WW:
- Apple and cinnamon instant oatmeal
- Sugar-free hot chocolate
- Fiber One (or Great Value) granola bars
- Oroweat sandwich thins (These are new, and I highly recommend them!)
- 98% fat-free Mission tortillas
- 98% fat-free popcorn (I like kettle corn the best.)
- Light or lowfat cheese or other milk products. (I do not do fat-free milk products. Ick.)
- Reduced fat peanut butter
- Apples, bananas, strawberries and grapes
- Lots and lots of green beans
Edited to add: How could I have forgotten Laughing Cow cheese?! I love that stuff, especially with reduced fat Wheat Thins! Yum! Also, have you all discovered Ronzoni Smart Taste pasta yet? It comes in spaghetti, macaroni, penne and probably several other shapes, and looks, tastes and feels just like white pasta (because you will never convince me that the wheat stuff is good) – but it has extra fiber and other vitamins/minerals/good stuff. Check out Jill’s post and this funny video about it!
What healthy (or healthier) foods do you rely on to maintain a healthy diet?
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I honestly don't buy into the low-fat thing, I use full-fat dairy and real butter, but as far as filling, healthful foods I go for:
whole-grain breads
apples and cherries
raw vegetables with some kind of dip
Greek yogurt with honey
tiny pieces of very dark chocolate
FiberOne bars
I love, love, love Fiber One Bars!! I also try to keep Laughing Cow products & Skinny Cow Products on hand … those are all good treats for me. I just have to remember I can still only have good treats in moderation!!! RATS!
Wontons :) Yep…this time of year I can make elegant appetizers out of wontons baked in the oven. I make them as little cups and then fill them with hot or cold options. The wontons are WW point friendly and are one of my favorite things to keep on hand when I too am on program (although…right now, now so much :-D )
On Friday of this week I plan to post a low fat flavored baked wonton chips recipe that is a great substitute for 'bagged' chips.
However, today I posted some appetizer ideas that use these cute little wonton cups. The healthiest version would be one filled with black bean salsa. (I'm giving one of those away this week :-D)
Actually, I get what you're saying about the carrots! Yuck! Thanks for painting that picture! ;]
I eat a lot of fruit snacks because even though they're not exactly a health food, they're pretty good for appeasing my sweet tooth and they're not THAT bad for you. Beyond that, I try to drink a ton of water. It really is the miracle cure-all.
I love apples with Laughing Cow cheese wedges, Fiber One bars, and Special K or All Bran crackers with homemade salsa. Homemade salsa makes everything tastier!
Ok, I love carrots. But, I thought I'd share something about the "baby" carrots that aren't really baby carrots like you have in your picture. They are full sized and sometimes weird looking carrots processed and cut down to mini size. Nice marketing, huh?
Any way, I have discovered that many people – including me – have adverse reactions to eating them. Something in the man-handling of those carrots to cut them and clean them for packaging causes an allergic reaction in me.
So, I say, down with raw "baby" carrots! … But, I confess, I do love a real baby carrot. Or even a full sized carrot cut into sticks. ;)
Have you tried steel-cut oatmeal? I like the taste (more nutty sort of) better than the quick stuff and it will give you way more bang for your buck since it's way less processed. It takes forever to make so I do it in a big batch and that lasts me several breakfasts/snacks.
You can also get peanut butter without the icing sugar, but it's rather oily and some people have issues with the texture- but again, bigger bang for your calorie buck!
ice cream is my downfall. and the fat free ice cream?! well, icky icky too.
but frozen yogurt is pretty good, and then i discovered edy's has the slow churned reduced fat ice cream. oh i'm SO hooked on that stuff now. YUMMY!!!
(oh, and the skinny cow ice cream sandwiches are pretty darn good too!)
Oh my! I was reading this post next to my sleeping husband who awakened to huge laughter! I SO get you on the carrots thing. I buy them over and over thinking *this* time I'll eat 'em. They eventually end up in soup most times.
I'm actually on Jenny Craig (most of the time :o) And since today is one of those days it's easier to mention my tricks: 1. Because I get the nighttime eats really bad!–I drink a San Pellegrino w/ lemon OR decaf coffee. It tricks my tummy into feeling super-stuffed-full just in time for me to fall asleep. 2. I have a rule of "must drink cup of water before I eat food." It generally causes me to eat less. I know, duh, right?!
Thanks for this post!