Some tasty but healthy snacks? Preferably low-calorie?

Question

I am trying to lose weight (20 pounds is my goal, 30 would be nice) and I have exercising down pat. It's just my eating thats holding me back. I don't eat a lot. My daily intake is a peanut butter sandwhich, and 2 cookies. I have a really bad sweet tooth, so I was wondering if there is anything that's good for me, but tastes good too. I am 14... so I can't really control whats being made for supper, but I can do my own lunch and breakfast, so any reccomendations for easy breakfasts, lunches, and snacks?

Thanks

Answer 1

try some sugar snap peas. They are very good tasting, a little sweat and a whole bag has only 100 calories.

Answer 2

have you got an air popper? air popped popcorn is good. when i worked at a gym, many of my co-workers ate it everynight with pepper instead of salt. since you have a sweettooth, throw in a handful of raisins or cranberries and just a few dark chocolate m&m's so you don't freak out. dark chocolate is much better than the others.

i love fruit, but sometimes it's a hassle. i lost the raspberries to mold last week and i keep finding half bitten nectarines around the house. (i have a three year old).
i started buying frozen mango. i'm thawing a bowlful right now. it's one of the few fruits i like after being frozen. others just get mushy. it costs about the same as fresh mangoes and i don't have the mess to deal with. and i finish the bag before it could think of spoiling. when it thaws, i will throw in some fresh blueberries.

if you add vanilla or plain yogurt and sprinkle some granola, it's a good breakfast. also, shape magazine had a great oatmeal hint. before you go to bed, put rolled oats (not the quick kind), cinnamon, raisins or crans.(i love dried cranberries) in a double boiler. fill the bottom pan with water and leave on the stove, ready to go. in the morning, add half apple juice, and half water to your oats and flame. you can shower and get ready without a chance of burning it. and it's wont turn to mush. very good for you. add chopped roasted almonds. this has no sugar. serve withmilk if you must. if it isn't sweet enough for you..............a mashed banana will do the trick.

for lunch another trick from the gym, the body builders always atetuna from the can. i make a tuna salad for my husband and he loves it. instead of mayo, drizzle olive oil on it and squeeze some lemon.black pepper is nice. instead of bread, stuff a big fat tomato with it and have it with some saltines.

hope this helps

Answer 3

Eventhough you should watch what you eat at breakfast and lunch too, snacking is your worst enemy!!

For snacks, I'd recommend natural foods, like an apple, orange or banana mid moring (around 10 ish). in the afternoon (maybe 3ish) try incorperating some fresh vegitables(carrot sticks, celery, a small salad, cucumber, etc...). eat your favorites, but make sure you get variety so that it doesn't become monotinous.

Another idea is to try munching on some health (not sugar saturated cereal) like corn flakes, cheerios, etc..). or a slice of cheese (be careful you can easily rack up calories with dairy)

As far as the sweet tooth is concerned, try giving up sweets for a week or two. I tried this and was frustated at how hard it was at first, but after a week or two, you don't crave the sweets nearly as much. In fact, I can go preety much with out sweets now. They just don't appela to me nearly as much!! Then after a while let yourself have some sweets, but portion them, and don't overindulge.

One thing i've learned, is that you can develope a taste for something if you eat it often. so if you can think of a healthy food that isn't overly apetizing, try eating it qutie often for a couple weeks to a month. you will eventually grow to like it. I've done this with many foods!!

Just a thought on the supper problem... you can't control what's made for supper, but you can controll howmuch you eat of it, and to a certain extent, there's probably some variety served (most suppers aren't one-pot) so you can choose to eat more vegiatbles, or more meat, etc.. depending on what is cooked.

One last bit of advise!! don't snack after dinner. This is the hardest one for me :) get into the mindset that the kitchen is closed after dinner. this will help a lot!! cause you don't need to load up on calories right before bedtime.

I hope this helps you out a little.

Answer 4

Oh, dear. First, let me say that at age 14, you really shouldn't be worried about your weight. I know it's difficult, especially in todays society. When I was 14, I was very over weight. And I worried a lot. But as time went on, I learned about being happy with myself, and I learned what is important. Being healthy and happy. Don't worry about losing weight, just worry about being healthy. And that means healthy foods, and decent exercise.

Breakfast is a very important meal. Don't ever skip it, as you will need that energy to get you through the first part of the day. Do you know why its' called "breakfast"? Well, break it up like this- "break" "fast" .... It's because it's breaking the fast that under go while sleeping. So it's very important. Have some protein, such as an egg or some peanut butter. Have a good quality grain item, such as a whole wheat bagel, whole wheat toast, or some good cereal, not the very sugary kind. Try some oats, raisin bran, etc. And have a little fruit or fruit juice. Add in a glass of milk, and you're set. If you want to splurge on something that is a little high in fat, the morning is a good time to do it, because you have all day to work off the fat and calories.

Lunch- This is obviously also an important meal. If you can afford it, take your own lunch to school. The school lunches probably are that good for you. Some good lunch options might be: salads (picture some grilled chicken over a bed of greens, with some of your favorite fresh veggies, and topped with some good dressing), a roll-up (this is a sandwich that is served on a flour tortilla instead of bread- try a little cream cheese, turkey, lettuce, swiss cheese, and tomato), a thermos of thick soup, chowder, or chili, or some crackers with various toppings, such as egg or tuna salad, or different kinds of cheeses. Add in some fruit and yogurt, some sweet bread (like raisin bread, banana nut bread, etc), or something on the side, and have some juice or milk for a drink.

The importance of snacking- snacking is important because it keeps your energy level stable, as it stabilizes your blood sugar levels and such. Some good snacks are things like fruit, of course, fresh veggies and dip, some corn chips with salsa or bean dip, mixed nuts, dried fruit, crackers and cheese, yogurt, cottage cheese (especially good with a splash of ranch dressing and some cucumber), a salad of greens and veggies, a little bit of chicken salad on some crackers or whole wheat bread, etc.

Once again, don't worry so much about your weight. It's your health that you should be concerned about. I know you've probably heard this before, and you'll probably hear it again. And it may be one of those things that you have to learn on your own. But just remember, health needs to come first. Be healthy, be happy! Live life! Don't worry. Have fun, and be yourself.

PS- I have a sweet tooth too! Try some gummi candies, they're fat free (but don't over do it). Also try a few hershey kisses, some gram crackers, a few strawberries, cherries, or half a banana dipped in a little chocolate. Try some baked apples with cinnamon served over some low fat frozen yogurt or ice cream. Oatmeal cookies are good, too. Indulge! Why live if you worry about everything, and never get to enjoy it? If you really want something a little fattening, go for it. Just don't over do it ;)

Answer 5

I'm sure if you just eat about 3 of these it wont be too bad. Slice of banana, top with smidgeon of peanut butter then top that with half a strawberry. Great combination! Very tasty to! Oh, and if you have to drink powdered vanilla protein drinks, which might not be a bad idea for a snack, add 1/2 of those little 'envelopes' of sugar-free drink mix that you would normally add to your 16 oz bottled water. The flavor and sweetness are just right!.

Answer 6

Do all your major meals immediatly before your major work or play activities and have small nutritious snacks throughout the day so that your appetite doesnt build too much.
When you wake up food IS what every proper nutritionalist will tell you boosts your metabolism and helps you burn food faster. EAT BREAKFAST don't skimp but dont OVERDO it either. try the recommended serving of cereal, toast, juice and coffee in the recommended serving sizes. thats enough to last 2 1/2 hours to the next snack of fruit.then maybe soup and sandwich for lunch. .

its easy to eat right once you start Energy comes quickly and you increase stamina. the hard part comes with the reintroduction of comfort foods in the familiar serving sizes

The hardest thing to break. (believe me im still trying) is the 3 squares a day. DONT do it

have 5 to 6 smaller snacks per day rather than 3 big meals. eat your food in reverse order from the heaviest meal in the morning. to the lightest snack at the end of your day like fruit and light cream or something sweet to nullify your appetite and sweet tooth together before bed. but low cal.

switch to splenda sweetener.

Answer 7

For breakfast, try apple bircher Muslei:

Put a couple of dessert spoons of porridge oats into a bowl, and add a really small amount of apple juice (just enough to get it all wet, not so much that it is swimming in it!). Leave this in the firdge over night, and in the morning add some natural yogurt (a spoonfull is enough) and whatever fruits you like - I usually have chopped strawberries, or stewed rhubarb. You can also add a little honey if you want to add a bit of sweetness.

As for lunch, how about pitta bread, with humous and salad, or falafale, humous and salad? Or tortilla wraps with the same. Really nutritous and healthy.

Humous is really easy to make yourself - just blitz a can of chick peas (drained and rinsed), one or two garlic cloves, juice of two lemons, and 2 tablespoons of tahini paste in a food processer and hey presto!

You can also use humous as a snack if you dip veggies in it.

Answer 8

Bake muffins. I swear by them. Search for recipes then get the hang of making up your own. They are cheap and so easy to make in bulk in such little time. A batch of 9 -12 muffins should see you well for a few days.

Healthy muffins are not the big puffy store bought ones which are full of processed flour and sugar - they are just cake - healthy ones will be smaller and dense and make you feel full for longer than those ones. Just don't over-mix the ingredients or your muffins won't rise.

Fruit ones for breakfast, savoury ones for lunches, mini ones for snacks. For extra goodness and a longer lasting feeling of fullness use variations of wholemeal flours, bran, oatmeal and besan (chickpea flour - source of protein). For sweetening used pureed fruit and/or molasses instead of just sugar. Mashed banana can substitute for egg. Use less oil than recipes specify (especially if using banana, cheese or oily sun dried tomatoes). Use low fat soy or cow milk.

I make them with almost whatever I have available. Just experiment following the basis of a few good recipes and learn what you like. Good luck :)

Answer 9

For breakfast just have something not to big and for snacks there are some low fat calorie things i forgot what they were called also for lunch have something little but good

Answer 10

That is not near enough food for a fourteen year old girl. You can eat more, or you'll get sick and when you're sick you look it. If you like sweets, they make 100 cal. snack packs like Chex carmel and chocolate snack mix. I always eat that when I want sweets. And hon, eat! I doubt you really need to lose that much.