When people first start out with a “fat loss diet’, they are totally unaware of just how calorie dense typical food options that they’re used to eating really are. Which is one of the biggest diet mistakes around. Plus, is one of the main reasons why many who “eat clean” or “work hard” are still not losing stubborn fat. So, we’re going to showcase what 200 calories looks like in the most commonly reported “problem” foods (e.g. 200 calories of rice or pasta) so that you can see just how easy it is to overeat with these foods. We’ll then show you what 200 calories looks like with much better options (i.e. volume-dense foods) so that you can see just how much more food you could be eating and calories you could be saving with the right fat loss foods.
We’ll start off by looking at the most common problem protein sources that were reported from clients who were not losing fat. We have ground beef, pork chop, bacon, and fattier steak cuts (e.g. New York Strip). These are packed with a ton of additional fat and hence bring up their calorie counts quite a bit. For 200 calories, you’re not getting much at all and are easy to overeat. Some better options would be to sub the ground beef for extra lean ground turkey, sub the pork chop for chicken breast, sub the bacon for turkey bacon, and just be mindful of how many calories fattier cuts of steak can quickly add up to. Some other excellent leaner protein options are egg whites and even shrimp.
Next are carbs. Some of the most problematic snacks we found with clients who were not losing fat were oreos, potato chips, and high calorie cereals. When used in moderation these foods are fine, but there is no way you’re stopping at 200 calories, which just goes to show you how quickly the calories can add up without you being aware of it. Not to mention that the impact these foods will have on your hunger will be minimal. Better volume-dense food options include strawberries, carrots, puffed wheats, and plain air-popped popcorn.
Additional potentially problematic carb sources include pasta and rice. These food sources aren’t “bad” at all, but they are very easy to unknowingly overeat. I mean me being half Filipino I grew up eating rice pretty much every day, and whenever I’d have it, there’s no way I’d willingly be stopping at 200 calories worth of rice. A better option would thus be cauliflower rice or zucchini noodles.
Lastly, we have fats. Now all fats in general, even “healthy” sources will be very dense in calories. This doesn’t mean that you should avoid them since we do need a minimum amount of fat for our body’s to properly function. But, it does mean that you need to be more mindful of your portions whenever you eat them because of how easy they are to overeat. Chances are you’re eating way more than what you thought was just a serving of peanut butter or a serving of nuts. Which is why for these foods, it’s important to not only get yourself familiar with their serving sizes but actually spend the time to weigh out these foods when you consume them just to ensure you’re not overeating.
One more problematic fat worth mentioning is salad dressings. Oil based dressings don’t provide much at all for 200 calories. In fact, many of you likely use twice or even triple this amount whenever you have a salad. Which turns what you thought was a low calorie meal into the equivalent of a couple slices of pizza. Instead, either again measure these dressings when you use them, or one of the possible ‘food swaps’ you could do is opt for salad dressing options with lower calories.
Hopefully, you can see just how much more food you’re able to eat and how much easier it would be to suppress hunger and adhere to your diet by simply making smarter food choices. You can also see just how easy it is to essentially sabotage all the progress you may have made dieting throughout the week by making the diet mistake of letting loose on the weekends and unknowingly consuming thousands of additional calories from these more calorie dense foods. So, consider these swaps but more importantly just be mindful of your portions with certain foods. There are no real “good” or “bad” foods, just smarter food options depending on what your goal is.
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is this actually real? this changes everything lol
Meanwhile me who just wants to cook less and thus is looking at where I can reduce my food volume, works in reverse too! 😅
zucchini pasta is legit. And yes…ice cream is the hardest to let go lol
Eat salt. It has zero calories, you can eat as much as you want. Instead of 100 grams of strawberries, eat 10kg of salt.
To anyone finding this recently the best substitute for ice cream is a protein smoothie bowl from the channel Smoothie Flip, absolutely delicious and as smooth as whipped cream for way less calories
I can change everything else, but would never change greek yogurt for ice cream. I already eat it as is, but never as an ice cream sub
These foods all suck though
I thought it was common knowledge that whole foods kept you fuller longer?
ground turkey is horrible
i just relized i had 10000 calories for breakfast
Wife and I are recently on our health and weight loss journey together and discovered calorie deficit and high protein eating and hitting the gym. We can barely hit our calorie limit while not being able to eat our huge portions! Great informative video!
I’m sorry but this is not super realistic. Zucchini noodles are not a sub for real pasta cravings. Yogurt with fruit is not a sub for ice cream. Although this may be useful information for a brief overlook of caloric density, it’s not a realistic way for people to switch over and makes many people feel frustrated/disenchanted with the process and give up. It can also lead to disordered eating. It’s better to just sub one or two things out instead of completely switching over to an atrocity like zoodles
Tofu is amazing. High protein. Low fat and can be added to anything.
Well, I don’t see carrots as a snack. Maybe the popcorn and a bowl of fruits
I ate 4 tablespoons of coconut oil everyday and only veggies for carbs, as well as protein sources and lost a ton of weight. You don’t need pasta or rice if you are losing weight. Fat will keep you full
Center-cut bacon feels like a cheat code. It’s literally from the same part of the pig, just from the center rather from the fattier ends. The brand I buy is super thick-cut, looks pretty comparable to the turkey bacon on screen, and 4 slices is 160 calories with 18 grams of protein. And it’s still actual bacon!
I so freaked on the salad dressing but I checked the one I use and it is 50c for every 2 tablespoons.
lol yeah because Greek yogurt is so much better than ice cream. Another “fitness genius” who thinks eating plain gross chicken and zucchini noodles is sustainable. SMH.
I don’t know what they are doing to the bacon over there but two rashers of streaky bacon in the UK is only 56 calories
Hes an attractive guy too bad his arm is gross