I have a block when it comes to sticking to a diet, so I've been making changes that don't sacrifice too much comfort, but cut out calories. I've found that I can maintain these changes fairly easily, unlike sticking to a diet or never allowing myself to kinda pig out sometimes. (Hey, I like to eat!) What are some things that you do to cut calories--or make other healthy eating changes--without giving up taste or making yourself feel shorted? For instance...

*When I'm craving ice cream, I slice a banana up in a bowl and top it with lite or sugar-free coolwhip, a little chocolate syrup (just a little!), and some nuts. It provides fruit and nut servings, is pretty low in calories, fat, and sugar (I'd hate to think what a bowl of ice cream that big would amount to!), and satisfies my sweet tooth. This dish alone has got to be responsible for at least a few of my lost lbs!

*Before I developed a repulsion to lemons, when I was in a restaurant, I'd order water with lemon, squeeze the lemon into the water, and add a Splenda to make lemonade. This saved $$, calories, and helped me to drink more water, which was my main goal. Too bad I can't handle lemons anymore!

*When I pour a bowl of cereal, which I eat tons of, I will pour as much as I want which is ALWAYS way too much. Then, when I'm done, I put some back. I can't explain it, but pouring the right amount in the first place makes me feel like I'm punishing myself, but putting some back makes me feel like I'm still eating as much as I really want to. I don't know why! But it doesn't feel as much like dieting if I can still pour a big bowl, at least to begin with. Weird!

*When I'm feeling like pigging out on something, I steam asparagus or broccoli or some other veggie, b/c I don't feel bad about eating a ton of it. OR, like what I'm doing right now, I take the deli-thin slices of turkey breast and roll them up on a lettuce leaf. You can eat TONS of these without incurring a very high calorie count.

*When I was working, I would portion out 100-calorie servings in those little sandwich bags and take a variety of snacks to work. I was pregnant when I did this, so it helped me to eat the right stuff (whatever I reached for was already a well-thought out snack, a lot of veggies or whole wheat stuff), not to overeat, and to have some variety on demand, which kept me from getting bored with my food and running to the 7-11 for donuts on my lunch hour! I always had a good mound of stuff available to me, but I knew that even if I ate the whole pile, I still was below a certain calorie count, and still getting good things that I needed. I think this is a good thing to do even if you're not preggers, but I only gained 20 lbs with during that pregnancy, and I believe that this was a big part of it.

Really?? No takers on this?? Bummer! Calories are my second favorite thing to save!

Ahhhh man! I posted a reply to this thread and my computer pulled up an error message. I guess it didn't go through!

I said Thank you for your tips.
I, too, have a problem eating too much cereal but I can't seem to bring myself to pour the "right" amount in the bowl. I'll try your trick next time.
I think its just a matter of tricking your mind. So weird, but if it works!

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I rarely venture into this forum, but you do have some great ideas there. I never put cereal back in the box, however. I go back for a second bowl, and even DH looks at me like I'm nuts.

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I love your banana idea.

When I'm craving chocolate, I like sugar free, fat free chocolate pudding with a tbsp a fat free cool whip -- helps curb the chocolate craving!

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Ooo, that sounds awesome. I think that could be in ice cream sub, too. Thank you!