Here Are The 7 Foods To Eat In A Calorie Deficit If You Have The Appetite Of A Gigantic Man
by The Candidly Team
Can we be honest about the reason staying in a calorie deficit is hard?
IT’S BECAUSE WE’RE HUNGRY ALL THE TIME.
It feels like no one talks about this.
So if you are on a deficit journey for your health or your body or your ego (all valid) the trick is learning how to eat foods and meals that keep you really, really full for fewer calories. That is literally the long and short of effective weight loss.
And we just aren’t the type of people who can eat a quarter cup of brown rice, a petite piece of salmon, and unbuttered asparagus. We just can’t do it.
So if you, like us, have a huge appetite, the key is being strategic about the types of foods you eat to fill you up. Friends, these are those foods. Some are obvious, some are surprising, all are delicious, and unbelievably satiating.
Let’s eat.
1. FAGE Total 0%
It must be this brand. It must be 0%. It’s unbelievably filling (because of the protein) and very low in cals. Use it as the creamy part of creamed spinach, as a base for literally any salad dressing (mustard and honey is especially good) in place of sour cream (though sour cream is surprisingly low in calories—look it up) and of course, a beautiful bowl. Here’s our favorite version:
2. Chia Seeds
Not really setting the world on fire with this one but Chia seeds are very, very filling. We actually created our own simple recipe for exquisite chia seed pudding HERE but the key is to load it up with fruits so you feel like all those Pinteresty people.
Here we are attempting such a Pinteresty photo:
3. Good Culture Cottage Cheese, Classic 2%
Another one where it must be this brand. It’s just the best. Why do we love cottage cheese? IT’S FILLING. Our key claim to fame vis à vis CC is throwing it in the blender with some garlic and milk and using it as an Alfredo sauce sub. Genius and not noticeably different.
And if you’re interested in a perfect, wildly filling snack, it’s 3 Wasa crackers topped with CC, banana, cinnamon, and honey. Oh, here it is now.
4. Laura’s Lean Beef, 96% Lean
A pound of 80/20 ground beef is 1148 calories. A pound of 96/4 ground beef is 520 calories. That’s more than HALF the calories! Which you know because you can do math. That is an enormous discrepancy. And it’s also why eating out is so profoundly difficult when you’re trying to stay in a calorie deficit—something you need to just bake into the day when you are. Because we promise you that no restaurant is using 96/4. But the truth is, when you use it at home for bolognese, or tacos, or even for burgers (we doctor ours with one egg and some yellow mustard which is a creamy revelation, try it) you just won’t notice a single difference. And beef is very, very filling.
Here’s our current hyper-fixation meal using ground beef in the home which is a Big Mac bowl made with lettuce, onions, pickles, tomatoes, ultra thin sargento cheese, and a quick sauce of relish, ketchup, mustard, and yogurt. Beyond.
5. Palmini Hearts Of Palm Linguine
And speaking of ground beef, make a lovely bolognese with it and then ladle a heaping serving over this hearts of palm pasta alternative. Does it taste like pasta? No. But it has excellent, chewy texture and mixed with the sauce, is one of the more satisfying and satiating dinners we’ve made. This brand in particular is the best. Find it HERE.
We also love it with the aforementioned blended cottage cheese used as Alfredo sauce, frozen shrimp from Trader Joe’s, spinach, garlic, and tomatoes. So easy and so filling.
6. Lox
The protein to calorie ratio for lox is like a fever dream. And almost nothing keeps us fuller. It’s a lovely way to create a brunch spread on the weekend that doesn’t undo all of your hard work that week. The key is using it in a way that doesn’t make you gag. And for us, a bagel spread is that way. We use THESE bagels that we order or get from Whole Foods, but be warned, they are so popular the brand can’t keep up so expect delays.
7. Cucina Antica Marinara
A cup of Raos marinara is 200 cals. A cup of this sauce is 70. Huge difference in calories, zero perception of that difference in taste or enjoyment. Load it up with the aforementioned ground beef and have a dinner that keeps you full well into the evening.
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We have to eat.
