Ideas for snack foods on fast days for a newbie

This topic contains 14 replies, has 12 voices, and was last updated by fasting_me 5 years, 10 months ago.

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Katiebelle

7:31 pm
18 Jan 16
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Hello.

I’m very “green” as this is my first day of fasting.

I’m pretty confident about what to eat and what not to eat. I think I won’t have a problem keeping under 500 calories but I would love some ideas from those more experienced about some very low calorie snack foods.

I’m out and about a bit and it would be handy to have some for “on the go”.

So apart from the obvious veggie and fruit slices and air popped corn – anybody else have suggestions?

Thanks – I look forward to hearing from all you pros!

LittleWing

8:03 pm
18 Jan 16
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Personally I would just totally avoid snacking on fast day as it is a bad habit… on a fast day snacking has the double whammy of getting your metabolism going and using up precious calories that could be part of a satisfying 500cal meal. Maybe even a triple whammy – a lot of people, myself included, report that once they start eating on a fast day they can think of little else, which is why a lot of people save their calories to eat in one go in the evening.

Not snacking on non-fast days too is a good way to keep weight in check… I find that as soon as I start up the habit of grazing (i.e. all of Christmas and into January) that’s when the weight creeps up!

A good long term plan for healthy weight is to have proper, mindful mealtimes, snacking will hinder this. What better time to cut out bad eating habits than on a fast day when you are doing your damndest to be virtuous any way?

Best of luck!

Nikki 🙂

QuietOne

8:27 pm
18 Jan 16
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Katiebelle I don’t recommend any snacking on a fast day. It’s a bad habit to get into, a worse one to break and can lead to grazing rather than fasting. Best not to snack at all.

When I first started 5:2 if I got totally peckish. I’d have some beef broth with a diced up large brown mushroom in it microwave at medium setting until boiling and then I’d sip on the broth and when it was gone I’d eat the diced mushroom.

Mushroorm-Brown Large 1 each 5.4 calories, 0.8g Carbs 0.5 Protein 0fat 0.1 fiber
Beef Broth 1 cup 10 calories, 1g carbs, 1g protein,0g fat, 0 fiber.
Total 15.4calories, 1.8g carbs, 1.5g protein, 0 fat 0.1g fibre

Welcome to the 5:2 pattern of eating good luck on your changes.

Katiebelle

8:43 pm
18 Jan 16
Permalink

Great advice guys – thanks so much.

Ok – I’ve just had a boiled egg and apple for breakfast and I’ll now eat the carrot sticks I made for snacks. Shall I fast all day and then have my tuna and salad tonight? I have some low cal broth I can have during the day if I get peckish.

LittleWing

9:03 pm
18 Jan 16
Permalink

You get the idea! Don’t be afraid to play around with how you split your calories because there are many different ways of doing this – different strokes for different folks – you quickly see this just from reading through the forums.

Personally, I prefer to save all my calories for a hearty 500cal meal in the evening (save a dash of milk in my morning coffee but not even really noteworthy as my evening meal is never more than 500cal!)

I do really have to fight through urges to snack on non-fast days but I know I can do without (if 2 days a week I can survive on 500 cal!) And this makes every meal I eat so much more satisfying.

Feel your hunger! Embrace it!

5:2 works best when the bad habits you kick on fast days (like not snacking) just feel normal on non-fast days. Its a bit more holisitic than just doing the fast days.

Enjoy your tuna salad tonight!

Nikki 🙂

LittleWing

9:13 pm
18 Jan 16
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Oh and I should add… i have in no way managed to kick all my bad habits either, I don’t want to come across as holier than thou! I can easily rack up plenty of pointless empty calories at the weekend through joyous consumption of Gin (and slim) and red wine!!! 😉

Katiebelle

9:37 pm
18 Jan 16
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I know! The one thing I’m going to really miss is my Hendricks gin and tonic! I usually have one (or two 😉 ) on a Friday night with my girlfriends. Even if I don’t fast on that day I’m trying to cut back on the empty calorie alcohol.

LittleWing

11:04 pm
18 Jan 16
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Mmm hendricks! I have to admit I drink during the week so fast days at least mean I’m bound to 2 booze free days during a week (per the new guidelines for Scotland hehe).

It would be sad if you gave up a few sociable drinks with your girlfriends though… and Slimline/diet tonic is virtually calorie free anyway so not sooooo bad haha! 🙂

Wait till you get into the swing of 5:2 and the weight starts dropping off, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised and won’t feel too guilty about a celebratory tipple or two… or three 😉

Sorry, I am being very preachy today!

crowceilidh

3:39 am
25 Feb 16
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Pickles. Check the calorie count. High sodium if that matters to you. Also they’ll keep water on a bit, but that doesn’t worry me. 4 mini crunchems dills are 2 calories and you can eat them in small little bites which alleviates boredom and they are crunchy so they fool your mouth into thinking you really ate something serious and they become tedious fast so you don’t eat 16.

Pot-bellied Heron

1:25 pm
26 Feb 16
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Flavoured tofu does it for me. And olives. Mmmm, olives…

K- Lo

11:50 pm
3 Apr 16
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Daikon…great crunchy snack

arizonaj

12:48 am
4 Apr 18
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Fruits are my biggie for snacking, especially cuties. I also love plain, sea salt popcorn. It is extremely low in calories and satisfying. I wrote a post for my friends blog describing the snacks I love. I am still losing weight, despite always snacking on these, so I must be doing something right? http://www.justinbillingsleyarizona.com/best-vegan-foods-for-people-who-have-a-snacking-problem/

LJoyce

8:03 am
3 May 18
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As others have mentioned I also try not to snack on FDs, but then I’ve been doing this a while and in the beginning I remember needing the “security” of having a safe FD snack on hand.
In the beginning my go to snack was a 250g punnet of strawberries. It takes a while to get through the whole punnet, but it’s only 270kj (64 calories) for 250g strawberries. I found I would grab a handful when I felt I needed them and there were still plenty more left for later.

Pollypenny

9:41 am
8 May 18
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No snacking, in fact I’ve never snacked. It was big portions that caused my weight gain.

If I ever feel peckish, I’ll have a big glass of water.

Elen Simone

12:37 pm
4 Jun 18
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You can try yogurt with fresh sliced strawberries, spicy soy bar nuts and apple chips.
I make my own snacks and often take them to work for a quick bite during the working hours. I found containers for snacks here https://allinpackaging.co.uk/food-packaging/ at affordable prices. Very convy.

dykask

1:42 pm
4 Jun 18
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I think it is better to have as many fasting hours as possible before eating. That is partly why I water fast, but it is also because I’m weak. I and put up with the limited hunger cause by not eating, but once I eat it is probably game over. So I opt for water, black coffee or straight teas. I used to drink diet cola but I haven’t done that for a couple months now. I try to avoid refined sugar and eventually diet cola just started tasting a little too sweet.

fasting_me

1:22 pm
22 Jun 18
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I have to hide the snacks on Fast Days, and sometimes on Slow Days. If you feel hungry on a Fast Day, instead of giving into it, set the timer for 2 hours and then when it rings, have a cup of tea.