If one of your New Year's resolutions was to start eating more healthily or shed extra pounds to improve your heart health, this post might be what you need to not give up on your goals just two months into the year. According to a new global study, just over half (52% globally) of people who want to lose weight would exercise more but would not diet. So diet really is what hinders weight loss goals for many people. However, not many realize that just a few easy healthy food substitutions can make a massive difference on the scale and improve quality of life.
Eating more healthily doesn't mean you have to wave goodbye to all your favorite meals and snacks. However, finding healthy food substitutes for some of your diet staples can painlessly save you tons of calories without you wanting to throw in the towel. We are not speaking of drastic healthy substitutes for unhealthy foods and drinks, like always opting for water instead of fizzy drinks. When picking healthier food substitutes, you must evaluate how implementable and realistic they are for YOU. Because if you don't see yourself implementing these new healthy habits in the long run, what's the point? Essentially, healthy food swaps shouldn't make you feel miserable about what you eat (or have you smiling at the salad). However, healthy swaps for junk food or low-calorie alternatives can really make a difference both in your health or weight-loss journey without taking extra measures, such as extreme dieting, which, more often than not, lead to eating disorders and poor relationships with food. Taking the wrong measures to deal with a problem will only lead to more problems.
To help with the latter, below, we've compiled a list of food substitutions for healthy eating and food swaps for weight loss that can add up to a major difference on the scale without taking extreme or undesirable measures. What are some diet tweaks that you use daily? Let us know in the comments! Also, found the entry on the list helpful? Make sure to give it an upvote!
#21 Try Fresh Herbs And Spices Instead Of Salt And Salt-Based Herbs
This way, you'll eliminate the salt and give your food fresh flavors. Also, dried herbs and spices are excellent substitutes for fresh herbs if those aren't available.
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8points
#22 Replace Creamer With Organic Whole Milk
Carrageenan is a stabilizer often found in traditional coffee creamers that has been linked to inflammation. A healthier alternative would be to use natural creamer or, even better, organic whole milk with a dash of cinnamon for taste. It’s a terrific way to get vitamins A, D, and B12, and the calcium in it can help counteract the effects of caffeine’s calcium-robbing properties.
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7points
#23 Swap Bagels For English Muffins
Try to skip the routine stop at your local deli or a gas station for that quick bite. Four slices of white bread are nearly equal to one bagel in terms of calories. In addition to being extremely calorie-dense, this morning staple lacks nutrients like fiber and protein that will keep you active throughout the morning. Consider switching bagels for whole-grain English muffins. You won’t be able to tell the difference, yet the difference it makes!
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7points
#24 Replace Pasta With Spaghetti Squash
Have a spaghetti squash instead of adding a package of highly refined spaghetti to a pot of boiling water. This way, you'll eat more vegetables and reduce your calorie intake.
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7points
#25 Replace Rice With Riced Cauliflower
We want to be upfront and honest about this: riced cauliflower won't deceive you into thinking it's genuine rice. Similarly, eating cauliflower pizza crust won't make you think you're eating pizza. But, the lightness and fresh flavor of cauliflower are rather remarkable. When chopped or processed, the florets and stems are broken down into hard "grains," hence you may use them similarly to rice.
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7points
#26 Replace Ice Cream With "Nice" Cream
The perfect approach to sate your sweet tooth while ditching the empty nutrients is to indulge in "nice" cream, a creamy dessert that mimics ice cream but is created solely from frozen bananas and other toppings. Combine two frozen bananas with one tablespoon of unsweetened cocoa powder in a blender and blend until the mixture has the creamy texture of soft-serve ice cream!
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7points
#27 Swap Cookies For Energy Balls
If cookies are your dietary vice, make a batch of energy bites instead of your usual sweet snacks to cut back on the calories and refined sugar.
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7points
#28 Replace Candy With Nuts
Nuts are very high in protein, so you satisfy both your desire to chew on something and your appetite. This is because protein helps you feel fuller with less food. Because they are mostly composed of carbohydrates, snacks like fruits may not keep you full as long as protein-based foods like almonds.
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5points
#29 Swap Fries For A Side Salad
At McDonald's, the small order of potatoes you choose to go with your burger adds an extra 230 calories to your meal. To cut 180 calories, substitute the fries with a side salad with balsamic dressing. Although the nutritional information will vary based on where you get lunch, you can be sure that choosing a salad over an order of fried potatoes is usually always the better decision.
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5points
#30 Replace Sugar With Applesauce
You may use unsweetened applesauce in place of sugar in baking recipes for cakes, brownies, and cookies. Depending on the serving sizes, you may easily cut anywhere from 20 to 250 calories from what you're cooking.
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5points
#31 Replace Sushi Rolls With Sashimi
By ordering sashimi, or raw fish sans rice, you'll reduce your calorie intake and cut down on the empty carbohydrates. For a balanced, tasty dinner, get some edamame or a seaweed salad along with some sashimi of wild salmon or buri (wild yellowtail tuna).
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4points
#32 Replace Sugary Drinks With Coconut Water
The bulk of coconut water’s health advantages actually comes from the high concentration of electrolytes it contains, such as potassium, calcium, and magnesium. Coconut water can be an excellent option for people who are deficient in certain vital elements or often sweat. Generally, it’s a much better (yet delicious) alternative to the many sugary drinks.
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3points
#33 Replace Potato Chips With Homemade Kale Chips
This might be a stretch because we, too, agree that nothing can truly replace potato chips. We get that. In this case, purchasing kale or vegetable chips from the supermarket is also a viable substitute if making homemade kale chips with sea salt is too much hassle.
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2points
#34 Replace Sausage With Bacon
Surprisingly, looking gram for gram, sausage is healthier than bacon. Still, since bacon is easier to consume in moderation (it is sliced much thinner and absorbs less oil than sausage), we advise substituting a single strip of pan-fried bacon for your regular dose of processed cylindrical meat.
2points
#35 Swap Cake Pans For Muffin Tins
You don't have to give up your favorite sweets to be healthy. Just remember to consume them in moderation. And muffin tins are your new best buddy when it comes to portion control. Making brownies in pre-portioned muffin pans will make it much simpler to indulge in just one rather than baking a batch in an 8 x 8 pan, which you're sure to dive fork first into.
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2points
#36 Replace Cheese With Veggies
Whether you start your day with an omelet or an egg sandwich, replacing the cheese with vegetables is a simple way to reduce the amount of salt, fat, and calories. Spinach, tomato, and onion taste fantastic, and any vegetable combination tastes amazing with scrambled eggs.
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0points
#37 Replace Sugar With Cinnamon
When a recipe calls for sugar, you may want to come up with quick solutions to still get outstanding flavor without using all the unnecessary sweeteners. Using spices is a solution. Instead of using needless sugar, using spices like cinnamon or nutmeg will give food a ton of flavor without adding extra calories (or the blood-sugar spike).
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0points
