When I first started trying to eat healthfully, I heard that yogurt was a healthy alternative to other sweet foods I would normally eat (like ice cream). I would buy fat-free or reduced fat, single-serve containers in bulk, thinking it was a better deal than the sugary desserts I would normally be shoving in my face. One day I decided to actually look at the label. I couldn't believe what I saw. In a 6 oz container of Yoplait 99% fat-free Strawberry yogurt, there were 170 calories and a whopping 26 grams of sugar! For that many calories, I could have had a serving of full-fat ice cream or something like a Skinny Cow ice cream sandwich. If I was going to eat "diet food," I wanted it to be diet-worthy!
I transitioned to light yogurts, but I didn't care for the taste, and they didn't fill me up. A meager 6 ounces and 5 grams of protein wasn't a substantial enough snack. And the plain yogurts were disgusting to me. I knew I was dieting when I ate them. I felt let down by this super food. I grew to hate yogurt completely. Until I found out about Greek yogurt.
A disclaimer, I now enjoy (and sometimes even crave) plain yogurt because I've eaten it so frequently. Same goes for grapefruit. But even if you're not a fan of plain yogurt, here are a few ways you can jazz it up and have a filling, healthy snack that packs no added sugars and comes complete with about half of your recommended daily intake of protein.
1 cup of fat-free plain Greek yogurt (I like Oikos and Voskos, personally) - 140 calories, 24 g protein
2 tablespoons Smuckers sugar-free raspberry preserves (or your flavor choice) - 20 calories
Total - 160 Calories
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That's it! You get your fruit yogurt without any added sugars, but with all of the health benefits you were hoping (and almost twice the serving!). If you're not a fan of fruit, you can try a bit of no-calorie sweetener (like stevia or sucralose aka Splenda) and different flavor extracts. Almond, vanilla, even rootbeer! The sky's the limit.
I transitioned to light yogurts, but I didn't care for the taste, and they didn't fill me up. A meager 6 ounces and 5 grams of protein wasn't a substantial enough snack. And the plain yogurts were disgusting to me. I knew I was dieting when I ate them. I felt let down by this super food. I grew to hate yogurt completely. Until I found out about Greek yogurt.
A disclaimer, I now enjoy (and sometimes even crave) plain yogurt because I've eaten it so frequently. Same goes for grapefruit. But even if you're not a fan of plain yogurt, here are a few ways you can jazz it up and have a filling, healthy snack that packs no added sugars and comes complete with about half of your recommended daily intake of protein.
1 cup of fat-free plain Greek yogurt (I like Oikos and Voskos, personally) - 140 calories, 24 g protein
2 tablespoons Smuckers sugar-free raspberry preserves (or your flavor choice) - 20 calories
Total - 160 Calories
.jpg)
That's it! You get your fruit yogurt without any added sugars, but with all of the health benefits you were hoping (and almost twice the serving!). If you're not a fan of fruit, you can try a bit of no-calorie sweetener (like stevia or sucralose aka Splenda) and different flavor extracts. Almond, vanilla, even rootbeer! The sky's the limit.
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