How To Feel Full On A Low Carb Diet
Low carbohydrate. The phrase can evoke fear in many bread and pasta loving people. Because, for them, those carbohydrates not only taste delicious, but they are what is making them feel full at the end of the day. Or are they?
Yes, you can eat a low carbohydrate diet and still feel full. It’s important, like with any change to your diet, to ensure you’re still getting enough calories and that you’re balancing your other macros (fat and protein) to leave you feeling full after each meal. This will help curb hunger pains, keep you energized and help you maintain a low carb diet.
Before you make any large changes to your diet, you should always seek medical advice to ensure a diet is right for you. Low carb or keto diets have been known to affect blood sugar, so make sure you do get checked first.
How To Feel Full On A Low Carb Diet
Adding more low-carb veggies to your plate
If you simply remove the carbs from your plate, it’s little wonder that you’ll end up ravenous by the end of the day or in between meals. Instead, you need to fill up on delicious, low-carb veggies. You can add a mountain of non-starchy vegetables to your plate and not feel guilty about not sticking to the meal plans.
Drinking more water
This is a great way to lose weight, no matter what diet you’re on. Often when we’re feeling hungry, it’s actually thirst tricking us! Before you eat something, make sure you drink a large glass of water. See if that helps you feel full. Then you can start thinking about snacks or that next meal.
Eating more healthy fats
Remember, this is about low carbs, not a low fat diet. Eating foods that are high fat, like avocados, can leave you feeling fuller for longer. This is true whether you’re eating a low carb diet or not! So make sure each meal has some good healthy fats in it.
Ensuring you are eating enough protein
Getting enough protein is an essential part of any weight loss program. If you’re wanting to eat low carbs, then you need to increase your healthy fats and protein to ensure you’re still consuming enough calories. Studies show that protein is essential for muscle growth, so before you start a low carb diet, make sure you work out where you’re going to be getting your protein from.
Low Carb Filling Foods
Veggie noodles/ rice, zucchini noodles “zoodles”, raw or frozen
21 calories per 1 cup
I love zucchini in place of other high carb foods like pasta or noodles. Swapping out your regular noodles for zoodles means that you’re not only reducing the grams of carbs your consuming, you’re also consuming more non-starchy vegetables. That’s the food group you want in your diet!
Veggie noodles/rice, cauliflower “rice”, raw
38 calories per 1 cup
Again, this is such an easy switch to make. You can still enjoy your favorite dishes, but without the carbs. Cauliflower rice can be bought pre-made, or make it yourself if you have a food processor. You just need to process the florets. Or you can grate by hand but this does take a while. Sometimes it’s easier to just purchase the pre-grated!
RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS
Trader Joe's Riced Cauliflower
Chicken strips, skinless, grilled
147 calories per 4 oz
High protein, low calorie, chicken prepared like this is packed with health benefits, especially if you’re physically active. You need protein to help with muscle repair and growth. This will help fill you up and make sure you’re not reaching for snacks in between meals!
RECOMMENDED PRODUCTS
Trader Joe's Grilled Chicken Strips
Avocado, small
233 calories per 1 each
These small gems are almost the perfect food. Packed full of good fats, super filling and delicious in so many dishes. You can make a side like guacamole to make your Mexican dishes taste delicious, add to salads, or simply serve with cucumber and haloumi for a delicious, carb-free breakfast.
Egg, large
72 calories per 1 each
I couldn’t write this list without including eggs. Packed full of protein, they’re my go to snack. Did you know hard boiled eggs will keep in the fridge for up to a week? If you know that you’re prone to snacking, and it’s often things like muffins, chips or bread that you reach for, try boiling a pack of eggs at the start of the week. The replace all those carb-heavy snacks with eggs instead and see how you feel. Add some Trader Joe’s Everything Seasons to up the flavor levels.
Almonds
105 calories per ⅛ cup
I love nuts as well as nut butters! They’re packed full of protein and fat, so they’re the perfect snack. You can also add some chopped almonds to salads or other meals to increase the protein and fat content without compromising on your low-card goals. Single serve nut butters as a snack is also a great idea if you know you’re going to want snacks.
