100 Calorie Packs: My Secret to Sticking to My Diet

There are two big roadblocks to weight loss that every dieter needs to overcome. The first is motivation. Many dieters end up quitting after only a few weeks, especially if they aren't seeing immediate drastic results. The second is changing the bad habits that got them in trouble in the first place.

Sure, I have a pair of my old jeans hanging prominently in my closet, reminding me of my thinner days. But when forced with a choice between a long term goal that until recently seemed out of reach, or instant gratification, which do you think I chose? And that's why I am always landing into trouble.

I've tried Atkins, South Beach, so many different diets, and each time I would lose a little weight and bam! One bad day and I'm off the wagon. The truth is, I like food. I love my snacks, I love salty, I love sweet, and giving them up would just be too much. For the past few months I've tried a different approach, counting calories. Yes, the old standby that has been helping people lose weight for years. That's what's great about the classics, they work! Every day I keep a spreadsheet of my calories, protein, carbs and fat intake and spread my meals out to 5 small meals and 3 small snacks per day. I'm never hungry, and, as long as I get the nutrients I need, thanks to 100 calorie packs I still get to enjoy my favorite snack foods!

When I get a chocolate craving I can dip into a bag of Oreos or Hostess cupcakes. When I'm looking for a crunchy snack I can break out the Pringles, Doritos and Cheetos, all for 100 calories! Let's face it, we love these foods because they taste good, they're comforting. So good and comforting that they are to blame for most of my weight gain in the first place. They're convenient, and when I was nursing a baby in the middle of the night and hungry all the time, they were something I could just grab, stick in my mouth and go.

Sure, these 100 calorie packs look small, too small to handle a monster craving. That's what I thought the first time I opened one. But I found out, much to my surprise, that 100 calories worth of these foods was really all I needed. In fact, if I had been buying 100 calorie packs instead of the full sized bag of Doritos, I might never have been in this situation in the first place!

Moderation is the key, and that's what these 100 calorie packs are teaching. Yes, you can have your favorite foods and still eat a healthy diet. When I look at a 100 calorie pack and I see that this is the acceptable amount of these snacks to eat, I realize just how overboard I've gone in the past. It's helping me change my whole attitude towards food and snacks. I'll probably end up buying these 100 calorie packs long after my weight loss goals have been reached, and I'll never eat a full Hostess cupcake again.

Even better, they don't skimp on flavor. They might be smaller or thinner, but 100 calorie packs are all about portions, not substitutions. And when I'm at that point in my diet, about 4 weeks in, where I can't even bring myself to look at another grapefruit, a little taste of the foods I love makes me feel like I'm not really sacrificing at all. It's so much easier to stay on my diet that way. I feel rewarded instantly for eating better.

Of course, if you're counting calories you need to count your nutrients, too, and, just like their full sized partners, that's one big area where 100 calorie packs are lacking. If you ate a 1500 calorie per day diet of 15 100 calorie packs, you'd feel listless, ill, and most likely still hungry. But for a big indulgence that really isn't so big, these little snacks are perfect!