Being in college, it can be hard to practice good eating habits. There’s always those long nights slaving away on projects when a pizza is just too tempting. Those days when you are broke and have to resort to eating those leftovers in the fridge from last week. It is hard being a college student on a budget, but there are ways to still enjoy your meals and eat healthier, too. Here are some simple substitutions to think about when you’re cooking your next meal.
Who wouldn’t like applesauce in favor of butter? It’s tastier and it looks visually more appealing. This is also great for baking.
- Unsweetened applesauce has 45 Calories with a total fat content of 0 compared to butter or oil, which has 36 calories with a total fat content of 4.1 grams.
- Greek yogurt has 100 calories with a total fat content of 0 compared to sour cream, which has 65 calories with 49 of those calories being from fat, with a fat content of 5.4 grams.
Greek yogurt has the same consistency as sour cream. This makes a good substitute because they are very similar. Except, sour cream has more calories.
- Spaghetti Squash has 0 grams of fat compared to spaghetti noodles that have 174 calories for 1 cup with total fat of 0.8 grams.
Personally, I don’t think they look that much different. I mean, anything tastes better with a little bit of sauce on it. Right?
- Almond butter has 102 calories with 81 calories from fat with a total fat of 9 grams compared to peanut butter 188 calories with 145 calories from fat with a total fat of 16.1 grams.
The first time I saw my friend munching down on almond butter, I was kind of grossed out until I tasted it. I like that it doesn’t get stuck in your mouth like regular peanut butter. If you need a transition, dehydrated peanut butter always works, too.
- 3 oz. grilled chicken has 420 calories compared to 1 cup of tuna, which has 150 calories.
These are some of the websites I used to help me figure out the difference in calorie counts:
http://caloriecount.about.com/
http://www.health.com/health/article/0,,20409978,00.html
These are just fast ways to cut down on calories and not feel guilty about it. You can still eat the foods you love and not sacrifice the taste. I love to eat and would never eat anything that is bland or doesn’t have flavor.