Low Calorie Foods !

Prepackaged, frozen meals - Weight Watchers has "Smart Ones," there's Lean Cuisine, Healthy Choice, and now the South Beach diet. I buy whatever looks good and/or is on sale, not because I am following a particular diet. These foods are healthy and offer variety.

Canned soup - Read the labels. Companies usually list more than one serving per can, so the calories and sodium are more that what you see at first glance. Healthy soups are costlier but the cans are larger and they're chunkier. Regular soup is fine as long as you keep track of calories.

Fat-Free hot dogs or chicken patties - These take some getting used to but they're filling and guilt-free. Some brands are unpalatable and simply not worth the extra money.

Lean lunch meat - A sandwich with lean lunch meat and some mustard or fat-free mayo will get you buy until your next meal. It may cost more but there's no denying the difference between lean and regular. Again, read the labels.

Rice cakes - Plain rice cakes are only 35 calories. Unsalted ones have very little sodium and are healthier. Other flavors are available and quite good, even though they have a few more calories.

Bullion cubes - Dieting often makes you feel chilled. Drink bullion cubes dissolved in hot water to warm up and get a little food content. The only downside is that they're packed with salt, so don't get carried away.

Breakfast and granola bars - Crunchy breakfast bars come in many different flavors and can be eaten as a fast meal if you're eating several times a day or as a satisfying snack.
Lowfat cottage cheese - Add a 1/2 of this to your diet to balance it out. You'll get dairy benefits and only about 80 calories.

Cherry tomatoes - Besides the other fruits and vegetables that I like, a medium cherry tomato is packed with flavor and only has 5 calories.

Light yogurt - Light yogurt has more calories than what I'd like, but it's a treat. Pick your favorite flavor and reward yourself when your sweet tooth kicks in.

Popcorn - Surprised? I don't mean the prepackaged popcorn that you pop in the microwave, it's packed with calories and sodium. What's healthy is the old-fashioned, natural kernels that you need to pop in a hot-air popper. This gives you control of what is added. Still, you need to eat in moderation.

Pickles - Load up on dill pickles and dill slices. This makes a nice "side dish" or snack and helps fill you up without giving you calories. Other pickles, such as "bread and butter" give you calories, so make sure you read the label.

Cool Whip - Are you an ice cream addict? Next time you have a craving, eat some frozen Cool Whip Light instead.

Sugar-Free Jello - Available in a large variety of flavors, you're in for a refreshing treat.

Light Bread - Wonder light bread has only 40 calories per slice. Regular bread is around 60 per slice. That means eating a sandwich with light bread will save you 40 calories -- another slice of light bread!

Condiments and spreads - Did you know that mustard has zero calories? The calorie content of ketchup varies by the brand. Either way, you need to count and add them to your daily list. Mayo is packed with calories so it's best to stick with the fat-free version (Kraft is my favorite brand.) Butter and margarine is another no-no but you can find brands that offer fat-free spread although they sacrifice taste.

Beverages - Water is very beneficial to feeling full and satisfied. Your body needs extra water when it's eliminating fat from your body, so drink plenty. Tea, diet sodas and sugar-free drink mixes add variety and all count towards your liquid/water intake. Fat-free hot chocolate is perfect for chocolate cravings.