National Cheese Lover’s Day – Celebrate with Us!

Alex Brecher

At The BariatricPal Store, we’re always happy to celebrate a national holiday, especially when it involves food, and even more so when the celebration fit right into your weight loss plan. January 20 is on of our favorite days: it’s National Cheese Lover’s Day!

The Good and Bad About Cheese

Cheese is a mixed bag. It’s a good source of satisfying protein and bone-building calcium, and it’s low in carbs. On the other hand, it can be high in calories and fat. Cheese can fit into your weight loss diet if you watch the portions, but it’s easy to eat too much. A single ounce – about the size of the tip your thumb – has about 100 calories.

Aside from oversized portios, probably the biggest pitfall with cheese is what it comes with. Think pizza, sub and grilled cheese sandwiches, mac and cheese, and nachos. The added carbs and calories can be disastrous.

No worries, though. We’ll give you some ideas for enjoying cheese while losing weight!

Cheesy Entrees

Skip the mac and cheese and lasagna from an Italian restaurant. Instead, BariatricPal Vegetable Lasagna is made with four kinds of cheese and has only 220 calories for the entire meal. If you’re craving mac and cheese, try Spicy Cheese n’ Pasta with 130 calories and 12 grams of protein – with numbers like that, there’s even room to add a little extra cheese on top if you like! And if you’re looking for a quick lunch, what about Broccoli and Cheddar Protein Soup? It’s hard to go wrong with 100 calories and 15 grams of protein.

What about nachos? Shy away from tortilla chips (they scream, “Starch!”) and fake cheese sauce. You could make your own high-protein nachos with Protein Chips and low-fat or fat-free cheese, or just opt for BariatricPal Nacho Cheese Pasta for the craveable creaminess you’re looking for.

Cheesy Snacks

A snack should be satisfying, tasty, and easy. Oh, and it should fit into your calorie and carb budget. That may not be the case if you go for cheesy potato chips, cheese-filled crackers, or pretzels and cheese dip. Here are a few better snacks to curb your hunger.

-BariatricPal Cheddar Cheese Lite Double Bites with 10 grams of protein and 130 calories per pack.

-String cheese or cheese sticks plus a cup of grapes.

-Roasted bell pepper strips with an ounce of melted shredded mozzarella on top.

-A cup of watermelon cubes plus an ounce of feta cheese.

-BariatricPal low-carb Protein Pretzels plus fat-free cream cheese.

Cheesy Desserts

Hey, cheesecake counts as cheese, doesn’t it? It does when you do it BariatricPal style. Each serving of New York Cheesecake pudding has 90 calories and 14 grams of protein, while Creamy Cheesecake has 120 calories and 12 grams of protein. Both are low-carb and low-sugar, not to mention they each have 20 percent of the daily value for calcium. Way to end National Cheese Day in style!

There’s no reason to deprive yourself just to lose weight. We say, celebrate! Have a wonderful National Cheese Lover’s Day, and do it and yourself justice!

CheeseMealsProductsSnacksStore newsWeight loss tips