Post pregnancy Diet Tip. A post By Holly Rigsby.
Before I share why I love Greek Yogurt, you should know what is Greek Yogurt
~ Greek yogurt is creamier than regular yogurt for it is produced by straining off the liquid whey, which concentrates the protein in the yogurt.
~ This means Greek Yogurt has twice the protein of regular yogurt.
~ Greek yogurt is lower in carbs (and yes it has sugar – dairy products have a natural sugar called Lactose – the key is to read the ingredients to find ADDED sugars – not naturally occurring)
~ Greek yogurt is lower in lactose so it is a great option for those with intolerances.
~ Greek yogurt is all natural!
Forget the added chemicals, preservatives, thickeners or stabilizers, sugars and artificial sweeteners you will find in many of the commercial brands.
But it is HIGHer in Calories!
And it SHOULD be!
I caught a commercial yesterday saying why Dannon’s Light and Fit is better than the other 100 calorie brand. Not sure what the purpose of eating less and less calories per snack is all about. If you eat a snack that is anything less than 200 calories ….
….how do you think you will feel in the next 30 minutes?
Especially if this snack contains a lot of sugar – or worse…artificial sweeteners (aspertamce, sucralose or HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP….hello, have you read the label of YOUR yogurt???) all of which wreak havoc on your appetite control system to begin with!
The goal of any supportive meal or snack is to eat enough and eat enough of the good stuff. This is what keeps you satisfied, energized, fuels your metabolism and keeps you on track of your post pregnancy diet and to reaching your fat loss goals. Cutting calories does not mean starving yourself! It means CUTTING the calories from JUNK!
Taste?
I will admit that if you are switching from the overly processed fake yogurts this takes some getting used to. My 1st encounter was one that I would describe as tart.
It is all a matter of allowing your taste buds to adjust. Years of eating processed foods high in sugars, artificial sweeteners and chemicals affect the ability for your palate to truly taste and enjoy the flavors of whole natural foods.
What Kind?
My favorite Brands:
I typically choose 2% for it is a good source of healthy fats.
~ Fage
~ Chobani
~ Stoneyfield brand has a greek yogurt called Oikos
I tend to choose the plain versions for I like to use my Greek yogurt in a variety of ways – see recipes and ideas below.
Cost?
If you purchase the individual containers, yes it will cost about $2 something a pop. To avoid this I purchase the BIG container – averages anywhere from $3 to $5. It lasts me a week so there is never any waste.
FYI – if you are willing to spend $5 on a container of ice cream or a frappaccino – you can spend $5 on a container of yogurt.
Will It Burn More Fat?
Just to help clear up any misconceptions……There are no quick, fix fat zapping foods. In the process of fat loss, foods do not actually enter your body and burn the fat.
Fat burn “happens” when your BODY burns slightly more calories than what you take in.
You can make your BODY achieve this ideal energy imbalance by boosting your metabolism though a combination of full body resistance training workouts, intervals and a supportive nutrition plan – a supportive nutrition plan is one where you are choosing to eat Whole, Natural Foods – Greek yogurt is an excellent choice.
Greek yogurt simply adds to the fat loss equation, keeping you satisfied, energized and giving your body the protein and nutrients needed for a healthy, thriving, fat burning metabolism.
4 of My Favorite Greek Yogurt Recipes To Include In Your Post Pregnancy Diet Or Fat loss Plan
1. Berry Yogurt Parfait
Make a parfait layering yogurt, fresh blueberries and walnuts
Really, any fruit or nuts prepared like this is delish!
2. Creamy Dreamy Oatmeal
Rolled oats, almond butter (or chocolate meal replacement) , fruit and yogurt
3. Blueberry Eggs
scrambled eggs and blueberries topped with yogurt
4. Greek Yogurt Desert
Yes, yogurt is a great alternative when you have a sweet tooth!
This is how I use it….
Greek yogurt, scoop of Prograde Lean chocolate meal replacement, sprinkle of ghirardelli dark chocolate chips. YUM!
Greek Yogurt is also great used as….
- a source of protein in your smoothies
- a sour cream substitute
- a yogurt dressing – whisk with vinegar, oil and seasonings
- a base for veggie dips
- Tzatziki (A cucumber sauce made with Greek yogurt – so yummy with Gyros!)
Make your Own!
Having trouble finding it?
Make your own by lining a sieve with a coffee filter and set it over a bowl. Place 4 cups plain, organic, whole-milk yogurt in the filter and refrigerate for 12 hours. Makes about 2 cups thick, Greek style yogurt.
Leave a comment below!
Once you give this a go, you will NOT want to go back to the overly processed, chemical laden yogurts again.
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Hi Holly,
Being a resident of Cyprus I have to certainly agree that Greek yogurt is a must for the diet!
We over here combine it with a couple of spoonfuls of the local honey..not very good when counting calories (around 200 ish) but combined with the yogurt its fantastic for those inflamed tendons/joints and a boost to the immune system against the mozzies, etc flying around in abundance! Eaten with diced peach or melon and its fab!
Lynne
I’m a fan of the Greek Yogurt with honey. Fage is my favorite with 250 calories. When I’m trying to go lower calorie, I eat the Oikos with 120. The honey combats the tartness you mentioned. Personally, I think it’s a great substitute for ice cream.
I love Greek-style yogurt, I not only make my own by straining, I make my own yogurt period, I like having total control of my food. I eat it sometimes with peanut butter and fruit (strawberries, bananas, blueberries) and sometimes add some corn or rice cereal for crunch.
I loved reading this post, I have been wondering what the difference was between regular yogurts and Greek yogurts. I am not a huge fan of yogurt but I do crave it once in awhile. I don’t like Yoplait or those others because of all the added sugars, and I stay away from all artificial sweeteners.
Once we stopped drinking diet pops, and anything with artificial sweeteners we did notice a huge improvement in how we felt too.
Thanks again Holly for a wonderful post!
I live in WA and i would like to know if someone knows about stores that carry this Greek yogurts?
Our Costco now carries Chobani’s Greek yogurt. It does take a little getting used to, because it is tarter than some of those fakey yogurts. But, I can tell you, this is what I remember yogurt tasting like when I was younger.
Maria…
Do you have a whole foods store?
I would also suggest calling your local grocers and if they do not carry it – ask them to start. Many grocery stores have a whole foods section near the produce section – if after looking here – ask them – many stores are super responsive to the requests of their customers.
Worse case – you make your own as shared above.
Can’t wait to try a few of these recipes.
This is great. Just added Greek Yogurt to my grocery list. Not sure if it is available because I have not looked for it before, so will make my own. Have heard of this yogurt before, just have never tried it. Thank you.
I love greek yoghurt but it is hard to find probiotic versions – in the UK there are only 2 brands that do a probiotic greek yoghurt:
Total and Rachel’s Organic
I use it in pancake recipes instead of milk to make a bunch of feather light pancakes that are completely Elimination Diet friendly!
I love natural and greek yogurt. I remember years ago on slimming world, I used to live on muller light yogurts – i can’t stand them now, they are so unnaturally sweet, it’s horrible! Greek yogurt is lovely and creamy and I love the contrast bewteen the sharp yogurt and sweet fruit.
Trader Joe’s has a great greek yogurt – I love it with raspberries, walnuts and a drizzle of agave syrup – yum!
Trader Joe’s carries several brands of the Greek Yogurt. I have been buying one–I think it the the TJ’s brand–in a 16oz container. Wish it came in 32oz. I absolutely love the creamy taste. I will have to try your suggestion and make it myself.
I have been eating yogurt daily for years and am glad to find this alternative to processed high sugar, high carb yogurts.
Maria- I live in WA and I just discovered Trader Joe’s. I don’t know where you are but check there website to see if one is near you- they have the best prices for Greek yogurt and lots of other great foods as well!
Amy
I just tried it today, single 80 cal servings 8g sugar it was vanilas flavor & I added fresh blueberries. It WAS yummy! (I had the honey ready, but didn’t need it w/the blueberries.) I gave tiny bites to my kids & they came back for more! Of all places, I found this Stoney farms organic Oikos greek yogurt at Superwalmart!
Maria, I don’t know where in WA you live, but I’m in Kirkland, and find Greek yogurt at Whole Foods and Trader Joe’s (as others have mentioned) and also at PCC (Puget Sound Consumer’s Coop).
I LOVE Greek yoghurt and have been eating it for years! It is my sour cream substitute and I use it for baking as well – I’ve found several recipes that drop out the butter or oil in muffins and substitute yoghurt instead. Mixed with berries or kiwifruit, or heaped on muesli is my favourite way to eat it. If you live in Australia, the Chris’ brand is the BEST.
By the way… even my KIDS ask for “mummy’s sour yoghurt…
It’s true – my kids now only want ‘mommy’s raspberry yogurt’ – it’s the best!
I love greek yoghurt too. Another favourite recipe is Fruit and Nut Swirl Yoghurt Tortoni. To make 6 serves place 2 cups greek yoghurt, 2 egg whites and if you have a sweet tooth, 2 tbls honey in an electric mixer. Mix on a highish speed for about 5 to 8 minutes until thick and fluffy. Fold in lightly mashed fruit and chopped nuts. You can either put in swirls or mix it in a little more. Put in a 1.5 litre (48 fluid ounce) lightly greased loaf pan, cover well with glad wrap and freeze over night. To serve, put in fridge for 15 mins to soften slightly, remove from loaf pan and slice. Is great for dinner parties with a few berries on the side.
My favourite is mashed mango and pecans. Peach (I used tinned ones in juice, no sugar), walnut and cinnamon is nice too as is raspberry with flaked almonds. Combinations are endless….
I love the Oikos… I like going organic with all the meat, dairy, and soft-skinned produce that I can. I can’t WAIT to try the recipe with the chocolate protein powder (I don’t have Prograde brand, but I’ve got Isagenix) and the chocolate pieces. YUMMMMM! WHat a creative idea… keep ‘em coming Holly girl!
In Canada you cannot come by greek yogurt…so I make my own as you described. So easy and so yummy!
I found some greek yogurt and its by brown cow.
have not tried it yet.
Brilliant post Holly, thanks! Slightly off the topic, I know, but you mentioned rolled oats in your recipes. Do you cook them or eat them raw? I read somewhere that raw is better but have no idea why. Perhaps you could shed some light…
I totally agree that yoghurt is very delicous and healthy.. I eat it everyday, I live in Istanbul and yoghurt is always on the table when we eat our meals.. We are lucky in that sense..
Now a little info about the “Tzatziki”.. The original of that dish is prepared with real cucumbers, sliced and diced into small pieces. Not with cucumber sauce.. And we add a little dried mint on it.. It is the freshner in our meals during whole summer.. And sometimes we add some garlic in it too..
Try it, it is easy and yummy..
Bon appetite!!
Z. Ozlem
I found this info. to be very helpful on the yogurt.
when I looked at the lable and seen it was higher in calories a red flag went off in my head. so I was glad
you touched on the fact that the calories where higher
and that it was a better choice for us.
I love Greek yogurt! Back in England I used to eat it and only it as my yogurt, but since moving to Nebraska the only type of any decent yogurt I can find is the small pots that are so expensive it’s not even worth it. $3 a tiny pot?! I can’t even find any regular organic large tubs without any sugar added, I thought I had once, but I forgot to read the label and found out it had a ton. Which stores are you all finding this in? I would LOVE to have some of this again.
I found it at Fred Meyers!! thanks to all of you who gave me ideas of where to find the greek yogurt.
I will try to find the nearest Trader’s Joes around here….
I tried last night with kashi cereal and it was delicious!and yes Holly was right, this greek yogurt has 23 grams of protein in one servin (1 cup)…my other plain yogurt only had 7!..way to go!
To bad that I’m allergic to dairy because this sounds really good…
I like my greek yogurt with a cap full of vanilla (I keep it at my desk at work) and either a small drizzle of honey or agave nectar! YUM! My fave too. Also REALLY good with toasted walnuts. It’s been a while and this post is making me hungry for some!
hey Holly! I have been buying NF greek plain yogurt, mainly cause the ones I buy seem to be higher in protein the 1 or 2% Why is that? Is it better to add the fat and have less protein? Thanks for clearing this up
I used to use a lot of greek yogurt, but when I read the label is seemed really high in fat. I went to have another look in our local supermarket and most brands show 11% fat. Is that too high? I can’t get low fat greek yogurt.
I find Oikos at my local Safeway, but I think I will travel a bit farther to Trader Joes if they have a bigger sized container. I love it with a small amount of honey, any kind of berry, and grapenuts.
Interesting about making your own, I will have to try this. Wouldn’t it be cheaper as well?
I have not tried Greek Yogurt, but am on my way out the door to buy some! When I have plain or vanilla yogurt, I like to put a teaspoon of jam or fruit preserves (sugar free) in the middle and mix it around. It gives it that kind of sweetness that it needs! Thanks for all of the great recipes!
I can’t tolerate dairy products, so I buy plain, unsweetened soy yogurt. We add it to smoothies and oatmeal. Or, I will add vanilla extract and stevia extract for our very own vanilla yogurt, without added calories/sugar. Yum!