Carrots & Artichokes—examples of 'Free Food' vegetables

Free Foods

Our Free Foods list helps you stay on track with guilt-free, tasty snacks.

The key to successful weight loss and weight management is finding ways to avoid feeling hungry, getting bored, and managing the desire for snacks.

That’s where our Free Foods list comes in to help you stay on track.

What are Free Foods?

‘Free foods’ are a great way to help you manage cravings as they do not contain enough food energy (kilojoules or calories) to have a significant impact on body weight.

Creative ways to enjoy Free Foods

Using our ‘free foods’ list, and a little creativity, you can prepare guilt-free tasty snacks to be enjoyed between main meals or to accompany a KicStart VLCD meal replacement shake or soup.

Want to try something new?

Check out our collection of Free Food Recipes

Free Vegetables

Any combination of ‘free food’ vegetables can be eaten on their own, made into a hot or cold salad, made into a soup or dip, or dry roasted.

  • Alfalfa sprouts
  • Artichoke hearts (fresh or in brine)
  • Asian greens
  • Asparagus
  • Bamboo shoots
  • Bean sprouts
  • Broccoli
  • Brussel sprouts
  • Cabbage
  • Capsicum
  • Carrot
  • Cauliflower
  • Celeriac
  • Celery
  • Chinese veg mix
  • Chili
  • Choko
  • Cucumber
  • Dill pickles
  • Eggplant
  • Fennel
  • Garlic
  • Ginger
  • Green beans
  • Kale
  • Leeks
  • Lettuce
  • Mushrooms
  • Onion
  • Peas / Snow peas
  • Pumpkin
  • Radish
  • Silver beet
  • Spinach
  • Spring onions
  • Squash, button
  • Swede
  • Tomato (fresh or tinned)
  • Water chestnuts
  • Watercress
  • Zucchini

Free Fruits

You will notice that this list of Free Fruits is rather short. Whole pieces of fruit (not fruit juice) are an important part of a long term healthy maintenance diet, however they do contribute to your overall energy intake.

For general snacks and adding variety to KicStart shakes the following ‘free food’ fruits can be used freely.

If you’re in the first 6 weeks of a Healthy Weight For Life program, try to stick to these Free Fruits to maximise your results.

  • blueberries
  • blackberries
  • lemon
  • lime
  • passionfruit
  • raspberries
  • rhubarb
  • strawberries

Free Food - Drinks

  • water

  • sparkling mineral water

  • fruit infused water

  • plain mineral water

  • soda water*

  • herbal teas

  • vegetable juice

  • miso*

  • tomato juice

  • soup made from free vegetables

  • tea or coffee with a dash of milk

* Enjoy sparingly, being mindful to not over-consume on sodium

Free Food - Condiments

  • pepper

  • herbs

  • spices

  • horseradish

  • Worcestershire Sauce*

  • low-sodium soy sauce*

  • balsamic vinegar

  • vinegar

  • sweet pickles

  • mustard

* Enjoy sparingly, being mindful not to over-consume on sodium

Some Free Food snack suggestions

  • Veggie Dip: Whip up a fresh dip using the free vegetables above – perfect for dipping and sharing!
  • Zesty Salsas: Add a zesty twist with a chunky salsa, made with chopped veggies and herbs for a burst of flavour.
  • Crisp Veggie Sticks: Crunch on colourful vegetable sticks that make an easy, on-the-go snack.
  • Hearty Vegetable Soups: Warm up with a comforting, low-calorie soup made from a mix of free veggies.
  • Refreshing Diet Jellies: For a light and sweet treat, try diet jellies, a fun way to curb your sweet cravings without added calories.

Free Food recipes