How many calories in a slice of pizza: Weight loss-friendly options

April 13. 2022

Mmm, pizza. Who doesn’t love it? When you can’t find time to cook, you order pizza. When you have friends over, you order pizza. When you’re sad, you order pizza. Pizza is always a good choice. But the relationship many have with pizza is complicated – loving it but at the same time associating it with guilt and indulgence.

It seems impossible to have pizza when trying to lose weight as it often contains many calories. But does a healthy pizza exist? And how many calories can be in that slice of a weight-loss-friendly pizza?

Craving pizza when trying to lose weight doesn’t need to mean you have to throw away all your healthy habits. Firstly, let’s find out why pizza can’t be your friend. But don’t worry, there is a surprise for you!

Why is pizza so high in calories?

Before we dig into healthy pizza recipes and how many calories can be in a slice, let’s see what makes a regular pizza filled with so many calories so you can come up with your own recipe once you get a little familiar with how it works.

The cheese

What attributes not only to pizza’s calorie count but also cholesterol and sodium content is the cheese.
A cheesy pizza slice has approximately 270 calories, of which carbs are 33.6 grams and 12.3 grams of protein.

The sauce

The number of calories a pizza slice can contain counts differently for different sauces. While many use tomato-based sauces that are relatively low in calories, some use dairy-based ones that can increase the total calorie level. It may seem like that increase is not that much, but with all the other ingredients and each slice, it ends up much more than you would like.

The base

Though it isn’t the most critical part of the pizza, it is a primary one. A few factors of pizza crust dictate its total calorie level. If the crust is thicker, it will have more calories. It absorbs oil while baking, so every tablespoon of it adds calories. Also, depending on a pizza slice size depends on its calorie content. And, of course, the crust’s ingredients dictate the calorie level. Plain white-based pizza contains around 270 calories, 28g of carbs, and 12g of protein.

The toppings

While the previously listed ingredients are core ingredients for pizza, a topping is something that is added arbitrarily. Meat toppings give you extra protein, but more sodium, saturated fats, and calories come with that. In the end, it does more bad than good.

Understanding pizza nutrition facts

To get a better idea of what you’re putting in your body and how many calories are in a pizza slice, we’ll give you the daily recommended dosage of each nutrient. Female adults should consume between 1600 and 2000 calories per day, whereas males should consume between 2000 and 3000. Carbohydrates should make 45 and 65 percent, fats 20 to 35 percent, and proteins should make the remaining 10 to 35 percent of total calorie intake.

One shouldn’t consume more than 130 grams of carbs per day for optimal health. Considering that most people don’t stop at one slice, exceeding that daily recommended carb and calorie intake is easy.

What adds up to the unhealthy aspect of pizza is its concentration of cholesterol and saturated fats. These two components are associated with many diseases such as obesity and heart disease.

How to lower the number of calories in a pizza slice

Now it’s time for the great news we told you we have for you! Even if you’re following a specific weight loss program or diet, you can still eat the regular dough-based food but with some modifications. If you’re following the HCG diet and ketosis, there are some additional changes you have to make, but nothing is too complicated when you get to eat pizza, am I right?

Everything is possible when you take matters into your own hands and make it on your own. You should pay attention to using:

Healthy base

Use multigrain, buckwheat, whole wheat, or any other flour substitute for your base. These options are brilliant for lowering your carb intake yet will make your crust taste just like a regular pizza.
If you don’t want to add extra gluten to the pizza crust, you can use brown or white rice. Or both! Mix them 1:1, and you’ll end up with a fantastic pizza crust. (You can do the mixing thing with flour as well)

Healthy toppings

As toppings contribute to a greater total calorie count, you should minimize the addition of sauce, meat, and cheese and go for the alternatives like mozzarella, low-fat ricotta, parmesan, and soy cheese. And don’t forget the vegetables! Onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers, and spinach will make that pizza yummy, nutritious, colorful, and full of vitamins.

Healthy sauces

The best alternative for pizza sauce is homemade tomato sauce. But you can also use low-fat yogurt with garlic.
The best thing you can do is make your own sauce. When you switch to homemade ones, there is no need to panic if you start craving sugar. The bought sauce contains a lot of preservatives and sugar, and the solution to the intense sugar craving is Full-Feel®. Not only will it suppress that craving, but it will help you stay full for longer and burn fat, which aids your weight loss journey.

Healthy pizza recipe

Ok, now let’s get into the recipe for the yummy pizza. You need to ensure that it is nutritious and tasty and that you enjoy eating it. It’s always a better solution to make one at home than to order it because you have complete control over the ingredients you include in it.

What you have to do first is make your own pizza dough. You can make it an hour before making the pizza, but it’s tastier if you do it the day before. Take a bowl and mix 125g of the mentioned alternatives, 2g of salt, and 2g of active dry yeast. Stir the ingredients roughly, then add 85g of water and 3g of olive oil. Knead the dough for 10 minutes. It should feel smooth. If the dough is too sticky, make sure to add a bit more flour. Shape it into a ball, place it in the bowl and cover it with some olive oil. Then cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Leave the dough at room temperature for one hour, after which you can use it immediately or store it in the fridge.

To make a tasty topping, all you have to do is combine fresh tomatoes, garlic, oregano, a dash of olive oil with lemon juice, and a sprinkle of salt.

Preheat the oven to its maximum and start spreading the dough. The dough’s size, shape, and thickness are up to you. Then spread your homemade topping, and add the vegetables – mushrooms, red onion, and zucchini. Bake the pizza for 3 minutes, add low-fat ricotta and continue baking for 4 to 7 minutes until browned. Remove the pizza from the oven, sprinkle it with oregano, add the baby arugula, and add a drizzle of olive oil. Slice it into pieces and enjoy your healthy pizza!

Final thoughts

So, pizza isn’t necessarily bad if you consume it in reasonable portions. The problem is that it contains a significant amount of sugar and sodium. And you can never know precisely how many calories are in a slice of pizza and if there are some hidden ingredients the fast-food chains put into it.

But this weight loss clinic is pizza friendly. We hope this article helped you and encouraged you to enjoy your pizza as an appetizer, main course, and even dessert.

Author

Nurse Walton

Born and raised in Chicago, IL, Chanay received her Practical Nurse licensure and went to work in clinical specialties such as Home Health, Assisted Living, Long-Term Care and Dialysis Centers. Through this work, she realized the importance of diet, nutrition and weight loss among her patients. This led her to open A Better Weigh, Inc. Medical Weight Loss Center in 2009.