7 habits of successful snackers
Are you snacking today? Are chips, dips, cookies, and candies consuming you? Need to get a grip? If so, check out these seven tricks for successful snacking.1. Create your own snacks. Don't buy the ready-made ones -- they're low in vitamins, nutrients, and protein and high in calories, fat, sugar, and sodium. While sports and protein bars might be an exception, it's best to craft your own snacks. Try crunchy apple slices or celery sticks with natural peanut butter. Mix up a colorful bowl of fresh fruit. Prepare bags of nuts and seeds and grab them when you're on the go.
2. Balance your snacks. The ideal slow-burn snack has carbohydrates, protein, and surprisingly, a bit of fat. Try a pear, a chunk of cheddar cheese, and some low-fat yogurt and you'll be set for a few hours.
3. Snack to maintain weight. Snacking can help you from gaining weight because it helps control your appetite, making you less likely to overeat at meal times.
4. Keep stress in check. Keeping a handle on your stress will help you handle your hunger. We all tend to snack poorly when stress hits. Managing stress then is one key then to successful snacking. If and when your stress gets the best of you, don't go for the junk. Grab some fruit instead.
5. Once a month, let go. If you want to snack during your menstrual cycles, ladies, it's OK. Your body burns more calories during this time which is why you feel hungrier. Just make your snacks healthy and as always, don't go overboard.
6. Add calcium, cut sodium. Most of us don't come close to getting enough calcium. So choose snacks high in calcium. Avoid the salt, though. Most of us get too much of this stuff.
7. Hydrate. When you're lacking energy, feel run down, and think you want to eat, go for the water bottle instead. It might not be hunger plaguing you. It could be dehydration.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
5-05-2008 @ 3:29PM
Jessica said...
I'm a weight couselor/motivator and definitely a big believer in snacking. You never want to let your blood sugar drop so that you are ravenous and make poor decisions. I am also all for any tool than can help with weight loss as long as it is healthy.
Fad diets usually don't work, but I neither do diet pills. I do feel
that lower carb eating
(not low or no carb, just limiting processed "white foods") in
general is healthy, but I think of that as more of a way of eating
than a fad.
As snacks I love berries, almonds(24 almonds is one ounce and a nice
snacks), flavored rice cakes (the chocolate is fantstic with a
teaspon of peanut butter)
Here are a other few tips that I give out:
Don't let the perfect be the enemy of the good. If you can't be
perfect in your eating don't make the day a wash and start
"tomorrow".
Try to eat something you truly enjoy every day.
Try to eat tomatoes in some form..lycopene is great for all
especially men!
Get a pedometer and try to walk 10,000 steps a day.
If you don't get enough fruits and veggies take a good multi vitamin.
Try to get exercise in when you can. I have read about smartsoles on
many aol boards and they actually work, they increase calories burned
with each step and tone muscles http://www.smartsole.com
Join a support group to discuss food issues. I have found that good
old fashioned weight watchers truly is the best and not expensive.
http://www.weightwatchers.com
And the best thing I did for myself as a single woman is get a pet.
It has reduced stress for me and added to my happiness.
Try not to eat your heaviest meal too late.
Don't hold grudges!
Again all are "tries". nobody is perfect!
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