Snacks, Snacks, Snacks

One of the most effective ways to lose weight is to eat smaller portions, more frequently.

You should be eating 5-7 times a day, so snack, snack, snack.

Not sure what to snack on?

Here are some of the things you can keep in you cupboard, your office, your car, your backpack, your briefcase, you diaper bag, your purse, etc. Keep healthy snacks available to you everywhere, all the time, so you won't need to get to the point of starving and needing to overeat, nor having to make an unhealthy choice when that's the only option around.

FOOD
• ANY fresh fruit. Make a fruit bowl the centerpiece of the snack room!
• ANY fresh vegetable (can have them with lowfat salad dressing, hummus, salsa or peanut butter or other nut butters as a dip) Easy ones are baby carrots or canned 3-bean salads.
• Edamame
• Olives
• Dried fruits (not fried and with no salt or sugar added), fruit leathers, fruit twists and fruit snacks that are truly JUST fruit
• Unsweetened applesauce or fruit cups (in their own juice)
• Frozen fruit (snack on it frozen on a hot day!) or add to protein shakes
• Low sugar yogurts, lowfat cottage cheese, lowfat cheese sticks
• Whole grains: pita pockets, whole wheat English muffins or breads, whole wheat tortillas, whole grain crackers (like Stoned Ground Wheat, Rye Crisps or Triscuits)
• Whole grain cereals that have more fiber than sugar in them (Cheerios, Multi-bran Chex, Wheat Chex, Puffed Kashi, Kashi Go Lean, Fiber One, Whole Grain Total, All Bran, 100% Bran, Post Bran Flakes, Quaker Crunchy Oat Bran, Corn flakes, Shredded Wheat, etc.)
• Oatmeal
• Lowfat granolas
• Rice cakes made with brown rice
• Baked (not fried) tortilla chips, or whole grain pretzels
• Lowfat microwave popcorn
• Granola bars that are whole grain and low in sugar (like some Barbaras, Health Valley and Nature Valley brands).
• Energy bars with have at least 5 g of protein, 3 g of fiber and less than 3 g saturated fat. (Cliff bars, Luna Bars, Kashi Bars, Powerbars, etc)
• Nuts (limit macadamias) and seeds (watch quantities)
• Trail mixes without high sugar or fried fruit ingredients
• Hard Boiled Eggs
• Vegetable soups, chicken noodle soup, gazpacho, minestrone soup.

BEVERAGES
• Water
• Seltzer, sparkling water, club soda
(You can mix either of the above with a squeeze from a citrus fruit or splash of 100% fruit juice to improve the taste)
• Low sodium vegetable drinks
• 100% fruit juice drinks (watch quantities)
• Lowfat milk, soy milk or rice milk
• Unsweetened ice tea
• Hot green tea

Do remember portion size counts. ;-)

Committed to your health,
Maren