Easy Snacks For On the Go - Healthier Food Options
Snacks & Healthy Options
In today's world people are becoming increasingly busy and spending less time in preparation. of thier food. We end up throughout the day buying snacks that are low in vitamins and minerals and high in fat and sugar. These types of snacks usually include chips and chocolate bars. Now I’m not saying you can’t enjoy life’s little treats once and awhile, just try to keep it far and in-between. When you do feel like a snack, look for more nutritional snacks to munch on. A good way to do this is to pay attention to the nutrition facts tables on the back of products, as they can help you make healthier choices when buying. Besides the obvious reading the labels here are some ways you can make a healthier choice:
Size it Right - Pay attention to portion size. This is very important. There is a reason why some things are called snack size and some are not. So buy the things in the little packages and just because it’s little does not mean its ok to eat many of them. This happens with people and crackers all the time.
Snacks v.s Food Guide - I know it can be difficult to pick the healthy from the bad. However when choosing a snack to eat, try to pick a snack that has foods from at least two out of four food groups (Canada’s Food Guide) A great example of this would be a low fat yogurt with maybe sunflower seeds with it.
Hydration - Drink plenty of water throughout the day. Although when you do feel you need something more than water, try 1% chocolate milk. Yes chocolate milk! Also 100% fruit or vegetable juice. Try to stay away from pop and flavored juice. Also cutting back 1 coffee or tea a day can make a difference to your daily intake of nutrients and calories. Don’t forget to watch your sizes and eat no salt or low in salt foods as well.
Choose Lower Fat Foods - It’s all about balance. Balance in life and balancing what you eat. When chosen foods to eat pick foods that are lower in fat more often. For instance, choose to eat more vegetables and fruits, low fat milk products, fruit and cereal bar, assorted trail mix, or even baked chips instead.
Get Your Fiber - Most of the fast foods or on the go snack are low in fiber. Good option is to choose whole grain choices whenever you can. Of course vegetables and fruits are high in fiber and naturally low in fat and are packed with nutrients. Snacking on vegetables and fruits will also help you reach your daily recommended servings.
Don’t Wait Too Long - People are more likely to choose bad foods to snack on when they have waited to long between meals and they are hungry. It’s about planning. If you fill your desk drawer with candies your of course going to snack on those when your hungry. So either don’t let yourself get that hungry or remove the bad snack. Maybe carrot sticks in a zip lock instead?
So now that you have an idea of some very simple ways to make changes. I’ve included below a easy guide for you to choose a better option vs. the one you should try and avoid as much as possible.
Sweet? - Instead of a candy bar or cookies. Choose fig bars, or fresh fruit
Salty? - Why eat potato chips or processed cheese, when you can eat baked chips and almonds instead.
Crunchy? - Instead of popcorn and caramel corn, you can choose melba toast or veggie sticks
Thirsty? - We already know to stay off the pop, which includes diet. Energy drinks can be high in sugar and caffeine as well. Instead choose water or 100% pure vegetable or fruit juice.
Let me know what you think or if you got any questions you can also visit any of my other articles below.
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