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Snacking Dos and Don'ts

FitSugar — Tue, 04 Aug 2009 04:30:33 -0700

Snacking has endured a bad rap for a long while - as in, "no snacking in between meals." Adding a couple of minimeals to your day can help you maintain energy, but strategic snacks can help you lose weight, too, by keeping your metabolism fired up. Here are some simple guidelines to help you make snacking work for you, your energy level, and your waist line.

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Healthy Eating Tip: Set Up Daily Snack Times

FitSugar — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 14:30:54 -0700

Snacks are an important part of a healthy diet. If you only eat three meals a day, you'll be starving by mealtimes, which most likely will result in overeating. Plus living with hunger pangs is a surefire way to become tired and moody, and you may not end up making it to your next meal before devouring the first unhealthy snack you set your eyes on. So while snacking is healthy, mindlessly snacking all day long isn't good either, since you'll end up consuming tons of extra calories and we all know what that means.

The best way to handle snacking is to set up a snack time (yes, just like when you were in preschool). Plan a morning snack for around 10:30 and an afternoon pick-me-up around 3:00. This way you will eat a little something in between meals without ruining your appetite. You also need to plan what you're going to eat during your snack time. Choose something that contains fiber and protein to fill you up and give you energy.

Don't know what to snack on? Here are some suggestions for the next time you have a Snack Attack.

Which Snacks Are the Saltiest?

FitSugar — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 04:30:00 -0700

While small amounts of salt are necessary for the body to function normally, too much sodium in the diet contributes to high blood pressure, so you should do your best to avoid taking in too much. A woman shouldn't exceed more than 2,300 milligrams of sodium a day. You may be thinking you don't need to worry because you never sprinkle salt on your food, but many pre-made foods already contain high amounts of sodium. So take this quiz to find out if you know which foods are the healthier choices.

Question 1 of 4

Which crunchy snack contains MORE sodium?

Snacks: More or Less Than 200 Calories?

FitSugar — Thu, 14 May 2009 04:30:00 -0700

Since it's considered healthy to eat every four hours, you may need to grab a snack in between meals if they are more than four hours apart. Snacks should be no more than 200 calories, otherwise your snacking habits could lead to weight gain. So take this quiz to see if you know what that amount looks like.

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Do Your Snacks Stack Up?

FitSugar — Thu, 07 May 2009 08:00:00 -0700

Chomping on snacks throughout your day can help regulate your metabolism and stave off hunger, but if you overdo it on snacks, you can end up gaining weight. So take this quiz to see if you snack right.

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Fit Tip: Snack on Vitamin A Foods After a Workout

FitSugar — Mon, 26 Jan 2009 14:30:00 -0800

After a workout, it's a good idea to have a little snack. It helps refuel your body and gives you energy after exerting so much. As I've said before, try to eat something rich in protein to help rebuild your damaged muscle tissue. The snack should also be high in vitamin A because just like the amino acids in protein, this nutrient also helps repair microtears that occur in muscles. Not only that but vitamin A helps produce white blood cells so you can fight off infection, which is perfect if you work out in a public facility, especially during cold and flu season. Some great snack ideas include carrots, carrot juice, mango, dried apricots, red pepper, sweet potato, spinach, and eggs.

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Healthy Eating Tip: Ditch the Communal Snacking

FitSugar — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 12:00:00 -0700

There's something about football season that brings big groups together. I love watching games with a group of friends, but it can do a number on my hard work at eating healthy. One thing I have realized is that it's difficult to keep track of how much I've eaten if I'm eating out of the same bowl, or bag, as my football buddies. While it's tempting to just keep taking from the communal snack bowls because everyone else is chowing down, that often leads to mindless eating and a whole lot of calories. Instead, place a reasonable portion on your own plate and limit yourself to that. This way you'll still be able to enjoy all the goodies and the game, but you won't be overeating the snacks.

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Food Review: Popchips

FitSugar — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 10:10:00 -0700

If potato chips are your weakness, indulging in grease, salt, and high amounts of fat might make you feel a little guilty, not to mention sick to your stomach. I just came upon an alternative marketed as a healthier chip, Popchips. They are never baked or fried. Popchips are made by applying heat and pressure (and according to their website "a little snack magic") to corn and potatoes, and presto chango a new kind of chip is formed.

As you can see they come in a wide variety of flavors, but how do they stack up against other potato chips? To find out, read more.

Here's the nutritional info for one ounce of chips (about 19 chips).

Serving Size
Calories	100	150	150
Total Fat	4 g	10 g	9 g
Saturated Fat	0g	1g	1g
Cholesterol	0mg	0mg	0mg
Sodium	250mg	200mg	170mg
Carbs	20g	15g	15g
Fiber	1g	1g	2g
Sugar	2g	2g	1g
Protein	1g	2g	2g
Ingredients	Natural potato ingredients (potato flour, potato starch), Safflower Oil and/or Sunflower Oil, Barbecue Seasoning (Sugar, Whey, Onion and Garlic Powders, Salt, Torula Yeast, Brown Sugar, Tomato Powder, Yeast Extract, Spices, Natural Flavors, Natural Smoke Flavor, Citric Acid, Paprika Extract, Paprika, Rice Flour, Salt, Soy Lecithin.	Potatoes, Sunflower Oil, Barbecue Seasoning (Sugar, less than (2%) of the Following: Dextrose, Maltodextrin, Natural Flavor, Molasses, Onion Powder, Monosodium Glutamate, Autolyzed Yeast [Torula], Salt, Spices, Paprika and Extractives of Paprika, Garlic Powder, Tomato Powder, Partially Hydrogenated Soybean and Canola Oil, Yeast, Citric Acid, and Mesquite Smoke Flavor), and Salt.	Select Potatoes, Safflower and/or Sunflower oil, Honey Powder (Cane Syrup, Honey), Salt, Rice Flour, Onion Powder, Tomato Powder, Paprika, Torula Yeast, Yeast Extract, Garlic Powder, Chili Pepper, Natural Hickory Smoke Flavor, Citric Acid, Paprika Extract, and Cayenne Pepper.

These chips have a wonderful light and crispy texture, and I loved that they weren't greasy like regular potato chips usually are. They sort of melt in your mouth after you crunch on them, and were surprisingly satisfying, even though they're full of air. The barbecue flavor was a little weird, almost a little too strong or burnt tasting.

As for nutrition, yes these chips have less calories, total fat, and saturated fat as compared to the Lay's and Kettle chips, but they also have more carbs and sodium and less protein. Comparing ingredients just makes me cringe. These chips aren't even made with real potatoes - no, "potato ingredients" doesn't count. If I had a hankering for BBQ chips again, I'd go for the Kettle chips. They're made with actual potatoes, have a lot less sodium than the Popchips, less sugar, and more fiber and protein. So what if they have more calories and fat? I'm not eating BBQ potato chips for health reasons here. They're a splurge, so they should taste like it.

Healthy Snack: Cucumber Cream Cheese Nibblers

FitSugar — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 03:00:00 -0700

In the mood for a light snack for Summer? Give this simple recipe a try. It may not seem very appetizing, but it's one of those things that you have to try. All three flavors and textures complement one another beautifully.

To see the recipe just read more.

Cucumber Cream Cheese Nibblers
Learned this recipe from a friend.

Ingredients

1 cucumber
Reduced fat cream cheese
Whole grain baguette

Directions

Slice the baguette into half inch slices.
Smear cream cheese on each piece.

Slice cucumber into quarter inch slices.
Top one cucumber slice on top of the cream cheese.

If you like dill, you can sprinkle some on top. Enjoy!

Print recipe with images | without images

Do you have a healthy snack or recipe to share? Then share it in the Lite'n it Up - Healthy Recipe Group and I might just post it on FitSugar.

Diet Tip: Don't Graze! Make a Snack

FitSugar — Wed, 09 Jul 2008 13:00:00 -0700

If you eat lunch at noon, but don't dine until the sun goes down, chances are high you're going to need a something-something to tide you over until dinner. Around three or four in the afternoon, you probably start craving some sustenance. If you're watching what you eat and trying to limit the number of calories you consume, you may be tempted to head into the office lunch room for "just one bite" of the brownies your co-worker brought in, or just one pretzel, or just one whatever. This won't satisfy your hunger though, and you'll probably end up going back again and again for more "bites." This habit of grazing may make it seem like you're eating less calories, but you'll probably end up eating more since you're not really keeping track of how much you're eating.

Instead of grazing, make yourself a healthy snack. You'll feel so much more satisfied when you can sit down and really enjoy what you prepared, and you'll have more control over the amount of calories. Here are some healthy snack ideas that should help cure your cravings.

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