I get asked a lot by my clients what foods are the best to snack on. Most of us don’t give much thought to always having healthy snacks to hand. If you do then your probably confused about what snacks to have. Snacking has many benefits if you choose wisely it can act as a major boost to your diet. Choose badly and it can spell diet and health downfall!
So why snack anyway?
Smart snacking maintains blood sugars and can prevent brain fog and fatigue
Smart snacking can keep stress levels down and avoid excessive blood sugar swings
Smart snacking can keep a metabolism fired up and you burning fat all day
Smart snacking can help prevent overeating at meal times, especially at night time!
Smart snacking prevents the body from using it ‘s own lean tissue stores for energy
So I have come up with a list of a few smart snack ideas. Print it off and take it with to the supermarket or health food shop. Keep these snacks handy in your glove box, desk draw, handbag and sports bag.
- Instead of crisps think nuts, seeds and dried fruit mixes. Nuts and seeds are packed full of good fats and protein including minerals and antioxidants and can help lower your risk of heart disease. Dried fruit such as apricots in moderation can help satisfy that sweet fruit and deliver a high amount of fibre and minerals such as magnesium, iron and calcium.
- If your craving chocolate have a couple of squares of dark 70% organic chocolate. It will satisfy your cravings and is a lot better for you than milk chocolate. It contains hardly any sugar and is high in antioxidants.
- Instead of biscuits think oat cakes or wholegrain rice cakes and nut butters.
- Crunchy carrot sticks and humous is another healthy snack that can keep hunger at bay.
- Instead of sweets try a fruit smoothie, i usually mix some strawberries, blueberries, a small banana, a handful of spinach and some coconut / almond milk together which tastes delicious and stops those sugar cravings.
