Contrary to popular belief, snacking can help with weight loss and weight maintenance when done thoughtfully. Snacks can make up an important part of a balanced diet if they are planned and nutrient dense. Snacks high in nutrients such as protein and fiber, can help you reach diet goals and help keep you full longer.
Snacking can help achieve weight goals and assist in the foundation of a sustainable diet. You do not need to get rid of snacks to achieve your goals.
Common Snack Mistakes
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Impulse Snacking: snacking without any plan makes it easy to over consume calories and get few nutrients. By reaching for fast food or other highly processed foods, you will typically end up with high calorie, low nutrient dense foods. Foods low in nutrients can lend to overconsumption as they do not keep you properly full. Impulse snacking often leads to ignoring your weight and other health goals.
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Stress or Boredom Snacking: eating when you are not actually being motivated by hunger is an easy way to over consume calories. Mental hunger can easily be confused for physical hunger, but thinking about food is often not the same thing as being actually hungry.
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Portion size: disregarding serving size is another easy way to eat too many calories. Especially if eating a high calorie, low nutrient snack, a single serving is unlikely to keep you full and if you’re not paying attention, you’re likely to eat several.
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Excessive Snacks: snacks tend to be lower in calories than meals but if you’re eating a lot of snacks in addition to meals, the calories will add up. Again, low nutrient-dense foods won’t make you feel full so you may end up snacking more than you should be. Many high calorie snacks throughout the day can make it hard to meet your goals.
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High Calorie, Low Nutrient Snacks: high calorie low nutrient snacks will quickly take you over your calorie limits and not do much to curb hunger.
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Trying to Outrun a Bad Diet: it’s much harder to burn calories than to consume fewer calories in the first place. It’s hard on the body and unrealistic to both consume and burn excessive calories on a daily basis. Not to mention intensive exercise is difficult if your body is not properly fueled.
Tips for Snacking
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Plan Your Snacks: convenient and quick snacks can still be mindful and nutritious. Keep a variety of nutrient-rich, ready-to-eat foods nearby to snack on when hunger hits. This will help lessen the temptation of less healthy options when you are hungry and makes snacking both healthy and simple. Artisana Organics Granola is available in resealable bags in both 10oz bags for home and 1oz bags for on the go. They can easily be both stored and taken with you throughout your day. Additionally, the 1oz bags are conveniently a single serving.
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Snack When Hungry: practice mindfulness to learn when you really are hungry which is common three to four hours after a meal. Learn to read your hunger cues so you’re eating when your body wants to be. Learn how to tune out food noise and tell the difference between mental hunger and cravings and actual physical hunger. Ask yourself “Why am I grabbing this snack?” If you notice you are eating when you are not actually hungry, try another activity such as getting your steps in.
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Make The Most of Your Snacks: Choose nutrient-dense foods that will help fill in the gaps in your meal plan. Focus on incorporating whole foods, such as fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat dairy products. Whole grain snacks include energy from carbohydrates and are a good source of fiber. Nuts and seeds are a good source of protein to help you feel full longer. They also contain heart-healthy fats. Artisana Organics Granolas contain a mixture of nuts, seeds, and grains and works well with yogurt, milk, or as a standalone product. A serving contains 2 grams of fiber and 2-3 grams of protein based on flavor to help keep you full.
- Personalized Portions: Based on your weight goals and the amount of calories in your deficit or maintenance, decide how many calories you should be eating in a snack. Then match serving sizes to the calories in your ideal snacks. A good calorie limit for snacks generally is 200 calories. A good strategy is to measure and weigh the appropriate serving size and take that portion out of the package opposed to mindlessly eating straight out of the package. Using small bowls and plates can help limit caloric intake as well if you are eyeballing your intake. Artisana Organics Granola is conveniently available in 1oz resealable single serving bags and depending on flavor, they are 140 calories or 150 calories per serving.
So whether your goal is lose weight or maintain your current weight, it is entirely possible to include snacks through planning and selecting low calorie, high nutrient options. The key is to pay attention to your hunger cues, plan according to your recommended calorie intake, and select nutrient dense foods.
