Healthy Snacking

Most days, especially the weekends, I love snacking between my meals. I’m what I would call a “grazer,” I enjoy eating throughout the day, not just 3 square meals a day.  Because I love snacking so much, I am trying to make healthier choices when it comes to snacking. A lot of foods that are easy to grab and eat as a snack are not always the healthiest, or sometimes they just have more protein than I should really be eating.

Depending on what I snack on, this can mess with the types of food I eat throughout the rest of the day. If I eat a snack that has a lot of protein (like baby mozzarella cheese), then I can’t always eat the meal I want later in the day. I tend to eat the most amount of protein or phe at dinnertime, so if I snack too much, or eat something with a lot of protein, it may change what I wind up making for dinner.

Carrots and ranch dip

I am very guilty of snacking on Cheez-its, which I know aren’t great for you in general, and they are also a higher phe snack that I probably shouldn’t be eating. Lately, I’ve been trying to be more mindful when I snack and try to make healthier choices. One change I’ve recently made is that I try to keep carrots in my fridge. I like having carrots on hand (with some ranch of course) because they are an easy snack that doesn’t take a lot of preparation. They are also a way healthier alternative to snacking on Cheez-its.

I find that if snacks take a lot of preparation, I am less likely to eat it. I feel like healthier snacks tend to take a little more thought and preparation, which means its less likely that it will be my first choice when it comes to picking a snack. Junk food is so easy to just grab and eat, but I’m trying to not do that as much and consciously choose fruits and veggies over Cheez-its and potato chips.

Rice cake with cookie butter and green apple slices

One healthy snack that I sometimes have is a rice cake with cookie butter and green apple slices. I also sometimes eat this as a light lunch if I’m not feeling very hungry. I think a big reason why I snack so much is because I just don’t feel full during the day. This rice cake with cookie butter is a snack that definitely fills me up. If I’m just having it as a snack, I might not eat the apple. But if I eat this as a light lunch, I find that an apple is a great low-phe pairing. One rice cake is only 1g of protein, 1 tablespoon of cookie butter is less than 1g of protein, and a green apple is also less than 1g of protein.

Adding healthy snacks into my routine is pretty new for me and something I’m working on. I am going to continue trying to find more healthy options to snack on instead of always going for the Cheez-its or potato chips. I may also be a little guilty of enjoy some chocolate from time to time. 🤷‍♀️ If you have any easy, quick, and healthy snack options that you eat on a daily basis please share in the comments!