YOU'VE had your lunch a few hours ago, and dinner is not till a few hours more. You’re feeling a little hungry and your mind is wandering about food. Should you feel guilty about having a snack, even as you’re making an effort to eat healthy? Honestly, no.
Being hungry can zap you of energy, lose concentration and makes you irritable. When you reach the level of being famished, you risk making poor food choices. By then, all kinds of tempting foods will be hard to resist – a sure disaster waiting to derail your healthy eating efforts.
So, having a light snack, can in fact, help you manage your cravings and prevent you from derailing your healthy efforts.
Here are some pointers to keep in mind to help you snack smart:
Think real foods
The usual tidbits in brightly coloured packages are always promoted as snack foods. A glance at the nutrition label and ingredient list will most likely show you contents that are highly processed and contain excessive salt, fat & preservatives. A better snack choice would be the foods that are part of your nutritious meals such as grains, fresh fruit, nuts, beans and vegetables.
These are my usual choices that are fast to make or buy and hits the spot for me if ever I need a snack:
- A handful of nuts or seeds. I sometimes mix them together with raisins or dried fruit for a bit of sweetness. I often put this in my handbag when I’m out and about for a snack-on-the-go.
- Yogurt with some sliced fruit.
- A small steamed sweet potato.
- Boiled corn on the cob or chickpeas.
- Tau foo fah.
- Bubur kacang or tong sui.
- Red bean pau.
- Fresh fruit.
- Hummus or any bean dip with cut carrot and cucumber sticks.
- Wholegrain biscuits crackers with cheese or a thin layer of natural nut butter.
- Cherry tomatoes with some cubed cheese.
- Smoothies made with milk, yogurt, fruit or vegetables blended with juice or coconut water.
- A small sandwich made from wholegrain bread with various choice fillings such as tuna, cheese, egg, peanut butter, etc.
- A small serving of wholegrain cereal or granola with milk.
- A cup of hot cocoa (warm milk with 2 heaped teaspoons of pure cocoa powder).
- 2 little squares of dark chocolate (look for at least 70% cocoa).
Portions do count
Always remember, that a large portion of food will equal to more calories. Research shows that when you use smaller plates, bowls or cups, you naturally would serve yourself a smaller portion and be satisfied.
On the flip side, when you use a large plate and only fill it with a small portion of food, you perceive yourself to not be full and would be more than likely to eat more. At home, I use my trusty Chinese rice bowl when I’m portioning out my snacks. As Goldielocks would say, “It’s just the right size!”
Don't set yourself up for failure
A client of mine always ends up snacking because his family keeps jars of keropok, kerepek and biscuits on the dining table. Can any of you relate? You know that is just setting anyone up for failure, no matter even if you have the will power of steel.
My advice is to keep them in a kitchen cabinet out of sight. What you don’t see, you won’t want.
Or better still, don’t buy these snacks to begin with and start having snacks that are healthier for you.
Research shows that when healthy foods are visible, people are more apt to eat them.
So a better choice to place on the dining table, if you wish, would be something like a tray of assorted fruit.
Distractions lead to mindless snacking
When your focus is distracted, your mind is not going to register how much you are snacking at the time.
A client of mine shocked herself when she finished an entire 150 gram bag of nuts while working on a report when working from home. Even though nuts may be a healthy choice, that portion is way too much to have and is just excessive calories you don’t need.
So, a simple solution to avoid mindless snacking is to portion out the amount of your snack and keep the rest out of sight.
Or better yet, have your snack when you take a breather so you can fully savour it.
Promotional pitfalls
Food promotions make you feel like you’re getting a good deal.
Some food vendors price their foods cheaper if you take more pieces to encourage you to order more.
For example, one bun is RM3, but with the promo you can get 3 buns for only RM6. Even though it may seem cheaper to buy more, only buy what you intend to eat.
A client of mine realized this was causing him to snack more because he always felt obligated to finish all the 3 buns that he bought eventually. But perhaps the economy of 3 for the price of 2 is not the best price to pay when it's your health and your waistline at stake. – The Vibes, November 26, 2020
