By Murungi Simon,
A snack is a small amount of food eaten between meals or basically a portion of food smaller than a regular meal, eaten between meals. Have you been doing that? Yes, you have been snacking. You have heard that snacks lead to unhealthy weight gain but it is still possible to eat between meals and still drop some weight. Well, you probably don’t know how to do it the right way.
Mindfully, snacking can help keep hunger at bay, and fuel your metabolism. So how can you make sure to snack the right way? Do it when hunger comes in. The best time to snack is when you are hungry. Just listen to your body and fuel when you need it. If you are the busy type of person who forgets to eat, set a ” snack timer” and when you get that alarm or reminder a few times throughout the day, assess if you are hungry, thirsty or neither. That way, you won’t starve.
Don’t snack for the sake of snacking. Let your body dictate if you need to eat. You should not snack just because heard it’s important to have an afternoon snack. Meanwhile, bear in mind that you may interpret thirst for hunger, so make sure to stay hydrated throughout the day. Your snacks shouldn’t turn into mini meals.
If you find yourself full before you finish your snack, save the rest for later. Besides, you are not obliged to eat the whole thing. Your snack should not go beyond 200 calories. Just listen to your body. If you eat too much, you could ingest too many calories and eventually put on weight.
Choose nutrient-dense foods
Go for a mix of protein, low calorie and healthy fats or fruits. Actually, fruits should be your rightful snack. I know most of you do not eat fruits. So by snacking on fruits, you can build a rich fruit diet catching all those micro nutrients you have been missing all this time.
Have fun with your snacks.
If you are eating popcorn that tastes like cardboard just because you think you should, you will probably end up feeling unsatisfied. So, experiment with different snack options to find out what you love. Weight loss doesn’t necessarily mean deprivation, so get creative and plan for snacks and meals that really satisfy you.
Here are some suggestions for you; apples, yellow bananas, a pint of yogurt, popcorn, a glass of fruit juice plus daddies, fruit smoothie, sugarcane, warm gonja, 2 vegetable samosas. I should spare the list for another day, enjoy.
The writer is a Nutritionist at Medical Teams International
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