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Member Comments for the Article:
Keep Healthy Snacks Handy
News Flash: Snacks are Healthy!
89 Comments
215UNDER
4/19/2012 7:37:54 PM
I've started my sparks back in 2010 at 215 and as of today i am 185. I still want to loose 20-30 more pounds but i'm stuck. I have been out of the truck for 4 months and that's how i managed to loose all that weight, but i'm going back in the truck and worried i won't have the time or energy to work out the 6 days i have been!! any words of encouragement??
I usually go grocery shopping when I have a bit of free time, so I will bag things up into "serving sizes" (usually slightly smaller than the stated serving size on the package) immediately when I come home. You can do it with almost anything, takes only a few minutes and saves a considerable amount of money & packaging waste compared to pre-packed "individual serving" items. It's helped save my butt several times -- as a fitness instructor I sometimes need a little extra something to get through consecutive classes, and it ESPECIALLY helps when you're running out the door and can grab one serving instead of the whole package.
I have mixed feelings about a lot of snacking. If you eat a healthy breakfast you don't really need a snack before lunch. I may gave a yogurt or something around 4 or so but then nothing after dinner.
I'm afraid that people who graze all day are underestimating their food intake.
The research on the importance of snacking, or small, frequent meals has long been called into question by peer-reviewed scientific studies. Spikes in the metabolic rate are directly proportional to calories burned, so the math says that it doesn't matter whether you have 6 small meals or one large one. In fact, sensitivity to insulin improves the longer you don't eat, and the "starvation mode" myth about holding onto fat if you skip breakfast is just that. Up to 36-hour fasts can be maintained without adverse effect. As for satiety, an increase in protein when fed can fight off feelings of hunger for many hours, provided that a person is hydrated properly. Just thought I'd put this out there, since fitness can be reached many ways, and effective tools should not be ruled out with old fitness myths and half-truths.
Thank you for the article, because my mom told me some of the items on this list I couldn't have, I print the article out and will carry it in my food journal.
Right after Thanksgiving I had a craving for Pumpkin Pie...I made sugar free instant french vanilla pudding with unsweetened almond milk, then I stirred in about a cup of pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice (to your taste). I served it up in my fancy 1/2 serving cups ...gave it a squirt of fat free whipped cream and a 1/4 of a gramcracker for crunch. very few calories...full of vitamin A and fiber.....and it tastes and makes you feel special.
LIKES2SMILE
1/8/2011 12:34:48 AM
This article is fine, but I wish Zach would not put meaningless links in the text. It wastes my time. If he's going to imbed links, I would rather they lead to something educational.
SKINNYMINNY56
1/7/2011 4:04:44 PM
I have a huge sweet tooth! These snacks are all great but what do I do when I REALLY just want some chocolate?
One of my favorite snacks is a plum tomato at room temperature! I love noshing one during work!
DNELSON240
1/7/2011 9:36:38 AM
Trail mix? Really? Not all trail mixes are created equal. Many are loaded with fat. Some dried fruits are so full of sugar they don't hold a lot of nutritional value, either! I say stick to fresh!
Please don't forget that there are different reasons for snacking, and there are different snacks for different purposes. Three I can think of: (1) psychological need, like a break from work: a low-calorie veggie; (2) low blood sugar: eat fruit; (3) empty gut, need to tank up for the next few hours: high protein veggie like seed, nuts, nut butter. That could explain why so many different kinds of snacks are listed and why some comments are critical of one kind of snack or another. In any case, heed Michael Pollan: eat food, etc.
DSHERMAN123
1/7/2011 9:22:47 AM
Great article - - once I sart snacking it is hard to stop. Good idea to prepack portions
If people only ate when they felt true hunger, few of us would struggle with our weight. So why (and where) are we eating so much, and what can we do about it? Start here.
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