Calorie Slashing Snacks

Eat healthy and Exercise. Those are really the only ways to truly lose weight and keep it off. Unfortunately, in today’s world it is increasingly difficult to eat healthy. And what does “eating healthy” even mean? It seems that a “must eat” one week, is a “don’t ever eat again” the next.

Doing something that should seem so natural actually requires hours of research just to get started. Fortunately, I have done some of the leg work for you. Not just in the research department, but also in the testing process.


For me, one of the most difficult parts of maintaining healthy eating habits is snacking. Snacking is not bad, it is in fact, actually good for you. It keeps your metabolism going and provides necessary energy throughout the day.

But finding snacks that don’t add a lot of unnecessary calories and that also taste good can be a difficult task.

 Below is a list of snacks that I found through trial-and-error that kept me full between meals, provided me with necessary protein and energy, and that also tasted great.

I did not lose a miraculous amount of weight (although I did lose some, and I feel great!), but I enjoyed my meal plan much more than others I’ve tried.

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1) Nonfat Cottage Cheese  

This has been one of the most effective snacks when it comes to curbing my appetite and leaving me feeling satisfied. As someone who used to eat 2% or full fat cottage cheese, I know that eating a bowl of nonfat cottage cheese sounds potentially painful.

Some people add their favorite fruit to theirs, I add pepper, and even sometimes hot sauce. If nonfat is too difficult to stomach, you can try Lowfat 1% cottage cheese, but keep in mind that that tiny little “1” can be quite deceiving. Just one cup of Lowfat 1% cottage cheese contains 8% of your daily intake of saturated fat.


 

Why Nonfat Cottage Cheese: One cup of Nonfat Cottage cheese has 12 grams of carbohydrates and 30 grams of protein, which should keep you feeling full until your next meal. Cottage Cheese is also a great source of calcium.

2) Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt  

Greek Yogurt has been gaining popularity in recent years because it has nearly twice the amount of protein than regular yogurt, and has virtually no sugar. The trick with Greek Yogurt is that in order to get the maximum benefit from it, you have to eat the “plain” flavor, otherwise you are consuming unnecessary amounts of refined sugar.

Once again, I know that what I’m suggesting is bland. I suffered through eating my Greek yogurt plain for months, until one day a coworker suggested mixing in some honey. I guess that’s the way you’re supposed to eat it, but that was news to me. It was a total game changer for me, and now I can’t stop eating the stuff.



Why Plain Greek Yogurt: Eight ounces of plain Greek Yogurt contains about 19 grams of protein. It is also a great source for calcium and contains B vitamins.

3) Goldfish Crackers 

Ever since I was a small child I’ve loved these guys, and never stopped doing so. They are delicious, and are easy to portion out as well (55 crackers are 140 calories).

They contain some protein, are a good source of carbs, and yet are low in sugar. Just make sure to stick to your portions, as it’s quite easy to convince yourself it’s okay to have “just one more handful” and end up eating an entire bag.



Why Goldfish Crackers: They don’t add a lot of nutritional value, but work great as a snack or a side to go with your sandwich in lieu of a bag of chips.

4) All Natural Beef Jerky 

 Beef Jerky is a very versatile snack. You can have it sweet, spicy, savory, or any combination of those. Its full of protein and typically has little to no simple carbohydrates.

Just make sure to buy all natural beef jerky that is free of MSG and nitrates. Also, try to find jerky that is low in saturated fat.



Why All Natural Beef Jerky: Beef jerky is high in protein and low in simple carbohydrates.

5) Oven Roasted Almonds with Sea Salt  

This has been by far my favorite snack and is surprisingly filling. Sometimes almonds and other nuts get a bad rap because of their fat content, but the fat in almonds is mostly monounsaturated (the “good” kind of fat).

As with the Goldfish Crackers, these can be a difficult snack to stop once you’ve started, so be sure to stick with what you have portioned out.



Why Oven Roasted Almonds with Sea Salt: There are so many health benefits from eating almonds, I will only name a few. Almonds are a good source of Vitamin E and protein, and the fat helps you feel full and take the edge off a hungry stomach.

6) Sparkling Water  

I absolutely love soda. I used to have at least one 20-oz. bottle of that deliciously flavored high fructose corn syrup every day. But any nutritionist will tell you that giving up soda is one of the best ways to begin slashing unnecessary calories from your diet.

If you’re anything like me however, you can’t just give up drinking soda. Or can you? I used to scoff at the idea of sparkling water. I thought only pretentious people drank that, or least just boring people.

But one day at work, out of a lack of options, I decided to give it a shot, and I loved it! It had the same brisk, crisp feel as drinking a soda, but without any of the sugar. I made the switch right then and there to drinking sparkling water instead of soda. A couple weeks later I tried to drink a soda and I was surprised I was ever able to drink anything so sugary.



Why Sparkling Water: It’s not soda! Plus you kind of need water to live anyway.

Final Note:

This list is just meant to get you started. I am someone who likes to find a process or formula that works for me, and I have found these snacks to be a consistent and healthy way to replace junk food as a go to source for between-meal sustenance.

But I encourage you to find something that works for you. Expand on this list and tailor it. Try. Err. Develop your own successful approach to healthy snacking, and soon you will be well on your way to feeling better, and maybe even get a little leaner in the process.

This guest post was submitted by Grace Clare Jones. Grace is a happily married, an active mother. When she isn’t chasing kids around the house, she stays busy running her own shower curtain store and helping her husband with his online hat store.