Diet Friendly Snacks

Many people are under the impression that snacking of any kind is strictly prohibited while on a diet. After all, snacks are loaded with extra fat and calories, right? Wrong! Truth be told, snacks can be an extremely beneficial part of a diet. There are actually several diet plans that recommend the consumption of daily snacks, sometimes referred to as “mini-meals”. Eating small meals, about five per day, can help keep hunger cravings at bay, lower your potential risk of over eating, and actually help you to lose weight. That’s right, eating more can help you lose weight. This is due to the fact that the process of digestion increases your metabolism through the burning or using of extra energy. Of course this does not mean that you can have all the chips and cookies you want. It is absolutely necessary that you only eat the proper types of snacks. Here are a few healthy and diet friendly snack choices.

1. Fresh Fruits and Vegetables

Feel free to load up on these. You should be consuming about three to five servings a day, so these foods make excellent snack choices. Not only do fruits and vegetables contain plenty of nutrients, vitamins and minerals, they also have a good deal of fiber. Fiber helps to keep you feeling full longer so you do not have the urge to keep eating. On top of these benefits, produce is fat free and contains few calories.

2. Low Fat or Fat Free Dairy

Low fat or fat free dairy is another great choice for diet friendly snacks. Low fat or fat free cheese, yogurt, and other lean dairy products contain a good amount of protein, calcium, vitamins, and minerals. Calcium has been clinically proven to help with weight loss. It is very important that you only choose low fat or fat free versions, and make sure to read labels to ensure you do not choose products that contain extra fillers or added sugars.

3. Whole Grains

Whole grain snacks provide high amounts of complex carbohydrates and fiber. This combination not only helps to keep you feeling full, it also gives you an extra boost of energy. A perfect snack is low fat whole grain bread or crackers, paired with a bit of low fat cheese. This snack will hold you over throughout the day and it will not wreck your diet progress.

While the above-mentioned foods are recommended for snacking, it is important to note that you should not go overboard with any of these options. You still need to keep portions under control when preparing your mini-meals.

Here is some helpful snacking information: one stalk of celery contains about ten calories; two cubes of cheese about the size of dominos contain about one hundred calories; one cup of raw fresh vegetables is between twenty-five to thirty calories; one cup of low fat cottage cheese topped with a half cup of fresh fruit contains about two hundred calories; and a half cup of low fat frozen yogurt topped with a half cup of fresh fruit is about one hundred and fifty calories. Nuts can be a great snack option, but remember just a small palm full packs over one hundred and fifty calories. If you over do it with nuts, you can easily add eight hundred calories to you diet for the day without even noticing.