As the workday extends, hunger can build. If you’re at work, there may be options for snacks such as a vending machine, a coworker’s stash of candy, or donuts or cookies brought for the whole staff. Most of the options aren’t healthy or low-calorie. How do you fight that urge to eat the last four donuts or raid the secretary’s candy bowl? You don’t let temptation build. Take healthy snacks with you. It doesn’t mean you can’t ever have a thin slice of Havey’s birthday cake or an M&M occasionally. It means you’ll have more control daily and be less apt to eat high-calorie snacks.
Keep fruit at your desk.
Some fruit is easy to store at your desk. Apples and oranges don’t require a bowl or a spoon and store for many days. A banana’s life is a little shorter, but it’s still convenient. You can wash grapes or cherries and put them in a container in the morning. Slice apples and toss the slices in a mixture that’s 50% water and 50% lemon juice. Take a small container of peanut butter. When you’re hungry, spread a teaspoon of peanut butter on the apple slices. The combination of carbohydrates and protein will keep you full for hours.
You control ingredients when you make trail mix.
Make trail mix at home and put the mix into individual serving-size bags. Use unsalted raw nuts, dried fruit with no added sugar, pumpkin seeds, and for a little sweetness, a few semi-sweet morsels or peanut-butter chips. You can add air-popped popcorn if you want a bigger serving. Air-popped popcorn is low in calories and high in fiber. Fiber fills you up.
Sunflower seeds take a long time to consume.
Removing the edible part of the sunflower seed takes forever if you eat the unshelled type. The protein can help fill you up and the slow pace gives your stomach time to tell your brain it’s no longer hungry. Pumpkin seeds are another high-protein snack filled with fiber to keep you full longer. Air-popped popcorn or homemade microwave popcorn also do the job. To make microwave popcorn, you need corn kernels and a microwave bowl with a loose-fitting cap. It’s healthier than the type you find in the store. You can even use popcorn toppings like Parmesan cheese that’s only 22 calories but adds plenty of flavor.
- If you have a refrigerator at the office, the choice of snacks expands dramatically. Cheese and celery, vegetables and dip, a bowl of berries, or cut-up cantaloupe can be added to the list.
- Individual-size containers of fruit packed in their own juice are more healthy options. Read the label carefully. Most have added sugar and other additives.
- Unflavored full-fat Greek yogurt with fresh fruit is a good option. The high protein and full fat in the yogurt will keep you full longer and the fruit provides instant energy.
- We focus on nutrition at Rising Fitness and can provide many more ideas for healthy snacks that fit your needs and palate.
For more information, contact us today at Rising Fitness Gym