Smarter Snacks that Won't Blow A Day of Good Choices
The Full Plate Visual Guide to Healthier Snacking
Have you ever given in to a bowl of ice cream after making awesome healthy eating choices all day?
All your hard work feels like a waste.
The feeling of guilt for giving in and shame for not having enough willpower causes you to reconsider the notion of trying to lose weight altogether.
Don’t.
This article will teach you how to snack smarter, so you can spend fewer evenings facing the internal firing squad of self doubt.
But first, why healthy snacking matters...
Every snack we eat (or drink) has calories.
And since most of us are bad at estimating the amount of calories we eat, our snacks typically provide extra unnecessary energy our body doesn’t need.
In turn, the surplus energy slows down weight loss, much like a speed bump slows down how fast you drive.
Full Plate Living doesn’t recommend snacking on a regular basis because snacking typically only prolongs your weight loss journey.
Instead, we recommend increasing the number of high fiber foods you eat at breakfast, lunch and dinner. Foods like apples, berries, carrots, sweet potatoes and beans.
These foods are jumping with natural fiber. And by eating foods like these more often, you’ll feel more full and satisfied after you eat, minimizing the urge to snack between meals.
Smarter snacking will help you build weight loss momentum, so you can get to your goal faster.
A real-world strategy for smarter snacking
Smarter snacking works by replacing a bowl of ice cream with a snack that’s lower calorie, that contains fiber and closely mimics the texture and mouthfeel of the ice cream you crave.
The progression table below will give you several realistic ways to wean off cookies, cake, chips and ice cream so you can snack smartly and lose weight.
Let’s get started!
Read on, and I’ll unpack what makes the snacks above smarter for weight loss.
3 better options for when you’re craving a cookie
Turns out, two regular chocolate chunk bakery cookies will set you back a whooping 440 calories. That’s almost like eating a fourth meal calorie wise.
Here’s three better ways to get your chewy cookie fix with fewer calories and more natural fiber, which by the way, fills you up!
A Better Cookie Choice
Try 2 Nabisco Fat Free Fig Newtons for only 150 calories and 2 grams of fiber.
Fig Newtons are a healthier snack choice because they’re still chewy and sweet but unlike the chocolate chip cookies, they’re filled with figs, so they have fiber too. A clear step in the right direction.
An Even Better Choice
The delectable chewy sweetness of 2 medjool dates at 132 calories and 3 grams of fiber.
You should give medjool dates a try because they surprisingly mimic the buttery flavor of a cookie but for a fraction of the calories.
The Smarter Snack
Knock those calories down even further with fresh fruit. Try half a fresh mango at 101 calories and 3 grams of fiber.
The pride you’ll feel after making this healthy snacking decision will help make up for the fact that no, we get it. Mangos aren't cookies.
Overview - Smarter Alternatives for Chocolate Chip Cookies
| Chocolate Chunk Cookies | Fat Free Fig Newtons | Medjool Dates | Mango | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 440 | 200 | 132 | 101 |
| Fiber | 1 | 2 | 3 | 3 |
| Better | Even Better | Smarter |
3 better options for when you’re craving a cake
One slice of double layer chocolate cake will set you back 537 calories with only 2 grams of fiber. Sigh.
A Better Cake Choice
Try a mini angel food cake topped with ½ cup each fresh blackberries and sliced strawberries plus 2 Tbs fat free whipped topping for only 174 calories and 6 grams of fiber! Much better!
Angel food cake with berries is a better alternative because it gives a cake-like mouthfeel but with much less fat, fewer calories and more fiber.
An Even Better Cake Choice
Cut the mini angel food cake in half. Leave off the whipped topping. Cover with ½ cup fresh strawberries, blackberries plus a new ½ cup of fresh blueberries, all for only 156 calories but 8 grams of fiber.
Nuff said. On to the smarter choice!
The Smart Snack
Cut those calories even further by skipping the cake and upping the fresh berries to 2 cups each for only 128 calories but a magnificent 10 grams of fiber.
If you’re patient and give it time, people often notice their tastes begin to change and their craving subside, the longer they eat more fiber rich foods. That’s good news if sweet cravings are a part of your life every day.
Overview - Smarter Alternatives for Cake
| Chocolate Cake | Angelfood Cake, Berries, Reddi Wip | ½ Angelfood Cake & Berries | Berries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 537 | 174 | 156 | 128 |
| Fiber | 2 | 6 | 8 | 10 |
| Better | Even Better | Smarter |
3 better options for when you’re craving ice cream
A Better Ice Cream Choice
We were shocked to find an ice cream that has only 5g of sugar per serving.
You could eat this entire pint for the same amount of calories and sugar you find in just one serving of regular ice cream. It’s also GMO free, lactose free and gluten free. It’s clearly a better snack choice but not an ideal one because it’s still processed. The ideal snack is a whole natural food.
An Even Better Creamy Choice
If you want something cold and creamy like ice cream, make a simple banana smoothie by blending a frozen banana with ½ cup unsweetened vanilla almond milk for only 120 calories and 4 grams of fiber.
Smoothies are the closest thing you can get to ice cream. You can use any favorite fruit, but bananas are usually the sweetest. If you crave some chocolate, you can add 1 Tbs unsweetened cocoa powder to your smoothie.
The Smart Snack
Cut the calories even more by munching on 1 ½ cups of frozen mixed berries for just 105 calories and an impressive 8 grams of fiber.
Frozen fruit is whole and natural. It’s also sweet and cold. Munching on frozen berries while watching TV is a healthy snack idea because the berries are cold like ice cream. Also, they will take longer to eat, (since they are frozen), which is a good thing if you find yourself snacking because you’re bored.
Another option: How to Make Creamy Ice Cream with Just One Ingredient.
Overview - Smarter Alternatives for Ice Cream
| Cookies 'N Cream Ice Cream | Arctic Zero Cookies 'N Cream | Banana Almond Milk Smoothie | Frozen Mixed Berries | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 320 | 150 | 120 | 105 |
| Fiber | 0 | 8 | 4 | 8 |
| Better | Even Better | Smarter |
3 better options for when you’re craving chips
Two handfuls of Nacho Cheese Doritos may be lip-smacking good, but they’ll set you back 280 calories with only 2 grams of fiber.
A Better Crunchy Choice
Try 9 Original Triscuits for only 180 calories but 5 grams of fiber.
Triscuits are a much better option than chips because they are made from whole grains. They have ½ the calories that chips do, and more than twice the fiber.
Are Original Triscuits not your favorite flavor? Not to worry. You have your choice of: Roasted Garlic, Hint of Salt, Rosemary & Olive Oil, Fire Roasted Tomato & Olive Oil, Cracked Pepper & Olive Oil, Dill, Sea Salt & Olive Oil, Balsamic Vinegar & Basil, Garden Herb and Rye with Caraway Seeds.
An Even Better Savory Choice
Enjoy 3 cups of popcorn for only 100 calories and 4 grams of fiber.
Unlike microwaved butter popcorn, air popped popcorn is a great healthy food. Just how weight loss friendly popcorn is depends on the toppings. Air pop ¼ cup popcorn which makes 6 cups popped. Lightly coat with olive oil cooking spray and season with your favorite seasoning salt. Enjoy half of the popcorn and store the rest in a plastic bag for up to 2 days.
Helpful Gadget: You can find an air popper at stores like Walmart, Target, or Bed Bath and Beyond. Or Amazon.com.
The Smart Snack
1/2 cup of Cheerios and ½ cup unsweetened applesauce = 4 grams of fiber for only 100 calories.
We usually crave chips because of the crunch, but the fat and calories make chips a poor snacking choice.
You can still get a crunchy snack that also digests quickly by mixing Cheerios and applesauce. Just be sure the applesauce is unsweetened - it’s less processed that way and better for weight loss.
Overview - Smarter Alternatives for Chips
Calories280180100100| Doritos | Triscuits | Air Popped Popcorn | Cheerios & Applesauce | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fiber | 2 | 5 | 4 | 4 |
| Better | Even Better | Smarter |
When in doubt, here’s a healthy snacking rule of thumb to follow
It’s ideal because fruit digests quickly and is low calorie and high fiber. Also, fruit is sweet, so it satisfies the sweet tooth.
Read about the ice cream alternatives Madeline used to lose 101 pounds
Does it feel impossible right now to ever being satisfied with frozen fruit instead of ice cream?
Madeline’s story will give you hope.
If Madeline can do this, so can you!
Full Plate Living is a small-step approach with big health outcomes. It's provided as a free service of Ardmore Institute of Health.
