Snacks – The Best Kinds and How Often To Eat Them Part 3

The next key question is how often to snack.  The more times you eat, the more revved up your metabolism will be. However, it’s necessary to eat the right foods in order for this not to backfire.

Unfortunately, this is where many people go wrong. They get the wrong foods, or the wrong portions. The 100 calorie snack packs are a good if expensive idea. You can do it yourself with a larger pack of cookies or chips, for example. Take small plastic sandwich bags, and follow the label. If a portion is 2 cookies at 150 calories each, put two cookies in the bag.

Better still, make your own cookies or chips with fresh ingredients, not high fructose corn syrup, cheap cooking oil, salt and preservatives. Still better, how about a  banana chocolate chip tea loaf, which will have far less fat than cookies and be nice and moist from the banana. Cut one slice, put it in the microwave for 5 seconds to 10 seconds, and you will have a luscious, gooey dessert any time.

For a crsipy yet healthy snack, you can make your own thick cut potato chips by making potato wedges just lightly coated in oil and baked in a roasting pan. Yorkshire pudding slices are another handy and tasty treat, hot or cold, and it is very inexpensive to make.

If you keep only the freshest and healthiest foods in your home, all of your choices will be good ones.  So, as hard as it may be, curb that urge to load up on sweet or salty junk food on your next trip to the grocery store. Too much salt in your diet can lead to water retention, which makes you look and feel more bloated, and can also lead to high blood pressure.

Ideally you should have 3 snacks a day; one during the middle of the morning, another mid-afternoon, and lastly, one after dinner. That’s three snacks to complement three meals.

Also, remember that quantity matters when it comes to snacks, just like it does meal portions.  Snacks are not meant to be entire meals, but they are supposed to be delicious or you won’t be satisfied and will starrt bingeing.

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Author: cs

Carolyn Stone has been working in consumer health publishing and women’s interest publishing for over 22 years. She is the author of more than 200 guides and courses designed to help readers transform their lives through easy action steps. In her spare time, she is actively involved in fostering children and pets.