Quick, how many times this past week have you eaten on the run? No place is safe either – the car, your desk, maybe even the shower! Our time is strapped and we need food that’s easy to grab ‘n’ go. And during this mad-chaos of finding food on our way out the door, one detail is easy to forget – making sure that the choices we make are healthy.
Unfortunately, it’s mostly the bad stuff that falls into the “fast” and “easy” categories – chips, candy bars, sodas, etc. Well, what if we took some time and ingenuity to make our own healthy snacks portable and easy for on-the-go eating?
I’m talking about things that can fit into the top drawer at work (not jelly beans or Kisses!) or snacks prepared ahead of time that can be popped into a lunch bag. Yes, some of these items WILL require some thinking ahead. Some might even require refrigeration or special containers. But they are fast, simple, and easy. Most take less than 5 minutes to prepare. Your body will be grateful. The benefits of health outweigh the costs.
The key is to get creative & be prepared! Get your fresh fruits and vegetables on the weekend in preparation for the week’s snacking. Keep small-sized plastic containers for packing up small portions. Take note of the healthy foods you need to keep stocked in the house for future quick and healthy snack preparation. Make up individual proportion baggies & containers ready to grab then store. These will become automatic items for your grocery list. You may find that you start to replace a few nonessential, calorie-wasting items with your new healthy snack list. Most importantly, log them prior so you take the question out of when & what to eat to fuel your body.
So reply below with snacks that you eat I haven’t included!
• Celery sticks with peanut butter and several raisins on top
• Low-fat cheese cubes
• Hardboiled eggs
• Greek yogurt (add in some fresh fruits or nuts for a boost
• Unsalted/Unroasted nut & dried fruit mix (measure prior!)
• Vegetable sticks with a little packet of hummus
• Half of a chicken or tuna sandwich on a wrap
• Cucumber slices
• Leftover chicken or turkey slices (great to eat cold)
• Homemade granola (great to eat dry from a baggie)
• Pickles (wrapped in foil or plastic wrap)
• Mixed berries (these freeze well in plastic bags)
• Veggie chips and low-fat string cheese
• Any sort of healthy bar or muffin (see NuStart website for recipes)
• String Cheese
• Fruit smoothie in a thermos
• ¼ c olives (salty yes, but a healthy fat!)
• Spicy Popcorn