Healthy Snack Recipes For Your South Beach Diet Success!
The fact that snacking is good for you must be one of the best discoveries ever made! Eating five to six smaller meals per day can help you lose weight, improve your mood and maintain energy levels. Eating like this makes you feel like your snacking and therefore treating yourself! This does not mean you can go out and eat everything in sight. Calorie intake must be controlled and the foods you eat should be low in fat and carbs and be nutritious.
Eating the right food in smaller quantities, help our bodies to maintain a stable insulin level. When we eat a large meal, a large amount of insulin is released. Instead of using extra calories for energy, our body stores it as fat.
How to get yourself into the habit of eating smaller meals:
· Plan your meals in advance
· Divide daily food into 6 portions
· Use three portions for your regular meals and three for snacks.
· Take a break and enjoy your meal. Because you are eating a smaller portion, you can take your time. Benefits of eating smaller meals (snacking) more often: · Your metabolism speeds up every time you eat, burning extra calories and causing weight loss
· You will be less hungry every time you eat. Because you are eating smaller meals, you will most probably be eating every two to three hours.
· Overeating will become something of the past.
· Less stress. Because you are taking regular breaks, you get more time to relax. High stress levels can increase your chances of being overweight.
· Higher energy levels
· Less mood swings Your low carb snacks should ideally include protein, fiber and some healthy fat.
For people on the South Beach Diet most of the following are suitable during all phases and can be used to create some healthy snack recipes: Berries (1/4 cup) with 1/3 cup cottage cheese - Berries are an excellent source of vitamins and antioxidants.
Celery sticks with hummus or natural, no-sugar added peanut butter
Celery with tuna salad
Cheese sticks, such as string cheese
Cheese with a few apple slices
Deviled eggs
Dill pickles and cheddar cheese
Dry roasted or boiled edamame (green soy beans)
Fat-free or 1 percent cottage cheese with salsa or chopped cucumber
Garlic Parmesan Flax Seed Crackers
Hard-boiled eggs
Jerky (preferably low sugar varieties)
Lean deli meat roll ups - Roll the lunch meat or the lettuce around bean dip, spinach dip, or other low carb dip or spread.
Lettuce Roll-ups - roll luncheon meat, egg salad, tuna, etc.
Low carb shakes
Low carb snack bars
Low Carb Trail Mix
Mushrooms with cheese spread inside (or other spreads or dips)
Nuts (in moderation)
Parmesan Crisps
Part-skim mozzarella cheese stick
Peanut Butter Protein Balls
Raw veggies and spinach dip, or other low carb dip
Ricotta cheese with fruit and/or nuts and/or flax seed meal
Seeds (Pumpkin/Squash Seeds)
Smoked salmon and cream cheese on cucumber slices
Sugar free Jell-O, alone or with cottage cheese and a sprinkling of nuts
Sunflower seeds
Yogurt - low or non-fat/sugar-free (4 oz) with berries and flax seed meal
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