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What I Eat: Snack Edition

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Back when Hudson was still a baby, I watched Fed Up. Have you seen it? It’s so worth the watch and it gave me a whole new perspective on what I put into my body. I was raised on PopTarts, Toaster Strudels, juice every day, soda in the fridge, sugary cereals in the pantry and I never checked the nutrition labels. I actually hated drinking water until I had Hudson. I think breastfeeding changed all that and now I crave it, thankfully. 
 
After I watched the documentary, I realized that even though I was exercising every day, my diet wasn’t helping me lose any weight. I changed my eating habits so I was only consuming 25 grams or less of added sugars every day and I started losing weight again! Just paying attention to my eating got me over a huge plateau. 
 
Well, then I got pregnant with Ella and my healthy eating went out the window. I wasn’t as bad as before, but I was definitely eating dessert and sweets way too often. Now that I’m 4 months postpartum I’m back into my healthy eating and I can tell you that it’s been the key to my weight loss. I’m now 7 pounds from my pre-baby weight after gaining 40 pounds total!!!
 
One of the big questions I always want to ask those fitness stars on Instagram is “Yeah you look great…so what are you eating?” Because as it says in Fed Up, exercise can only go so far. You can’t out workout a bad diet. Exercise is SO important to keeping our bodies strong and toned, but if you want to be healthy and lose weight you’ve got to take a look at what you’re eating.
 
So today I’m sharing my favorite snacks! Snacking can get me into trouble. I feel the need to munch in the afternoon so I have to be careful not to eat too much and to make sure I’m really fueling my body and not just eating to satisfy a craving.
 
Let’s start with my afternoon snacks. I don’t do a morning snack because we don’t eat breakfast until later in the day. I guess if I ate something first thing in the morning I would go for a piece of fruit or a protein bar.

 

 

 

 1. Deli Meat: Some people get pretty particular over deli meat. I try to buy the natural version of either Hillshire Farms or Oscar Meyer.
2. Hard-boiled egg: This one is so easy! I cook 4 eggs in the oven at 325 degrees for 25 minutes and I have enough eggs to last me through the week.
3. String cheese
4. Carrots and cucumbers
5. Hummus
6. Veggie straws: Probably not the most healthy option, but it’s better than chips in my opinion.
7. Pretzels 
8. Not pictured: Triscuits and Food Should Taste Good Tortilla chips
 
All of these options are good for on-the-go, which is probably why I love them so much! I’ll usually choose two or three, a protein and something to munch and then I’m full until dinner. All of these snacks have little to no added sugar in them.

 

 

It gets harder to fight off the sugar cravings in the evening so I try to add at least one sweet option at night.

1. Popcorn: My husband and I eat popcorn multiple times a week because it’s crunchy and it doesn’t have any added sugar. I’m sure there could be a healthy option than this one, but if you buy the big box at Costco you get 44 bags for $9. That’s $0.20 a bag!
2. Fruit: I love grapes at night! But you could easily substitute in a different fruit. Apples and peanut butter are also yummy.
3. Protein bar: I have looked at a lot of protein bars and these are the ones I’ve found with little added sugar. The thinkThin have got to be my favorite! They do have artificial sweeteners added, but they taste so good. I also like the Kirkland brand (these have a slight aftertaste to me), Quest bars (these are pretty pricey so I don’t buy them too often), and LaraBars (technically not a protein bar, but only made with fruit and nuts! Unless you get ones with chocolate. I bought those for my hubby 🙂

There you have it! I’m not a certified dietician or anything and I’m sure there are even more healthier options out there, but these snacks are my go-to and have helped me lose my baby weight. I’d love to hear some of your favorites! I’m always open to new ideas!

If you‘re looking for cheap, quick, and healthy dinner ideas, I’ve got 15 listed here!