Do I eat snacks? Yep!
A reader recently asked "Do you eat snacks, or only 3 meals a day? If you do snack, what snacks do you have?"
The answer is that yes, I do sometimes have snacks. And I'm also pretty consistent about eating three meals a day, even while working.
(Is my lunch break kind of late sometimes? Yes. But I DO always take it at some point.)
Ok, so, about snacks: I think it'll be easiest to run through this for work days and non-work days, since my two worlds are so different!
Work Day Snacks
On work days, I eat my breakfast very early in the morning, and I take my lunch break fairly late, even on a good day (something like 2 pm).
This means that I most definitely need a snack in between. My common practice is to take a few minutes to eat Aldi's version of an Rx bar. These are dense little bars that are made of mostly whole food ingredients (egg whites, dates, nuts), so they are much less junky than a lot of protein bars on the market.
Sometimes I will opt for a grass-fed beef jerky stick from Aldi instead, or one of their chocolate peanut butter protein bars, which have 10 grams of protein.
As hospital workers know, there are often boxes of donuts and cookies at the nurse's station or in the break room, and having a more nutritious snack available helps make those a little less tempting.
After my late lunch, I am rarely hungry for the rest of my shift, and when I get home, I eat a quick dinner and then shower and go to bed.
So, there's no time to be hungry for a snack!
Non-Work Days
When I'm not working, I usually hit the gym and go for a walk in the woods first thing. I typically don't eat anything beforehand; I just have a water bottle with me.
If I wake up super hungry, though, I sometimes eat a banana with peanut butter.
When I get home from exercising, I shower, get ready for the day, and then make breakfast. By then, it's usually mid-morning, so I do not need a snack in between breakfast and lunch.
My at-home lunches vary a lot, depending on what's in my fridge and pantry and what needs to be used up. If I have a rather light lunch, I do sometimes get hungry before dinner.
In that case, I might eat:
- Aldi's version of Triscuits (100% whole grain, no sugar) + some cheese slices, such as Swiss
- Aldi's cheddar popcorn
- Aldi's jalapeno protein puffs (the other flavor is terrible, in my opinion)
- Aldi's cheese crisps (just freeze-dried cheese)
- a bowl of cottage cheese with some fruit
- a bowl of yogurt with some fruit
- a sliced apple with cheddar cheese
Then I eat dinner, and even on non-work days, I'm not usually awake for a lot of hours post-dinner. Thus, I rarely feel the need for a snack before bed.
So, I guess my two main snack times are:
- between breakfast and lunch on work days
- between lunch and dinner on non-work days
A word on snack choices: when I choose a snack, I'm looking for something that will not make me feel crappy, and that means I'm picking something that has some protein and/or whole grains vs. something with sugar and refined grains.
Cookies are so delicious, but they are not a snack that makes me feel great! 😉
I try to choose snacks that are basically a kindness to myself, you know? I ask, "What can I eat that will make me feel awake and energized?" This way, my food choices feel like self-care, not self-deprivation.
(As we have already established, I hate food rules!)
What are your go-to snacks?
P.S. Here are ten frugal and filling snack ideas. And here are ten more.
I also often snack on cottage cheese and fruit, or maybe overnight oats. There are days (like today!) that I wish I had overnight oats for breakfast, but forgot to make any. So I made some up this morning and know that it's available for a snack later today.
Bananas are one of my favorite grab-n-go snacks and also one of my favorite snacks while I'm grocery shopping. It only costs about a quarter and I can easily eat it in the car. Speaking of car... I always keep nuts or trail mix in my car as well. It helps me to avoid being hungry heading into the grocery store.
A note on post-dinner snacking: I found that it was a habitual thing for me. Back when I was regularly snacking after the kids went to bed, I felt like I needed to eat each night by that time of night. Once I committed to stopping, I eventually no longer felt like I needed to eat after dinner. So now I may occasionally (1-2x/month) have a snack after dinner, but I know that I can't do it much because I need my body to remember that I don't need it.
@Ruth, about that after dinner snacking, Taco Bell used to put something on their drink cups that made me wonder if they had been spying on me: “It’s Late, Eat More”. That after dinner snacking is just not good on any level, and yet it is my weakest time.
I've tried to get better at eating more nutritious snacks. Occasionally I bake granola bars, although I haven't done so for a while, or I eat a piece of fruit such as a clementine or banana or a mini box of raisins. If I'm really hungry I have a couple of crackers with cream cheese or hummus.
There's a bakery selling delicious wares near where I work which isn't great for my willpower or wallet 😉
I’ve started using Aldi’s various protein bars for my snacks too! I get my lunch at 10:40 which feels like coffee and toast time to my brain, but I’ve been working to make it a nutritious meal. I’m always Very Hungry by the time kids leave (but my workday isn’t over yet) so I grab a protein bar or fruit or yogurt. Then I want dinner as soon as I get home, which is early, so I usually End up with a small snack before bed. Usually this snack is fruit because I hate sleeping on a full stomach.
Most often, a crispbread cracker with cream cheese. Sometimes I'll put a little apricot jam on the cream cheese, too, if I want something sweet. Less often I'll have a crispbread with peanut butter, instead. Occasionally I'll have cottage cheese. And lately I've been making spiced almonds--salt, garlic powder, and paprika--for my children's school snacks, so sometimes I'll have those.
That all sounds very healthy and virtuous, but snacks are problematic for me, especially right before dinner. I tend to eat way too much of anything at that time of day, and that is when I am most likely to eat the cookies in the cookie jar or whatever. Really, I do better without snacks much at all, I guess, as long as I eat enough at meals.
I also notice how well my eating has been throughout the day based on pre bedtime hunger. If I’m actually hungry after dinner I know I haven’t had enough protein in my day (which I’ve found is typically 30+grams per meal for me). It’s helped me steer away from nighttime snacking a lot because I know I won’t work those calories off as well lol
I try to always have fruit on hand for snacking. Few things are as low effort as an apple or banana! 😛 I also keep anything with corn syrup out of the house.
Regarding treats like chocolate, etc., I find it useful to ask myself "Is this worth the calories?" A special occasion like a birthday is a "Yes," as is something like homemade cheesecake, but a handful of Hershey's kisses on a random day are a definite "No."
Carrot sticks or apple slices dipped in natural peanut butter and sprinkled with salt, ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and sprinkled with raisins), a handful of peanuts or walnuts and raisins... hmm, I seem to have a theme going here.
I like the fact that Kristen plans her snacks and I am going to aspire to that. I tend to wander into the kitchen and grab whatever is handy. Also, I need to pay attention to getting more protein.
Oddly, I sleep better if I have a warm drink of chocolate collagen peptides just before bedtime.
I found myself nodding my head to your comment, as I have very similar snacks. Carrot and celery sticks, peanut butter. Basic, easy, filling and nutritious. I also snack on a few walnuts before eating an apple or a banana. My husband likes chips, so I have to consciously prepare myself to avoid those. Sometimes he locks the extras in the trunk of the car 🙂
Thanks, Kristen for your blog - love it!
edamame, sweet potato fries with parmesan cheese, pretzels, girl scout cookies and hershey symphony bar with almonds and toffee bits.
I usually snack when I have afternoon tea around 2-3pm and build it into my day's meals because I prefer a very small dinner to control my reflux issues at night. I am a pretzel fiend, but I know on their own they are not an ideal snack so I will have some protein with them like cheese or peanut butter. Otherwise, I keep nuts, dried fruit, and baked chickpeas on hand, (the Biena ranch ones are really good!) The key with dried fruit is to avoid the ones with added sugar and only eat the same portion that you would if the fruit was not dried, so one or two pieces of apricot or prune, or a small handful of cherries. The dried Bing cherries from Nuts.com are my favorite. I also like fresh fruit with cheese or peanut butter, and maybe a few whole grain crackers or slice of whole wheat bread.
I agree that the super sweet stuff like cookies or donuts might taste good, but leave me feeling blah afterwards. Still, I do occasionally indulge in those things and try to balance it with an apple or pear so I get some fiber.
In my little 'burb of Northern California, we have no Aldi. We do have the miraculous Grocery Outlet and Winco. They have great deals on bars. I just found our favorite The Perfect Bar ( refrigerated) for under $1.00.
Best winter/ comfort snack ever for my diet goals is a stick of powdered Bare Bone Chicken Broth and a bouillon cube. 10 grams of protein and tasty. they average about a $1.00 a stick. I have travelled all over the world with them.
Eggs were .50 a dozen this week. So Hubby is getting hard boiled eggs for snacks.
A "go to trick" for me is a cake mix which are often discounted under a dollar. I will add a 15 ounce can of pineapple, pumpkin, beans or even a left over cranberry sauce. I just mix the two up and bake as muffins. It often has more sugar and little protein but lots of fiber. It is a nice treat.
Those are my favorite bars (& I"m also in Northern California, but no WinCos nearby). I'll have to check out Grocery Outlet!
I like the cake mix idea. But beans? What kind of beans do you use?
For a chocolate cake or brownie mix, drain a 15 ounce can of black beans. Super moist and delish. For a spice cake mix, use white beans. For an angel cake mix, use a can of pineable with the juice. At Grocery Outlet I bought about 10 low sugar cake mixes for .50 a piece. I used pumpkin puree. Excellent.
I hope this doesn't sound like a stupid question, but I've never heard of chicken broth sticks. I'm assuming you make a drink out of this, is that correct? Also, is this low in sodium? Most powdered or cubed bouillon have a load of salt.
Not stupid at all. It is a tube of powdered bone broth so you get not only the protein but the collagen. The bone broth has 500 mg sodium. It very easily dissolves in hot water. I add the bouillon because of the taste. I don't have problems with blood pressure, though. When I was trying to save money and calories traveling, I would use to sticks to replace and evening meal. I would have a nice big lunch for local flavor.
I try to avoid snacking, as I'm eating at a calorie deficit at the moment, and getting enough protein & fiber is hard enough at meals without snacks. That said, sometimes due to a strange work schedule & needing an early lunch & then someone's work schedule dictating a later dinner, I do need a snack. My top choice is a very small amount of nuts. I have a teeny tiny bowl that's intended for a sauce or dip of some sort, and I use that to ensure I'm not overeating, which is really easy to do with nuts, given their calorie density. The other options are: an apple, or a banana. When I'm a little less focused on perfect balance of calories, I would add a piece of cheese + Trader Joes rice crackers, which IMO are a fantastic calorie "deal" for the amount of crackers you get. They are particularly good if you are craving something salty & crunchy.
Thanks for alerting me to Aldi protein bars. I'm a regular shopper there, but I haven't noticed them.
I generally have a snack for dinner. As I have gotten older, I have less of an appetite at night. Also, I'm too tired to cook. Lunch is my main meal.
My evening snacks are: cheese and crackers, apple and peanut butter and honey, trail mix, granola, yogurt, prunes, crackers and dip, popcorn. Adding protein bars to the mix would be a good idea. Also I want to start looking for dried fruits like mangoes, pineapple etc.
Hospital work shifts with unpredictable lunch breaks are tricky to navigate. I have struggled for years with keeping my blood sugar on an even keel during work hours. I travel to different hospital floors, so my snacks need to be pre-packaged and something that I can carry in my storage clipboard. Aldi to the rescue for me, too! I gravitate to their version of Kind bars--they are quick to eat, use less junky stuff (the true version of Kind bars are better about using whole ingredients, but not as budget-friendly), and have a reasonable amount of fiber and protein. Sometimes I switch it up with Elevation Pure and Simple bars--I don't like these quite as much and they have less protein, but too much repetition in my snack routine leads to seeking out junk. Aldi also has a version of Clif bars, and those are great if you are hiking, but I find them to be hard to eat on the fly (they are very dense). I tried the Maxx bars that you eat, Kristen--I think they were the blueberry flavor--and they were very sticky. Maybe I'd like a different flavor better?
Having always just blown past the snack bars in Aldi in order to not get weakened by irrational desires, I am now curious: how much sugar in those things?
I quit buying/eating Aldi store brand crackers, esp. their faux Triscuits, bc they always tasted stale. Their Clancy brand chips seem to coat the back of my throat with lard or grass or something. So I skip Aldi snacks.
The brands I buy at other stores include Siete, Boulder, Late July (yes, that's a brand, not a time of year), and others in their health food section -- chips, popcorn and other crunchy snacks that are made with avocado oils and such. I like those much better than stuff made by Frito Lay or Pringles.
Lard or grease, not grass.
I have a similar routine and make similar snack choices. I eat an apple between meals sometimes. If I am at home and more hungry I might mix up a quick yogurt/peanut butter/vanilla dip.
I also eat a high protein snack, but I have been making my own, simply because my mother in law gave us some protein powder leftover from volunteering at the food bank. Somehow I am the only person in my household interested in eating up the protein powder, but I don't like shakes. Instead I found a "protein ball" recipe that is basically a protein bar. I have no idea how much protein these balls have, but they keep me from being hungry on my commute home, taste good, and (slowly, slowly) are using up this mountain of protein powder.
Hit me with the recipe please bc my word I have too much of this unsweetened protein powder here!!!
I keep cheese sticks, jerky (homemade), carrots, radishes, boiled & peeled eggs and little jars of nuts in the barn/tack room/office. In my truck I always have a jar of nuts and pepperoni sticks (Tillamook no sugar). It is common for me to have an apple sitting in the drink holder in the pick up.
I eat an egg bite and piece of meat while walking to the barns for chores, then I graze when I get peckish and then I cook dinner. I love grazing in the garden in the summer.
Lately my morning snack is 1 or 2 cuties. In the afternoon, I enjoy things like cheese sticks, crackers (like Fru-gal Lisa, I no longer buy the Aldi brand of Triscuits as they often taste stale), handful of nuts, handful of granola, or a baked good made with half the sugar paired with herbal tea. I do not snack after dinner, even though it's my smallest meal and often eaten around 5:00. Sometimes dinner is a snack - like popcorn and fruit.
And I forgot one of my favorite afternoon snacks: Trader Joe's graham crackers dipped in milk!
My go to snacks lately have been hard boiled eggs, string cheese, popcorn, yogurt with fruit, and beef sticks.
I'm trying to focus on getting more protein regularly. Does anyone have any other favorite high protein (and lower-carb) snacks?
I like apples. Toast and nut butter. And celery or pretzel crisps with hummus.
If all meals could just be breakfast and snacks, I would be fine. lol.
It's interesting how food is kind of hard — we know what's good for us (for the most part) but sticking to it isn't easy. I also don't like food rules, but like you, Kristen, if I don't set some guidelines for "how do I want to feel?" then my default is to live on dairy products, simple carbs/grains, and seasonal candy aisle offerings, which is not tenable.
I have also just noticed that that ^ comment is No. 2,294,726 over the life of the blog and HOLY CASHMOLIES that's a lot of comments.
Whoa, wait, I didn't even know there was a comment counter. Ha.
I mean, yes, I would subsist on cookies and brownies if that was what makes me feel good or was good for my body. Alas, such is not the case. BOO.