Healthy low-calorie snacks at work: recipes. Low calorie snack

Snacking between meals is a must, and work shouldn't be an obstacle.

If you eat often, then the level of sugar in the blood practically does not change, but the metabolism, on the contrary, improves.

But it is important to choose healthy foods for small meals in order not only to satisfy the feeling of hunger, but also to lose weight.

Foods not suitable for snacking

Forget about different chocolate bars, chips, buns. This faster carbs, which give only a visible feeling of satiety. Already twenty minutes later, when the body turns these carbohydrates into fats and put them off for long-term storage, the feeling of hunger will return again.

Various sweet and salty pastries should also be abandoned for the reason that they contain carbohydrates that quickly pass through the digestive tract. Choose foods with a lot of fiber for weight loss and proper snacking. These are fruits and vegetables, cereals.

Foods perfect for snacking

Soluble fiber

Fiber is slowly processed by the body, which means that the feeling of satiety after such a snack at work can be maintained for a long time. Among the most preferred fiber foods for snacking are:

beans, peas
oat bran
fruits (except banana and grapes, which are high in sugar)
apples
mango
broccoli
asparagus
carrot
celery

Three medium-sized fresh carrots contain only 60 calories. But the feeling of hunger after such a snack will not appear soon.

In addition to fiber, fresh fruits also contain carbohydrates. But this slow carbohydrates from which the body benefits. Particular attention should be paid to citrus fruits, kiwi, apples. It is better to buy seasonal fruits that contain a minimum of nitrates.

The easiest option for a quick healthy snack is a salad. Vegetables need to be cut and seasoned a small amount olive oil. For a change in taste, you can add a little cottage cheese, cheese to the salad.

Protein

Many protein foods are also suitable for small meals between main meals. But here it is important to eat protein foods separately. It could be boiled fish or meat, poultry. Also get rid of hunger boiled eggs or a piece of cheese.

It used to be that cheese is a pest of the figure and many diets forbade this product for consumption. But today a piece low-fat cheese is an excellent recommended snack that quickly and permanently relieves hunger.

Nuts and dried fruits

It should be immediately noted that this is not about roasted peanuts and other beer snacks.

If you want to lose weight, eat nuts in large quantities it is forbidden. But a dozen almond nuts (about 80 calories), two dozen pistachios (80 calories) will do the good and relieve the feeling of hunger.

Dried fruits contain a lot of fiber. The most useful version of such a product for weight loss is dried cherries. There are only 125 calories in five tablespoons of foods.

Cherries can be added to yogurt for a delicious dessert. You can make ice cream from a banana by adding it to yogurt (grind everything to a mushy state and freeze).

Yogurt and other dairy products

For a low-calorie snack at home or at work, you can use yogurt. But it's best to choose natural product without various fruit additives, dyes and sugar. You can add some nuts, pieces of fruit, muesli to yogurt yourself.

Many losing weight believe that in order to get rid of extra pounds you need to eat only low-fat dairy products, including yogurt. But in fact, it is better to choose products with medium fat content: they are more natural and beneficial for the body.

A glass of milk and kefir is also a great snack during a diet. Kefir normalizes digestion, restores intestinal microflora. If you add pieces of fruit, dried fruits or nuts to kefir, you get a full-fledged dessert.

The brain receives a signal from the stomach that food has entered the body within a quarter of an hour. That is, you do not need to fill up to satiety, you just need to wait 20 minutes until the brain receives a signal of satiety.

Knowing the foods that are suitable for a healthy and complete snack, you can create a varied food menu for the working day. With the right combination of products, you can make interesting diet meals that will give a feeling of satiety to long time and heal the body.

The right snack will help not only "survive" until dinner, but also become slimmer. How, when and what to eat for the benefit of the figure? We asked nutritionists and compiled a special memo for you.

We have been struggling with the habit of “biting” almost from early childhood: remember, the favorite phrase of educators, mothers and grandmothers “Do not eat candy, otherwise you will ruin your appetite”? In part, they were all right: there really is no benefit in frequent and incorrect snacking (and candy is just one of them). Rather, on the contrary: simple carbohydrates and everything we love to snack on - croissants, chocolates - lead to spikes in blood sugar levels, brutal appetite and provoke weight gain.

Proper snacking solves these problems. “If you’ve eaten fruit or nuts between meals, then for lunch or dinner, you can fill up on a smaller serving. This factor alone can help you lose weight., - says Marina Apletaeva, dietitian at the Alumed clinic. “And if the snack was protein - for example, something from dairy products - then it will also have a positive effect on metabolism, which is also important if the goal is to lose weight.”

What to eat?

Ideally, protein or fiber-rich foods. “Carbohydrate food, of course, is also suitable for the role of a snack, but on one condition - it is important to track its calorie content”- explains Marina Apletaeva.

When calculating the optimal calorie intake for a snack, be guided by your goals. Decided to get rid of everything superfluous? An intermediate meal should contain a maximum of 100-150 calories. Do you maintain a new weight and are “friends” with sports? You can “walk around” up to 200 kcal. Want to get a little better? Snack between 250-350 calories.

Don't want to calculate how many calories are in an apple slice? Take a look at our infographic, where we collected 10 snack options and calculated the serving size containing 150 calories. And at the same time, they calculated how long you will stay full, having a bite of one or another product. For contrast, along with healthy snacks (fruits, vegetables,) we also compared those foods that, according to nutritionists, are in no way suitable for the role of a proper intermediate meal (cookies, chips, sandwich).

Another trick that will help you become slimmer - the right combination snack foods. By combining liquids and solids in an intermediate meal, you make everything work. taste buds, activate enzymes and improve digestion. That is why it makes sense to supplement a small portion of yogurt with dried fruits, and fruit yogurt with a piece of soft cottage cheese.

When to eat?

Nutritionists recommend eating at intervals of 2-4 hours: during this time, the food will have time to digest, and you will get a little hungry. "Carbohydrate foods - fruits, dried fruits and some sweets - are well suited for the role of a second breakfast: they are best absorbed before 2 pm, and those eaten later are deposited in the fat depot", - explains Mila Gritsenko, the creator of the method of smooth weight loss and the author of the book Eat and Lose Weight.

Some of them, on the contrary, prefer to avoid snacking and feel the whole thing on themselves. And others still use a snack as a full meal, then cutting back on the amount of food of the main course. Let's still figure it out, is snacking harmful or beneficial?

Many nutritionists claim that snacking between meals is very healthy. When we eat little and often, blood sugar levels do not change, but metabolism, on the contrary, increases. The most important thing is to find a healthy and high-quality snack for yourself.

What can't be snacked on?

You should not use high-calorie bars or chips, as there is no benefit from them. The feeling of fullness will go away after 20 minutes, but the calories contained in them will remain with you for a long time.

Also, do not get carried away with baking. It contains a large number of carbohydrates that pass through the gastrointestinal tract quite quickly and the feeling of hunger will return to you after a short period of time. In order to snack and lose weight, you need to choose snacks that contain a lot of fiber. These snacks include: fruits, beans, vegetables, whole grains. Below are the options.

9 healthy and low-calorie snacks

Option 1. Soluble fiber foods

They are great as a small snack, as fiber is processed more slowly by the body and leaves a feeling of fullness for a long time. These foods include: beans and peas, oat bran, fruits such as apples, mangoes, citrus fruits. And of course, vegetables: broccoli, carrots, asparagus, celery. As for carrots, 3 small carrots is only 60 calories. You can eat it for a very long time and the feeling of hunger will not come soon.

Option 2. Protein products

The following products can be used as a snack, if only consumed separately. These include: meat, fish, poultry, eggs, cheese. Formerly, cheese was harmful products for our figure, but nowadays it is believed that a cracker with pieces of low-fat cheese is a wonderful snack and a feeling of satiety will stay with you for a long time.

Option 3. nuts

Although nuts are tasty, they also contain great amount calories. People who are on a diet should not eat them in large quantities. You should immediately count how many nuts you need for a snack. For example, 14 almonds contain only 98 calories. This number is enough to satisfy the feeling of hunger. If you suddenly feel like salty, do not immediately grab the chips. The best alternative is pistachios. After all, 20 pistachios have only 80 calories! Also, do not forget that salted nuts contribute to fluid retention in the body.

Option 4. Yogurt

It makes a great low-calorie snack both at home and at work. The only thing you should remember when choosing yogurt as a snack is that it should be white and without additives. To make a snack more healthy, you can add to yogurt fresh fruits or muesli.

Option 5. whole fruits

Fruits that contain a sufficient amount of carbohydrates and fiber. They can be consumed with cottage cheese, yogurt, and muesli. Two kiwis have only 95 calories, and half a banana has about 100. You should know that a banana contains starch and a lot of sugar, so those who are on a diet should not abuse this fruit.

Option 6. Whole grains

Nutritionists and scientists from around the world say that people who eat whole grains are less prone to disease diabetes.

Option 7. Vegetables

The lightest and tasty way cooking vegetables is a salad. cut into fresh vegetables and fill them light sauce or olive oil. For variety, you can add cheese or cottage cheese.

Option 8. Dried fruits

They are very useful for our body and contain fiber. Perfect as a snack dried cherries. There are only 125 calories in 5 tablespoons. Cherries can also be added to yogurt, getting quite satisfying and delicious dessert. If we talk about healthy desserts, banana ice cream is worth mentioning. For this you need low calorie yogurt and half a banana. Insert a banana on a stick into a glass of yogurt and place in the freezer for several hours. Here it is ready and delicious healthy dessert.

Option 9. Dairy

Do not forget about a glass of milk or kefir before bed. Kefir improves digestion, restores the intestinal microflora and unloads the stomach well before bedtime. Don't turn a snack into a full meal. You need only 200 calories to last until a full meal. When eating, do not rush. Do not forget - the brain needs 20 minutes to understand that the body is full. Therefore, chew food should be leisurely.

Many people try to avoid snacking between meals in order not to gain extra calories. However, doctors have long proven that for full weight loss, you need to eat as often as possible, at least 5 times a day. It is this mode that will allow slim figure, maintain health and even improve concentration.

What is the importance of snacking

When we eat three times a day, eating large portions food, our metabolism slows down, and digestibility of food worsens. With such a system, most of the food eaten can be considered wasted, because it does not bring any benefit. But there is plenty of harm from such nutrition, because by absorbing large portions of food, we overload digestive system, which eventually begins to fail, leading to the development of dyspepsia, gastritis, irritable bowel syndrome and other serious digestive problems. That is why it is worth remembering once and for all: between 3 main meals there must be 2-3 snacks.

What should not be a snack

Most of our health and figure problems arise because we ignore snacks, and if we stick to them, then we take such meals lightly. Most often, a person does not prepare for a snack as a regular meal. Many consider it quite normal to eat a hamburger or a banana on the way, while not looking up from work to “intercept” one or two cookies or read a book to enjoy ice cream. But can this be considered a complete meal? Of course not! The brain at this time is busy solving the detective plot of the book or searching for information on work, and therefore is not at all tuned to give signals to the brain about the digestion of food.

Special mention should be made of the quality of foods consumed during snacks. Is it possible to snack on donuts, which are almost half of the harmful trans fats? These and other fast food products provoke obesity, lead to the development of atherosclerosis and increase the likelihood of cancerous tumors.

In the category of forbidden snacks, it is worth including those loved by many. potato chips, which actually contain no more than 10% mashed potatoes, and even then made from genetically modified potatoes. In addition, the chips are simply "stuffed" with all sorts of chemical additives, such as dyes, preservatives and flavor enhancers.

The same can be said about everyone's favorite ice cream. This delicacy does not contain any useful substances, but only sugar, stabilizers, emulsifiers and chemical dyes containing carcinogens.

But then what should be the snack? Nutritionists offer a choice of 10 most suitable dishes for a healthy snack. We hasten to introduce you to them.

1. Homemade popcorn

Popcorn is a famous treat that we buy when we go to the cinema. But this dish can be an excellent snack, very useful for the body. True, this is not about store bought popcorn, whose composition is rather doubtful, but about popcorn, which you can cook yourself. It is not so difficult, you just need to pre-purchase bags of corn, and fry the grains at home in a dry frying pan or hold for a few minutes in microwave oven. Ready-made exploded corn grains can be consumed without spices, or you can salt a little, add grated cheese or powdered sugar. 100 grams homemade popcorn contain no more than 70 calories, and corn itself will give the body a lot beneficial vitamins and micronutrients. Such a snack will definitely benefit the body.

2. Cabbage chips

Fans of chips should definitely pay attention to chips made from kale. Unlike a product made from genetically modified potatoes and harmful additives, generously fried in oil, a cabbage dish contains only 50 kcal, which means that it can be safely called a healthy snack. Cabbage chips do not contain sugar or cholesterol, but unlike store-bought chips, they contain a lot of fiber useful for digestion, contain copper and manganese, potassium and calcium, as well as a number of vitamins, including vitamin A, C and B6. Such an appetizer is especially useful for diabetics and obese people, since the components in cabbage help regulate glucose and cholesterol levels. And cabbage will be useful immune system and bones, support the endocrine system and prevent cancer.

Cabbage chips are easy to make. Just enough to rinse cabbage leaves, dry them and cut into pieces convenient for eating. The finished foliage should be carefully laid out on a plate, salted, poured with oil and put in an oven preheated to 300 ° C for twenty minutes. Such a snack will not only give you pleasure, but will also help you lose weight.

3. Hummus with celery

It's no secret that a stalk of celery contains no more than 10 calories. It has practically no fats and carbohydrates, but a lot of fiber, which means that 3-4 stalks of such greens are ideal for a snack between main meals. And it is best to use celery stalks with freshly prepared hummus, which is a valuable source of protein. In this case, you will get a dish that is remarkable in its nutritional value and benefits. In addition to being rich in protein, celery is 95% water, which means that its use will help maintain the water-salt balance, which is extremely important for hair and skin. Combining hummus and celery, we get great snack, rich in various trace elements, including phosphorus and magnesium, calcium and folic acid, vitamins A and C. Thanks to this combination, you will not only saturate the body for a long time, but also maintain the level blood pressure, remove excess cholesterol from the body and strengthen vision.

4. Baby carrot

By their own palatability the best variety carrot is undoubtedly a baby carrot. It is smaller in size, but much sweeter, softer and richer. beneficial substances. Such carrots can be the perfect snack, regardless of whether you eat them fresh, chopped in a blender or in the form of natural carrot juice. One such carrot contains no more than 4 calories, which means that you can enjoy this wonderful root crop without fear for your figure, receiving in addition a portion of iron, magnesium and phosphorus, potassium and fiber, vitamins A, K, B6 and B9. By snacking on such carrots, you can maintain eye health, which is especially important for modern children, prevent infections of the upper respiratory tract, strengthen the body's defenses, improve digestion, as well as reduce the risk of diabetes and prevent the oncology of the colon.

5. Olives

Many are accustomed to feasting on olives on festive table and they don’t think at all that the wonderful fruits of the olive tree can be consumed as a snack, for example, at an afternoon snack or lunch. Note that olives low-calorie product, where 20 berries contain only 68 kcal. Such food perfectly saturates the body, because olives are a generous source of healthy monounsaturated fats, they are rich in copper and fiber, iron and vitamin E. In addition to excellent saturation of the body and helping the figure, this snack will help treat arthritis and others. inflammatory diseases, prevent constipation, osteoporosis, and also contribute to the fight against asthma. In addition, everyone knows that olives help prevent the appearance of cancerous tumors, reduce blood pressure well, helping to fight hypertension, and also trigger the regenerating functions of the skin, preventing early aging.

6. Low Fat Greek Yogurt

Nutritionists are just delighted with this dietary product, like low-fat Greek yogurt, and therefore it is strongly recommended to eat a serving of this fermented milk product as a snack at least twice a week. What is special about this yogurt? First of all, it is thick and incredibly satisfying, which means that before a full meal, you will not have the desire to eat anything else. In addition, Greek yogurt is a low-calorie product (100 kcal are contained in 170 g of yogurt), which means that you can eat such a dish without any fear for your figure. In addition, there are a lot of live bacteria in yogurt, which help to improve the digestion process and prevent dysbacteriosis. And if you want to get even more benefit from such a snack, just add fresh or frozen berries to yogurt. In this case, your body will receive all the vitamins and minerals it needs.

Those who prefer apples as a snack are doing absolutely the right thing. This tasty, satisfying, low calorie fruit just designed to fill the gap between main meals. Judge for yourself, a medium-sized apple contains no more than 80 kcal, and besides, it is sweet, which means that with such a snack you will satisfy your needs for sweets without affecting blood glucose levels and without contributing to the development of diabetes. But an apple is, first of all, a pantry of fiber and an inexhaustible source of iron, which helps us prevent the development of anemia. There are also countless vitamins and minerals in this fruit: these are manganese and potassium, zinc and chromium, unsaturated fatty acid and the entire line of vitamins necessary for our body. In addition, the peel of apples contains bioflavonoids - powerful antioxidants that prevent aging of the body and protect us from oncology. Eating an apple every day as a snack will not only saturate your body, but also strengthen your bones and whiten your teeth.

Nuts are considered one of the most useful products nutrition. True, nutritionists do not recommend getting carried away with these gifts of nature, because they are very high-calorie. However, if you figure it out, eating only 10-12 almond seeds, your body will be replenished with 100 calories. And knowing how satisfying these nuts are, there is no doubt that you definitely won’t want to eat before lunch or dinner. If we consider the composition of almonds, it turns out that it is difficult to imagine a snack that is more beneficial for our body. There is an abundance of fiber, and a high content of proteins, and useful vegetable fats, which, unlike animal fats, do not clog blood vessels, but, on the contrary, remove cholesterol from the blood. In addition, almonds contain useful to the heart magnesium and potassium, phosphorus and calcium necessary for bones, as well as B vitamins, which perfectly strengthen the nervous system.

9. Cottage cheese with fruit slices

This wonderful fermented milk product is especially appreciated by nutritionists and there is a reasonable explanation for this. Cottage cheese is a valuable source of protein, which, once ingested, is slowly digested, protecting you from raids on the refrigerator between main meals. At the same time, she is defatted curd contains only 90 calories, which means that such a snack is very beneficial for people who are watching their own weight. Needless to say, apart from nutritional properties and a minimum of calories, cottage cheese, like other dairy products, is rich in calcium, iron, phosphorus, selenium and potassium? And in order to maintain water balance in your body, add to the serving fat-free cottage cheese some clean water better puree from fresh cucumber or melon. In this case, you will receive a new one as a snack. interesting dish With unusual taste And undoubted benefit for the body.

10. Soybeans

According to nutritionists, soybeans are the healthiest of all snacks. And here you should not pay attention to the rather high calorie content of the product (147 calories), because for full saturation it will be enough to eat enough 50–70 grams of boiled beans. Much more interesting is that young soybeans have the perfect balance of fat, protein and carbohydrates, and in addition to them boast a whole range of minerals and vitamins that help strengthen the immune system and help prevent over 50 known diseases! Soy is a helper in the fight against cardiovascular diseases, it is a product that is one of the twenty natural remedies for fighting cancer, it is a food that helps rejuvenate the body and a dish responsible for increasing intellectual abilities. If you want to avoid obesity, prevent heart attacks, strokes and diabetes, boiled soybeans should appear on your table as often as possible. Eat right and be healthy!

If you haven’t had breakfast, by 10-11 in the morning you will want to eat especially strongly. And for many, the appetite wakes up at this time, even if there is breakfast. This happens if you ate only carbohydrates for breakfast - porridge or cereal, fruits (calorie). Low in the morning and a carbohydrate breakfast will make you feel hungry in two hours. Therefore, nutritionists recommend, or do without porridge in the morning.

However, if after a few hours you are still hungry, have a light snack in the range of 150-250 kcal.

The task of the second breakfast is to maintain a normal level of glucose in the blood, satisfy physiological hunger and provide energy. Do not confuse physiological hunger and. It can be experienced even after eating. Many people who lose weight have eating disorders that cause them to eat when they are not hungry, overeat and gain weight. excess weight. Here we are talking exclusively about physiological needs.

When you feel rumbling and emptiness in your stomach, headache and discomfort, and there are several hours left before dinner, you need to eat food that would ensure satiety, but was not too high in calories.

From the volume of food, the presence of proteins, fats and fiber in it.

(fresh fruit is preferable to dried fruit);
Proteins are digested for a long time, which helps maintain satiety;
Fats slow down the digestion of carbohydrates and proteins, which also contributes to satiety.

Hence the logical conclusion - the snack should be balanced and voluminous, include either protein and fiber, or fiber and fats, or all at once.

Crackers, sweets, curds, white flour buns, dried fruits are absolutely not suitable. For a snack, you can eat sweet and sour fruits, vegetables, bread, dairy products, nuts, and, then you can easily fit dark chocolate into your diet.

The higher your daily calorie content, the higher the calorie content of a snack can be. For example, if you eat 1600 kcal, then the size of the snack can be about 250 kcal. And if you are a petite girl and your calorie deficit is in the range of 1400 kcal, then snacking should be made easier.

Snacks up to 150 kcal:

150 g vegetables and 150 g Greek yogurt sauce;
100 g of low-fat cottage cheese and 100 g of seasonal berries;
250 g lean drinking yogurt and one medium apple;
Two puffed breads, 25 g feta cheese and fresh vegetables;
40 g crunchy spiced chickpeas and coffee with milk.

Such a light snack can be taken with you, it will not take up much space, but it will protect against hunger, brighten up the diet and give strength (calorizator). You can add to cottage cheese or yogurt - it does not contain calories and is harmless, and all kinds of spices can be used in salty versions.

Snacks up to 250 kcal:

Two slice sandwich whole grain bread With chicken fillet, vegetables, herbs and sauce based on Greek yogurt or sour cream;
100 g low-fat cottage cheese, 100 g seasonal berries and 15 g nuts;
One medium apple and 30 g peanuts/peanut butter;
70 g bran bun and 250 g low-fat drinking yogurt;
Sandwiches from three loaves of puffed grain, 50 g soft cheese and fresh vegetables.

Such a snack will provide enough energy, nutrients and help you wait until dinner.

Calorie counting will make your diet more flexible and help you fit your favorite foods into yours without fear of gaining extra pounds. It is enough to plan all meals in advance to eliminate the risk of overeating.