We all know that if we ate healthier snacks we wouldn’t set ourselves up for weight gain, sugar rushes and crashes and overall poor eating habits because we haven’t planned ahead.  With a little planning, you can create a stash of healthier options to curb hunger and fuel your body.

The key I believe is having a healthy snack drawer and or spot in the frig at work and at home.  If we have a healthy option that is ready to grab ‘n go, we’re less likely to head for another snack and pay for something else.  It’s also about creating a new healthy habit.  You need to want to make this change.  If not you’ll find a way to move past the healthy and be seduced by the lure of white sugar, caffeine or some other empty calorie.

Another reason to eat healthy snacks is to improve your mood, ‘tude and overall well-being.  You can avoid the mid-afternoon slump by giving your body fuel.  This will perk you up and stave off a ravenous beast who again chooses to overeat for dinner or stop at a drive through because of hunger.

Here are a few keys to snacking smarter!

1.      Re-vamp your work drawer, pantry or frig space by removing sugar- and salt-laden snacks and replacing them with healthier munchies.

2.      Make a list of healthy options and shop for them.

3.      Prep the snacks into 1 serving baggies (we reuse baggies, I label with a sharpie to avoid waste and frig thieves) or choose reusable containers so portions are truly ready to grab ‘n go!

4.      Pack a variety of snacks options in a cooler if you don’t have frig space at work, so that you have variety of healthy snacks to pick from. Prepping for a week and then bringing a variety to work will stock your frig space and you refill the space once a week.

5.      Create a healthy snack drawer at work or pantry area at home with a wide selection of healthy options to avoid the excuse of needing something else and going to the vending machines that can be stored without a frig or cooler.

6.      Drink water first!  Many times we are not truly hungry, we are thirsty and this leads to grazing!  You’ll try 10 things and find that nothing satisfies, why?  Because you were thirsty, not hungry!

Now, what about some healthy snack options and ideas?

1.      Apples, oranges cuties, bananas Bring fruits using in God’s packaging.  Buy a mixed bag or a variety and have a healthy fruit basket in your office or breakroom.  Do this at home too! Have a fruit basket in view!

2.      Dried cereal or granola Opt of varieties that contain whole grains and no added sugar. The healthiest choices will follow this criterion:

Fiber: 3 grams or more per serving (ideally 5 grams or more)

Sugar: less than 8 grams per serving

Protein: 2 grams or more per serving

Vitamins & Minerals: between 10-25 percent of the Daily Value

3.      Dried fruit. Delicious, dried fruits to have on hand include apricots, blueberries, cherries, cranberries, mango, pineapple, prunes, or raisins.  Please read labels and be aware of how these items are dried.  An even better choice it to use a dehydrator and make your own dried fruit!

4.      Fruit Leathers – make these with your dehydrator.

5.      Make up a fruit parfait with yogurt, fruit, and raw nuts.

6.      Make a fresh fruit plate to snack on.

7.      Raw Nuts or seeds.  Choose nuts and seeds that are raw instead of those that are roasted and salted to cut back on sodium and sugar.  They also contain healthy fats, roasted ones have killed the fat, so their nutritional value is mute.

8.      Nut butters like cashew, sunflower, peanuts or almond to spread on apple slices or a banana are a great healthy snack! The Justin’s brand has single serving pouches that limit the amount you eat and are handy to put in a snack drawer or lunch box.

9.      Oatmeal Make overnight oats with quick-cooking oats. Add mix-ins such as low-fat/fat-free yogurt, nut/seed butter, nuts, fresh fruit, or flax/chia seeds for a delicious snack!

10.  Air Popped Popcorn is a healthful whole grain and is naturally low in both calories and fat.

11.  Trail Mix. Create your own with raw nuts, dried fruits or other healthy pieces like pretzels or carob chips.

12. Hard boiled eggs Easy to make and store! A great source of protean too! Eat the white or the whole egg. I’m not going to get into what is better…talk to your Dr. , I believe God made it that way, so in moderation, why not!

13. Raw veggies. It takes a little prep to wash and cut celery, carrots, peppers, broccoli or cauliflower (the list goes on) but this crunchy snack really satisfies! Add some Greek yogurt dill dip for an added taste!

I hope these healthy snack drawer ideas have inspired you to create a healthy habit!