You can add snacks and treats to your 3 daily meals and successfully lose weight or maintain your weight if you snack well. This means that you choose your snacks wisely including what to snack on, how much to snack on and when to snack!
When to snack: we recommend only having a snack if you are hungry. Forget what time of the day it is. Before you reach for a snack consider your level of hunger. If you are not hungry, don’t snack!
What to snack on: choose snacks that are tasty and nutritious, not only will snacks higher in protein and fibre keep you feeling fuller for longer, but typically nutritious snacks are also lower in calories.
4 Snack Tips
- All snacks contain calories! Even the healthiest snack contains calories and if overeaten will interfere with your weight loss.
- Choose a drink first – drinking a lot of fluids is important for good health and weight loss. Drinks are often calorie free and a great hunger buster.
- Limit how often you snack – less snacks = greater weight loss
- Don’t snack out of habit! Try to include snacks only as a way to add diet variety, curb hunger or maintain your motivation. Eating snacks as a result of a habit (such as morning tea) is adding unnecessary calories to your day.