Let me repeat this: By choosing a healthy midmorning snack you will greatly reduce the chance that you will eat off your plan later in the day. Here’s why.

Binge control. If eating a healthy snack in the AM prevents you from dipping into the candy bowl or vending machine at work in the afternoon you will actually consume fewer total calories for the day.

Metabolism Boost: By eating small frequent meals your metabolism will begin to speed up, burning more total calories for the day. Consider your metabolism as a campfire. If you let it go too long without stoking the fire it will burn down to coals. If you add a large log (meal) to the fire it will smolder for a while and then finally begin to burn. Instead, consider stoking the fire (your metabolism) with small frequent amounts of fuel. This will keep the embers burning bright and you energized throughout your entire day.

Blood Sugar Control: Small frequent meals, with a focus on healthy whole foods and a lean protein source, will prevent large swings in your blood sugar. We have all had the experience of low blood sugar at some point. We waited too long to eat because we were distracted and busy and had to deal with light headedness, brain fog, fatigue and strong hunger urges.  By the time we did remember to eat, we were so hungry that, the chances of us making a healthy decision were next to nil. By eating small frequent meals you will prevent the large spikes and dips in your blood sugar and the resulting spikes and dips in your energy levels.

Healthy Snacks

For your busy lifestyle, choosing snacks and meals that are quick and nutritious is essential. The list below offers several quick and nutritious snacks you can try. Over time, you will become comfortable in making nutritious choices and probably will want to add your own quick and healthy options to the list.

A balanced meal or snack consists of two parts carbohydrates and one part protein. For example, a balanced breakfast might consist of low-fat yogurt or cottage cheese (the protein) and your favorite fresh fruit (a carbohydrate). You might also combine protein sources like eggs, chicken, or turkey sausages with carbohydrates like fresh fruit and a small amount of potatoes or toast.

At meals you want to avoid eating a large amount of carbohydrates without protein and this goes for snacking too.

Earlier I spoke about blood sugar control. Small frequent meals are key to managing moderate blood sugar levels across the day. Equally as important are the foods that make up your meal or snack. Eating just carbohydrates will produce a spike in your blood sugar.  An hour or two later, your blood sugar level will drop. As a result, you will likely feel sluggish or irritable and may have difficulty thinking clearly. Eating a balanced meal, with a small amount of protein or healthy fat, will help you avoid the sugar rush and prevent the peaks and valleys of blood sugar swings.

I recommend that you eat a piece of fruit at each snack time and pair it with a yogurt, nuts (15 raw almonds), 1 oz of cheese (low fat string cheese) or 3 tsp of nut butter. In addition to peanut butter, almond butter tastes great on fruit. You will need to plan for these snacks so sit down for a moment and choose which snacks you will eat this week. Then write up a grocery list and have them ready to go Sunday evening so you can take them to work on Monday. If you choose nuts and have a hard time eating just one serving, then purchase small snack bags (like Ziploc brand) and pre-bag 12 almonds in each bag. One bag is a serving, but if you eat two bags you will know exactly how much to write down in your journal. You should have at least two snacks a day; one mid-morning and one mid-afternoon.

Why do I list, ‘12 almonds, 9 pecans, 3 walnuts, 1 macadamia’ as a serving size? Each of these quantities has the same amount of fat. Yes, 1 macadamia nut has the same amount of fat as 12 almonds! Nuts are extremely healthy. Just be sure to divide them into single serving baggies so it is less likely that you will over indulge.

Keep it simple; this shouldn’t take you more than a few minutes to plan. If you plan to have an apple with yogurt for your mid-morning snack and a pear with almonds for your mid-afternoon snack, your grocery list will look like this:

A grocery list example:

7 apples

7 pears

1 bag raw organic almonds

7 yogurts

To create your own healthy snacks, choose one item from each column:

Other Smart Snack ideas:

1. 4 pcs of dried apricot and Low-fat organic cottage cheese with sliced pear, plum, cherries, or ¼ cup fresh berries.
2. Hummus with raw chopped vegetables or whole grain pita bread.
3. Whole-grain toast with nut butter (cashew and almond butter are delicious alternatives to peanut butter).
4. Olive tapenade spread on toasted whole wheat pita bread, no salt corn tortilla chips, whole grain crackers, or rye crisp.
5. Apple or pear slices with organic cheese slice or nut butter.
6. Low-fat organic yogurt with nutty (almonds, cashews, etc) granola or ¼ cup fresh berries or a piece of fruit.
7. Tofu chive spread or roasted garlic tofu spread (both found at the PCC deli) with crackers, whole grain bread, or pita.
8. Nuts or seeds, 12 almonds, 9 pecans, 3 walnuts, 1 macadamia (roasting them with tamari is delicious) and a piece of fruit.
9. 5 Whole Wheat crackers and 1 oz of cheese.

Angela Pifer, Certified Nutritionist

Seattle Based – I work Nationally through Skype

www.NutritionNorthwest.com

Raw Organic Bar and a whole Piece of Fruit – This is about the quickest breakfast you can eat. Raw Organic Bars (my favorite energy bars) have 200 calories and a good amount of protein and fiber. Add in a large whole piece of fruit and your total calories will come to around 300 calories.

Smoothies – Smoothies are certainly a great way to get a good dose of fruit. Chop up some fresh fruit, throw it in the blender and you have a healthy and delicious breakfast. Add yogurt, nut butter or milk for protein.

Breakfast Muffins – For breakfast try a savory or fruit muffin. For healthier muffins use whole wheat flour and instead of sugar mash a ripe banana or a little honey into the mixture. Unless you’re an early riser you probably won’t have enough time to make muffins in the morning. Simply make them ahead and either freeze or keep in an air-tight container for a few days. Try making the mini-muffin size, adding a ¼ cup crushed walnuts to the mix for protein and having a piece of fruit with it.

Wholesome Eggs – Eggs are very versatile. Try a veggie omelet with a little cheese or scrambled eggs with chopped tomatoes. Try a prepare-ahead breakfast casserole for a hearty family breakfast. Scrambled, poached, hard boiled…any way you like them…they are a perfect protein.

Oatmeal – Making your own oatmeal is much healthier than the flavored instant packets. Cook up according to packet instructions and add a little fruit for extra flavor. Add a few crushed walnuts for added omega-3 and a protein source and sweeten with a little real maple syrup…a much better choice than brown sugar.

Healthy Breakfast Bar – Make up a batch of healthy breakfast bars the day before and use them for a quick, on-the-go breakfast. Use a low-sugar recipe and include lots of healthy dried fruits.

Fantastic Fruit Salad – Serve a chopped fruit salad with a yogurt dip. Mini muffins are delicious dipped in yogurt too.

Breakfast Burrito – Scramble some eggs and place them in a whole wheat tortilla with chopped tomatoes, veggies or other favorite toppings. Always add cheese to the top of your dishes (you will use less and still taste the flavor) and be sure to choose aged cheeses. These have a stronger taste and will need less present to add flavor to the dish.

Spruce up your Toast – Try whole wheat bread and serve with peanut or almond butter and sliced bananas, light cream cheese and raisins (sprinkle a little cinnamon on top), or light cream cheese and a fruit jam (pure, no-sugar added jam is best).

Pizza for Breakfast – Why not? split a couple of whole wheat English muffins in half, top with a little pizza sauce, grated cheese and some chopped turkey or even eggs. Place under the grill for a few minutes and you have a nutritious breakfast pizza. You can make whole wheat bagel pizzas too.

Those are just a few healthy breakfast ideas to help keep things interesting.

On the Go Breakfasts Take a selection of dried fruits, nuts, and seeds (sunflower, pumpkin, etc.) and mix together in a bowl. Then place a handful of the mix into individual plastic bags. (1/2 cup for a meal and a little shy of ¼ cup for a snack). Another breakfast I enjoy is 1 cup Kashi cereal with 10 almonds in a baggie. By keeping these bagged and ready to go in your pantry, you will have one less excuse crossed off your list. Even on the busiest of mornings you just grab a bag on the way out.

Angela Pifer, Certified Nutritionist

Seattle Based – I work Nationally through Skype

www.NutritionNorthwest.com

Several of my clients ask me about healthy breakfast ideas, and in truth, it’s a dilemma that many of us face each day. Either we don’t have time for breakfast, or we don’t have many healthy options on hand. A good breakfast is an ideal way to start changing to a healthful diet. The food choices are simple, and you can measure your progress quite easily. By eating healthier earlier in the day you will be less likely to reach for sugary snacks, caffeine or simple carbohydrate foods later in the day.

Research suggests that breakfast eaters are leaner than those who skip the morning meal, with studies suggesting that missing breakfast is associated with up to a fourfold increase in the risk of obesity. High-fiber cereals are central to breakfast’s health benefits and can help people reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and even intestinal polyps and colon cancer.

What is a Healthy Breakfast?

A healthy breakfast should contain some protein and some complex carbohydrate (has fiber present). Protein sources are low fat meats, eggs, dairy (milk, cheese or yogurt), beans, or soy. Complex carbohydrates can be found in whole grains, vegetables and fruits. A good example of a healthy breakfast might be something simple like a hard boiled egg, an orange, and a bowl of whole grain cereal with low fat milk. When combined in a meal or a snack, protein and complex carbohydrates (with fiber present) satisfy your hunger and will keep you feeling full until lunch time.

Stay away from the sugary cereals, syrups, pastries, and white breads because they are digested quickly and will leave you hungry and tired in a couple of hours. You need to have some protein at breakfast. This will slow down the absorption and digestion of your meal.

Be Good to Yourself by Eating a Healthy Breakfast Every Morning

Tomorrow morning, remember that eating a healthy breakfast is the best way to start your day… Notice how much better you feel through the morning and the rest of the day when you don’t skip breakfast.

People who eat a healthy breakfast are more likely to:

1. Consume more vitamins and minerals and less fat and cholesterol
2. Have more strength and endurance
3. Have better concentration and productivity throughout the morning
4. Control their weight
5. Have lower cholesterol, which reduces the risk of heart disease
6. Reduced cravings in the afternoon
7. Reduced frequency of late night emotional/ overeating

Angela Pifer, Certified Nutritionist

Seattle Nutritionist– I work Nationally through Skype

www.NutritionNorthwest.com

It’s a fact: most people tend to underestimate the amount of food they eat and tend to overestimate the recommended serving sizes for many foods. In a land of super-sized meals it is easy to understand why.

Most consumers believe that a serving size is 1.5 to 2 times larger than it actually is. How do you test this? First, guess how much pasta you usually eat. Then serve your plate as usual and then measure it! Compare it to the label serving size. How close was your calculation? Chances are, you’re eating two, three, four or more times the amount on the label.

Portion and serving sizes may sound like the same thing but, for many Americans, they are actually very different.

A “serving” size is a unit of measure based on nutrition needs. A “portion” can be thought of as the amount of a specific food a person eats for meals, snacks or other eating occasions.

The serving size listed on a label is not meant to provide advice on how much of certain foods to eat in order to achieve a healthful diet. Serving sizes are not set in stone….the typical American eater is not going to be satisfied with a steak the size of a deck of cards and ½ cup of rice. I mean, come on, how many of us eat just two cookies?

A serving size is simply a unit of measure; such as cups, ounces or pieces to make the food label serving sizes consumer friendly. Knowing what constitutes a serving size versus a portion size, being cognizant of what a serving size looks like and determining how many servings are right for you is all very important in achieving both a healthful and satisfying diet. Seems like too much to bite off? Read on for more insight and strategies.

The government uses the image of a food pyramid to describe the amount of serving sizes the ‘average’ consumer should consume for a healthy diet and lifestyle; remember that these are based on serving sizes. This is where it gets hairy: these are not always the same quantities as the serving sizes listed on the food labels. For instance, both resources list ½ cup as the recommended serving for canned fruits and vegetables.

However, for some foods, the serving sizes differ because these two tools have different purposes. The government describes serving units for primarily “simple” food items, such as 1 cup raw leafy greens; ½ cup cooked dry beans; 1 cup of milk or yogurt; or 2 tablespoons peanut butter. This method is used so consumers can easily remember what counts as a serving for major food groups and to help them build a healthful diet.

On the other hand, then Nutrition Facts panel serving unit is specific for each product category. The intent is to help consumers compare nutrient information between a number of choices of products that fall in the same food group. The food label servings can also apply both to dishes combining several food groups (such as frozen lasagna) and to “simple” foods like canned vegetables.

Some consumers perceive the bread, cereal, rice and pasta group in the Pyramid as a real challenge. Many consumers believe the suggested 6-11 servings of grains are too much for them to eat on a daily basis. At the crux of this quandary may be that consumers are not familiar with what constitutes a serving size for grains. For instance, a consumer may have noted that 2 slices of bread or 1 cup of cooked pasta equaled a serving, when in fact the Pyramid indicates 1 slice of bread or ½ cup of cooked pasta is a serving. According to USDA food consumption surveys, individuals’ typical portion sizes for grain products equaled 1-1/2 to 2 food guide serving units.

The reality is that most of us will not have a Nutrition Facts panel at our fingertips at each eating occasion, particularly if we are eating at a restaurant or consuming foods that were not prepared by us.

Yet, there are many tips to keep in mind to be sensible about portion sizes and diet. Two of the more important factors to keep in mind are that a healthful eating plan can and should include all the foods you like and it should include a variety of different foods.

Here are some sensible tips for not “overdoing it:”

1. Order once, enjoy twice. Eat half your steak at the restaurant. Take the rest home to savor tomorrow is a steak salad with juicy-ripe tomatoes or a beef and broccoli stir-fry. At a restaurant, two diners could split the steak entrée and each order a salad or vegetable side dishes.

2. Snack from a plate, not from the bag, to stay aware of how much you are eating.

3. It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to get the signal that your stomach’s had enough. Savor foods slowly-you’ll enjoy it more, eat less and avoid feeling stuffed.

Best yet learn to recognize what a serving size looks like on a plate, in your hand and in a bowl. To help visualize a tablespoon or other common portion sizes, measure it out and compare its size to a common item like a quarter or deck of playing cards. Soon it will become second nature.

Angela Pifer, MSN, CN Seattle Nutritionist

Seattle Nutrition Programs – Get the daily support that gets you results! – Locally and nationally through Skype.

The “Not So Extreme” Food Make-Over:

1) Raisin bran cereal, chosen for its fiber and folic acid, with reduced-fat milk for calcium, is a healthy food choice.  However, the fiber can interfere with calcium and nutrient absorption by pushing it through the digestive track too quickly. 

Make-Over – Add a whole orange to your meal.  The acid content may improve the ability to absorb the calcium.  Also, add an extra dairy serving mid day.  For Vegetarians, supplements are recommended because the vegetarian diet is high in compounds called phytates and oxalates, which bind with the calcium, preventing the absorption of the nutrients.       Make-Over – Switch up the tomato slices with sundried tomatoes or salsa to increase lycopene content. The more processing a tomato goes through, the more available its carotenoids are.  Choose a darker leaf lettuce to add more nutrients. Swap caramelized onions for the mayo, which will also decrease the amount of nitrates absorption from the cold cuts. Exchange the roll for some whole grain bread, which has four times the fiber and more antioxidants.  Avoid highly processed deli meats and choose regular roasted turkey, to avoid the added chemicals in processing.

2) Turkey salami, lettuce, tomato and cheese on a roll with reduced fat mayo.  This meal choice is leaner than its full fat counterpart, which includes regular salami and mayo. You will also ingest lycopene from the tomato and fiber in the lettuce.  However, it’s still just a meat and cheese sandwich.

3)  Pan fried tofu with brown rice, chickpeas and red-pepper strips.  This is a good meal because of the lean soy protein, proven to help prevent heart disease, and the brown rice has cancer-fighting nutrients. The not so good…there is less protein absorption in vegetables, and the dish is unappetizing.

Make-Over – Include lean protein as found in lean chicken, beef or shrimp. Only 70 percent of the protein in plant derivatives gets absorbed as compared to 90 percent of the animal proteins. Spice it up with a variety of veggies, herbs and spices, which add antioxidants and improves taste.