Week 4 Friday Meeting (January 29)

Thanks, Linda!

Snacking throughout the day is vital to help prevent excessive hunger at meal times, which can lead to eating too fast and overeating. Think about the last time you may have waited too long in between meals. Were you very hungry by the next meal? Did you find you ate your meal faster? Did this result in eating until you were uncomfortably full, or perhaps making less-healthy meal choices? Skipping snacks can actually sabotage your weight-loss efforts. By snacking at regular intervals, this can help to prevent excessive hunger and cravings, allowing you to continue to make SBD-friendly choices at your next meal. Also, since snacking helps to regulate your appetite, you may find you can eat your next meal slower, which is very important since eating rapidly can cause you to eat well beyond the point of fullness (it takes 20 minutes for the stomach to signal to the brain that you’re full). Snacking may also help to stimulate your metabolism. When hunger and cravings are on the rise and your next meal is a few hours away, try having a healthy snack to keep you going. The best snacks are those that will keep you full for 1–3 hours. This includes foods containing lean protein, healthy fats, or whole grains. Some quick and healthy SBD snacks you may want to try include:

Phase 1

Low-fat string cheese

Hard-boiled eggs

Natural peanut butter on celery

Fat-free or low-fat plain yogurt with nuts

Raw vegetables with SBD-friendly dip

Tomato slices topped with melted, part-skim mozzarella cheese

Hummus with vegetables

Phases 2 and 3

Whole-grain bread or crackers topped with natural peanut butter or low-fat cheese

Healthy trail mix made with whole-grain dry cereal and dry roasted nuts

Fat-free or low-fat plain yogurt with fruit

A piece of fruit with nuts or low-fat cheese

What snacks have you found the most helpful in satisfying your hunger and helping you stay on track with your SBD plan?

Well this is a timely subject, my weight is no longer decreasing on phase 2 and I am not as careful as I was on phase 1 about actually taking/eating my snacks, then am hungry when I get home and snack right before dinner and not as carefully planned, thanks for the timely subject!

Hi Erin-

If I am doing a workout at my Gym - (typically 1.5 hrs of biking, weights and equipment and the treadmill) should I ADD a snack 1 hr prior to the workout or use one of my normal 2 snacks a day.  Is one type of snack (i.e. protein) better than another prior to a workout ?
L

I'm here....testing..to make sure it will take my post!

Jayne

I'm guilty of doing that too.  Some days I get so busy at work that I forget to pay attention to my body's need for fuel.  Those are the days that I end up sorely tempted to stop for a quick something on the way home from work.  Fortunately, I can usually resist the urge, and I have made it a habit to always have a quick and easy to grab snack while I am cooking dinner.  I'm currently in a egg salad stuffed into endive leaves "rut"!

Hi Jayne!  Welcome to the Friday chat.  We're talking about our favorite snacks (SB friendly, of course)!

Just a reminder to all... If you haven't weighed in on the weigh in thread, please make sure you do so.

I hope everyone is experiencing success!

I'm still struggling to get all of my foods in. Snacking is not an everyday thing for me. When I look back at my day, my vegetables are eaten, dairy usually ok, too much protein, fats ok, fruits are not top of my list, usually short on that....still trying.


.

I have been walking for 2 miles a day for the past week, I feel great.  How far in advance should I have a snack or should I have my snack after I walk.  I am afraid if I snack before I walk, I will burn it all up and I will be twice as hungry after my walk.

Hi Erin, my question is:

I plan to add about 5 minutes of workout per day, each week, to increase my metabolism as I get more fit, to reach about 1hr/day. Is that too much too fast? Also I heard that a double work out on week-ends is a great idea, what do you think?

I am in good shape, I have around 19lbs to loose. I just want to make sure I dont overdo it, as it is normally my trend.

I do exactly like SBD suggests, one day total body workout and one day aerobic (in my case elliptical machine).

thanks.

What are some of your favorite snacks?

I don't know if you are like me, but I tend to fall into a habit of having the same snacks every day for weeks and then switching to something new.  Lately, my "go to" snacks tend to be about 1/4 cup of chicken, tuna, egg, or ham salad stuffed into endive leaves.

This is a question for Erin or anyone out there who might have some tricks up their sleeve.

My son and I have made it a habit to spend an evening together watching a movie and, pre-SB, having popcorn.  I know that popcorn is allowed on Phase 2 as a snack, but is there any way to give it a buttery flavor without using butter.  He'll be leaving for boot camp in a couple of weeks, and I'd really like to continue our little tradition until then, but he doesn't want the popcorn plain.

Hi and glad we are talking about snacks-- question-- when I was working and commuting my breakfast was VERY early and i needed a morning snack--- now i have the luxury of eating a later breakfast and don't need the 'fuel" to get me to lunch--- can I have my afternoon snack and if needed the other after dinner.  Thought snacks were optional or as needed??????

One of my favorite snacks when I do have them are the turkey pepperoni slices  crisped in the microwave.
protein again!

Hi Everyone.....Nice to be here.
I just had my hard boiled egg and a sprig of crunchy dried salty kale.  Trying to dry green beans too, but not sure how that is working....

Hi, if I am not hungry and feel like I do not need a snack (I never have one in the morning anymore - sometimes in the afternoon) is this ok?  Or is it vital to making this diet a success? 
thanks,'
Jess

Zebra_2 wrote: "If I am doing a workout at my Gym - (typically 1.5 hrs of biking, weights and equipment and the treadmill) should I ADD a snack 1 hr prior to the workout or use one of my normal 2 snacks a day.  Is one type of snack (i.e. protein) better than another prior to a workout?"

This is a great question! I would plan to have one of your normal snacks within one hour prior of your workout. Before a workout, it is important to take in a healthy source of carbohydrate for energy and endurance. In Phase 1, you could try having fat-free or low-fat milk or yogurt, beans, or even vegetables for a healthy source of carbohydrate. In Phase 2, you can also snack on fruit or whole grains before working out.

Thanks Erin !
I normally do an apple prior to the workout and it seems to work well. It is also my afternoon snack that I find I can skip. Thanks for the information !
L 

Hi there!  Glad to see you.  I just learned about dried kale, and I haven't yet tried it.  It sounds really good, and I'm hoping I can get some in the grocery store to crisp up.

Let me know how the green beans work out --

buffiejotoo wrote: "I have been walking for 2 miles a day for the past week, I feel great.  How far in advance should I have a snack or should I have my snack after I walk.  I am afraid if I snack before I walk, I will burn it all up and I will be twice as hungry after my walk."

It is great that you are walking daily! Do you have enough energy during your walks? If you do not feel fatigued during your walk, I would wait until after your walk to have your snack. This way, as you said, you will not feel too hungry later on. Just like having healthy carbohydrates is important for energy before a workout, it is also important to have a healthy source of carbohydrates after a cardiovascular workout to replace your energy stores. Try snacking on a healthy carbohydrate such as fruit, fat-free or low-fat yogurt, or whole grains, such as a whole-wheat bread with natural peanut butter.