Knowing what our clean eating snacks are ahead of time will save you when hunger strikes while you’re trying to stick to a healthy eating plan. If you’re doing the 21-Day Clean Program we recommend that you look even more closely at your snacking habits than usual.
It’s a few minutes to four o’clock and you feel your energy fading. You start to get irritable. Your mind wanders. The desserts your co-workers brought in are staring you in the face. You’re about to get hangry!
This scenario is one version of what we call the late afternoon fade out. The details may vary, but the physical and emotional sensations are the same – that “grumpy hungry” feeling of irritability, tiredness, and a lack of focus.
This fade out is the hardest time to eat clean. Our clean-eating snacks are simple, inexpensive, and one of the best ways to keep yourself balanced throughout the day.
Clean Eating Snacks Dilemma: To Snack or Not to Snack
There is nothing inherently wrong with snacking between meals. Snacking can be healthy if you really need more food, but keep in mind that your desire to eat may not be coming from true hunger but from boredom, anger, habit, sadness, or just flat-out dehydration.
Mindless habit snacking tends to numb how we really feel. So before you start grabbing snacks, even clean snacks, check-in with yourself and notice what you’re feeling. A short walk and glass of water can re-energize you and help curb your cravings, too.
Experiment with Clean Eating Snacks: Portions and Timing
If you notice that you’re regularly hungry at four o’clock and you’ve checked in with your emotional state, then by all means, have one of these clean snacks. You may realize that you need a larger breakfast or lunch, or more frequent meals throughout the day. For example, a Daily Shake for breakfast and light salad for lunch may not be enough food to keep you feeling your best. This is when a snack can be very helpful to keep you feeling balanced and calm.
Hangry (a combination of hungry and angry) is “the phenomenon whereby some people get grumpy or short-tempered when they’re overdue for a feed”. If you’re not careful, the hanger can sneak up on you. The key is to eat enough whole clean foods each day so you feel satisfied.
Plan Your Clean Snacks
Plan your snacks for the week and have them with you when you are away from home. Without deciding ahead of time how we want to respond to hunger or stress, we may end up reacting to the events of our lives in habitual ways that don’t serve us well. This is especially true when it comes to food.
Crackers and Guacamole
Healthy fats mixed with salty carbs can quell the hanger quickly. Making your own guacamole is the best solution, as you can omit any nightshades and control the ingredients included. Fresher is better!
Tip: To keep your guacamole from going bad, put the avocado pit in it and cover it with plastic. You’ll find your guac ready to go for the next day.
Veggies and Hummus
Watery plant foods like fruit and veggies work well to balance out the richer hummus. If you’re prone to overeating hummus (as many of us are), focus on eating more fruit or veggies.
Tip: Grocery store hummus often uses canola, soy, or vegetable oil. Look for no oil or olive oil-based hummus, or make your own.
Fruit and Nuts
A snack of fruit and nuts is a great way to satisfy your sweet teeth. Feel free to have more than one piece of fruit. Adding a small handful of nuts will help satisfy and slow the release of sugars from the fruit.
Tip: If you’ve never used macadamia nuts as a snack, give them a try. They are very low in pro-inflammatory omega-6 fatty acids and taste great.
Daily Shake
We love our Daily Shakes at Clean. Not only does a shake make a great breakfast, it also makes a great snack. Shakes made with a nutritional shake mix or protein powder, healthy fats like coconut milk and avocado, and fresh fruit contains all you need to balance blood sugar and feel great.
Be sure to join our growing community to gain inspiration and snack ideas from those who can relate the most.
If you like this article, we recommend This Is the Raw Nut Bar Recipe You Need to Try
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