By Claire PerryAre you constantly reaching for a sugary, salty, high calorie, high-GI treat, which will open the insulin flood-gates and give you a surge of pleasure? Yes, we’ve all been there. But with our ‘Rescu’ plan, you can change your habits and snack right.
Recognising emotional eating patterns:
Do you find yourself feeling bored, upset or tired and immediately looking to your stomach for consolation? It only takes a yawn, some tears, or a desire to avoid ironing and, as if on auto-pilot, our head is ‘swallowed’ by the refrigerator, or our torso disappears into the dark corners of the pantry. All this in an attempt to find a snack! And are we looking for a healthy snack? I think we all know the answer. NO – we are searching for a short-lived pleasure that is usually followed by crushing regret.
In fact we may feel so guilty after our little indulgence, that we’ll need another treat to boost our mood. Before we know it a whole packet of Mint Slice biscuits has been reduced to just one biscuit – the one we left for hubby – but then we decide it looks lonely on its own and we should probably have left him more, so we polish it off too so as not to look stingy.
Hunger is a physical sensation brought about by low blood sugar levels. Moods such as boredom, tiredness or feeling upset should not leave us hankering for feel-good snack – but they do!
So what can you do to keep off the weight if you are tempted to snack? Simple – give in! That’s right, snacking can be beneficial if it is done at routine times, and if the snacks measure around 100 calories.
Eat more to weigh less
One of the best books written on snacking is the ‘Eat All Day Diet’ by Helen Foster. In this book, she recommends eating six meals a day and says by doing so that the body increases its metabolic rate, thereby using more of the energy we put in. By eating regularly throughout the day, you can maximise the amount of calories you burn over a 24 hour period.
How many calories should I consume per day?
Women weighing 54-83kg should eat around 1500 calories per day, while women weighing over 83kg should eat around 1700 calories per day.
Conversion calculations
To convert kilojoules to calories, just divide the kilojoules by 4.2, or to get a rough estimate of the calorie count, halve the kilojoules then halve them again. Eg. Take 1200kj – half of 1200 is 600 and half of this is 300. So 1200kj is equal to 300C.
A ‘Calorie, Fat & Carbohydrate Counter’ pocket-book can help you determine the number of calories in everything from fruit and veggies to fast foods, and can be found in bookstores or ordered online from www.CalorieKing.com.au.
When should I snack?
7am – breakfast
10am – morning snack
1pm – lunch
4pm – afternoon snack
6:30pm – dinner
9pm – evening snack
Keep cravings at bay
By sticking to specific times each day, you will control your calorie intake. If you crave a snack outside of these times, don’t panic – here are a few tricks you can try to keep your cravings at bay.
- Try making a hot drink – herbal tea, or a large glass of warm water with a wedge of lemon, or even coffee or tea without sugar. Wait ten minutes before giving in to a craving – usually it will go away if you don’t give in straight away.
- Instead of putting something into your mouth, do an activity that makes you happy – such as reading, painting your nails, or some exercise.
Snacks under 100 calories include:
- a hard boiled egg with one slice of Melba toast
- two tablespoons of hummus on a quarter slice of pita bread
- one cup of strawberries
- two cups of raspberries
- one serving of porridge made with water and sprinkled with cinnamon to flavour
- one cup of minestrone soup
- 29 pistachio nuts
- half a plain bagel
- Vaalia yogurt tubs
References / Further reading:
Book: Eat All Day Diet by Helen Foster.
Great Snacks Under 100 Calories: https://yourtotalhealth.ivillage.com/great-snacks-under-100-calories.html
200 Snacks Under 100 Calories:
