Healthy Snacks

[Ultimate Burrito Moderator Member of the Month Oct 2017PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close Ultimate Burrito]

What are some simple snack options for a guy that's tryin to lose weight but gets the munchies all the time?

[Dangler Senior Administrator☼ Wizard ☼ White Tiger Award 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close Dangler]

Whole wheat bread, a slice.
Dry Roasted, unsalted peanuts. Limited amounts too !
Dried Cranberries
Granola/Trail mix bars. One bar needs to be 140 calories or less.
Baby Carrots, Small tomatoes, celery sticks, veggies etc.


I subscribed to a NutriSystems meal plan for Men/Type 2 Diabetes.
I was able to get the 'feel' for appropriate portions, mix of foods, and quantities of calories.

Takes self discipline, ugh !

[Ultimate Burrito Moderator Member of the Month Oct 2017PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close Ultimate Burrito]

I have access to unlimited roasted peanuts... hmmm. Thanks for the suggestion!

[TheGreatDivider Senior Member Member of the Month Dec 2015 Find all posts View Profile Close TheGreatDivider]

If you've got the munchies all the time then you need to eat more fat.

Try swapping some carbs from sugars, starch, or fruits for a serving of cream, full fat sugar-free yogurt, milk, or cheese, 1/4 cup of nuts, 2 tbsp peanut butter, oil, or an extra serving of meat and see if you aren't feeling more full.

One trick I use while dieting is to skip the morning snack for more water, Crystal lite, diet Coke, or black coffee, then have 1/4 cup of nuts, with cheese, and a source of protein a few hours after lunch with more water/Crystal lite. I find this gives me more energy and makes sure I drink enough water in the morning when I need it, and the fat/protein combo keeps me from having a caffeine crash too late in the afternoon.

There's also one favorite snack I like in the winter time. I will mix a cup of ice water with a scoop of protein in a shaker, shake it up well, then add a cup of 1% milk, 2 tbsp of stevia, 1 tbsp of instant coffee, 1-2 tbsp of sugar free coffee syrups or 1 tap of vanilla extract (I like adding sugar free chocolate syrup and peppermint extract), then add ice. Shake it up for a 30 second, let it rest for 30 sec, then Viola you have the perfect ice coffee. You don't even have to add milk, I do because it tastes better but it works with just the protein powder.

Another snack I like is adding 1/4 cup of egg beaters, 1 cup of milk, and a scoop of protein powder into a shaker cup, with stevia, vanilla, and nutmeg to create what I call "muscle nog." It comes out to about 300 calories, around 40 g of protein, and tastes better than the real thing.

[Beefster Senior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Beefster]

Any fruit is good snack. Nuts are great too. Fibeer bars. Protein drinks- for the most part are great too.

Just keep the sugars in check. Many healthy things can turn unhealthy in large quantities.

[Ellford Senior Member Member of the Month Sept 2019 Find all posts View Profile Close Ellford]

Fibre will keep you feeling full, drink lots of water (most people never drink enough so try for a milk jug size (4 litres), Casien Protein shake in the evening (as its a slow digestion protein), and a couple slices of low-fat aged cheddar. I'd watch the nuts if your trying to lose weight and would consume them during the day instead.

Eat far more veggies - celery will give you fibre AND burns more calories to digest it than what is in it. Same with cabbage but cabbage can leave you gassy...

Mostly you want to limit all food consumption after 7pm but feel free to eat as much celery, spinach, and kale after. Same with the Casien protein powder (good to take an hour before bed).

[Silkymoney Junior Member Find all posts View Profile Close Silkymoney]

What are some simple snack options for a guy that's tryin to lose weight but gets the munchies all the time




Try pork grinds, edamame turkey jerky.

[not2big Senior Super ModeratorPEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close not2big]

As posted in Diabetes Daily:

If you are looking to incorporate free foods into your lower carb lifestyle, here are some delicious ideas to add into your meal plan:

• Cucumber boat sandwich (a hollowed, halved cucumber filled with soft cheese, deli meat, and the condiment of your choice)
• Stuffed endives (fill with goat cheese, walnuts, and/or the filling of your choice)
• Baked egg in avocado (scoop out a small amount of avocado, fill with an egg, and bake)
• Carrots and hummus
• Sliced bell peppers and Greek yogurt dip
• Dill pickle— Take note Mr. Dangler.

[Ultimate Burrito Moderator Member of the Month Oct 2017PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close Ultimate Burrito]

So far dry roasted peanuts have hit the spot. I eat two small packs around lunch time and it quenches the huger. They are very high in protein which compliments my weight training regiment. Only problem is that my blood sugar will drop. I make a mocha to help offset that and it usually does the job.

[Ellford Senior Member Member of the Month Sept 2019 Find all posts View Profile Close Ellford]

Trying to lose weight? Or lose bodyfat? The two are not the same...

I'm assuming you're in a calorie deficit which is why you're hungry all the time (a good thing if you're trying to lose fat). I'd recommend a slow release protein shake called Casein Protein. Most bodybuilders will take this before bed as the body fasts while it sleeps and because the casein takes upwards of 7hrs to digest fully, it provides the necessary protein nutrients while you sleep. In your case, I'd take 1 mid-morning and 1-mid afternoon.

Eat all the green veggies you can get your hands on. Celery in particular is your friend as it takes more calories to digest and break down celery than in celery itself.

Stay away from fruit if you're trying to lose fat UNLESS you time it. Meaning after a workout, you can have an orange and a protein shake (isolate protein). You want the insulin spike from the fruit to allow the nutrient uptake in your bloodstream. By having a isolate protein powder, it's a fast acting protein (20-40 mins digestion time), it fuels your body at the right time. Eating fruit at any other time is counterproductive to fat loss.

Lot fat-aged cheddar cheese is good (a couple slices, but not too many) - ideally you can have this once-twice a day and it'll help stabilize your blood sugar levels throughout the day.

Lot fat cottage cheese is good and high in protein.

Stay completely away from bread unless you're already burning bodyfat and borderline in ketosis. If so, then you can have 1 slice of rye bread.

Unsalted (and ideally unroasted) almonds are great, but portion control them.

There's plenty of other tips/hints but I'd prefer to know what your goals are - weight loss or fat loss...

[closed224 Senior Member Member of the Month Dec 2014, Feb 2017 Find all posts View Profile Close closed224]

Fat loss. But I'm not the op. OP just wanted snack ideas.

[Ultimate Burrito Moderator Member of the Month Oct 2017PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close Ultimate Burrito]

@ Ellford

I appreciate all the recommendations. I'm targeting fat loss but also looking for snack ideas that will help maintain not gain. At first I wanted to get down to 175lbs and currently bounce between 190 and 195. My weight has increased slightly but my waist and all appears the same. I have bulked up some from all the working out I have been doing and I attribute the slight weight gain to increased muscle mass or at leas that's my wishful thinking. I do need to eat way more veggies. My meals are just mainly protein from meat. Not intentionally, just how the lifestyle has been. The roasted peanuts have really done a good job at keeping the hunger levels down. The are dry roasted and plain. I eat a granola bar as well that has a little dark chocolate in it as well. This gets me through the day. Dinner is where I need to improve and eat the veggies with the protein, not tacos or pizza lol.

[TheZZMan Moderator Member of the Month Sept 2018PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close TheZZMan]

Weight loss is all about calories in vs calories out. Less is more in this case. If you constantly have the munchies, look to things that will satisfy without the added calories of most snack foods. I lost 50 pounds in college by eating one meal a day for 6 days and then going hog wild and eating anything I wanted on the 7th day. Truth is, that my stomach couldn't take much more than normal on the 7th day as it had shrunk from the previous fasting. But my go to snack was popcorn. No Butter, cooked in a traditional popper where you used oil and just enough oil that salt would stick to it. Not advocating this diet, but it worked for me - went from 225 to 175 over the course of a semester.

[Ultimate Burrito Moderator Member of the Month Oct 2017PEGym Hero Find all posts View Profile Close Ultimate Burrito]

Weight loss is all about calories in vs calories out. Less is more in this case. If you constantly have the munchies, look to things that will satisfy without the added calories of most snack foods. I lost 50 pounds in college by eating one meal a day for 6 days and then going hog wild and eating anything I wanted on the 7th day. Truth is, that my stomach couldn't take much more than normal on the 7th day as it had shrunk from the previous fasting. But my go to snack was popcorn. No Butter, cooked in a traditional popper where you used oil and just enough oil that salt would stick to it. Not advocating this diet, but it worked for me - went from 225 to 175 over the course of a semester.

That's pretty impressive. I'm doing something similar I think. Just snacking until dinner and then eating a light dinner at that. I want to lose the belly fat, it's come a long ways but still got some room for improvement. I don't want to lose the weight though at the expense of muscle mass. I do plan on doing some more intensive exercising once the weather warms up. I plan to swim like crazy this summer. Even considered joining the YMCA just to use the pool but not sure if the cost/month justifies swimming pool access. I know if I swim I will get the physique I'm after. Jockinthebox has made numerous convincing posts about swimming as exercise.

I had great success a couple of years ago doing my weight loss smoothie recipe posted in the exercise and health forum here. I managed to go from 220 to 189 in 8 weeks. Did the smoothie for lunch and chicken and veggies for dinner. Got in a state of ketosis but did no have much luck with building muscle mass. I'm now trying to find a balance. I have free access to unlimited roasted peanuts and that has helped curve the appetite and also added a lot of protein to the diet but there is still definitely room for improvement.

[Ellford Senior Member Member of the Month Sept 2019 Find all posts View Profile Close Ellford]

Weight loss is all about calories in vs calories out. Less is more in this case.

For the most part that statement is correct, but there's other factors that directly affect the ability to gain/lose weight - the biggest one is stress. Stress will release adrenaline, Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone (CRH), and cortisol into your bloodstream. Adrenaline will actually subside hunger (so you'd think this would be a good thing), but it's short-lived in the bloodstream and as it goes, it leaves cortisol (stays in the bloodstream a lot longer). Cortisol acts as a replenisher - it wants to replenish what (in theory) you would have burned off with adrenaline. Our problem is most stresses are work-induced, not athletic or the traditional "fight or flight" which would lead to an athletic burst.

Back to Cortisol - this hormone is going to make you want to eat - a LOT. It's also going to help push what you eat directly into fat stores, as the largest supply of cortisol receptors is found where? That's right - your gut. This is why there's a lot of what you could call "heathy-fat" people in the gyms. Their good with their diets, exercise regularly, but still can't get rid of the fat, not matter how much time they spend killing it in the gym.

In addition, if I was in a bodybuilding show and wanted to drop fat and water weight, then the calorie in vs calorie out mantra would kill me. I'd end up losing my hard earned muscle and I'd still have significant bodyfat levels hiding my muscle. I could go on a high fat/high protein diet that might consist of 2200 cals. You on the other hand could go on balanced diet of protein/carbs/fats consisting of 2200 cals and we would see significantly different results if everything else were equal (same amount of sleep, same exercises and exertion levels, etc.)