Today's Tip: November Recipe #5 - Snack Time!

To snack or not to snack?  That is a great question and one I get almost every week.  I personally am a snacker - I eat 5-6 times a day, which includes a couple of snacks. By eating throughout the day I am able to keep my metabolism working (i.e. burning calories), rather than going into "starvation mode" and slowing down to conserve whatever is still in my body.  What exactly is starvation mode?  It's your body's natural response to protect itself when you don't eat enough for extended periods - roughly 3+ hours.  If you regularly eat too little food to provide your body with its necessary nutrients, it perceives itself to be in danger from starvation.  Our bodies are smart!  They are designed to protect us, and they will slow down their metabolism to conserve energy to keep the brain and heart going for as long as they perceive a starvation threat.  Now the body will burn fat for fuel, it will also burn lean muscle mass, which slows the metabolism even more! 

While a "starvation diet" will typically allow for weight loss in the short term, most people will gain the weight right back after they begin eating "normal" again.  You also potentially set yourself up for a lifetime of weight problems because your metabolism will progressively slow down each day that you "starve" it, and your lean muscle mass will continue to decrease as well.  When your decrease your muscle mass you decrease your energy level, which will lead to less exercise, which will lead to an even slower metabolism.  It's a vicious cycle! 

When does the body hit starvation mode?  The general rule of thumb is that you should not consume less than 1200 calories a day to avoid starvation mode.  However!  The safest thing to do is to determine your Total Daily Energy Requirements which takes into account a variety of factors including height, weight, age, gender and activity levels. If you want to lose weight safely, without setting off the alarm bells in your body; aim to eat approximately 300 – 500 calories less than your total daily requirements. This will provide your body with enough fuel to keep it going comfortably, but will still create a sufficient caloric deficit to ensure that you lose weight. And many of you have heard me say this before, but to protect your metabolism even further, make sure your diet contains enough protein and that you maintain or even  increase your activity levels.

All that being said, here are some snack ideas to get you on track!

Whole Grain Wrap – 3 egg whites, 1 small whole-grain tortilla (such as La Tortilla Factory®), ¼ cup low fat mozzarella cheese, veggies

Kashi® Granola Bars – lots of varieties 

Quest Bar or other protein bar - look for ones with 200 calories or less, low sugar and at least 15 g protein

1/2 cup cottage cheese & berries 

Protein smoothie: water or Almond milk, frozen or fresh fruit, 1 scoop protein powder, ice

Chobani 100 calorie yogurt and berries

Apple and natural Peanut Butter

Natural peanut butter & jelly sandwich on whole grain bread

Natural peanut butter & honey sandwich on whole grain bread

1 serving of Kashi® cereal, milk

2 oz. deli meat and veggies – bell peppers, cucumbers, etc.

Cheese stick and apple

Homemade Trail mix or a natural kind from the store

Almonds & an orange

½ an avocado and a hard boiled egg

Handful of almonds or other nut & some berries

Hummus and carrots/celery sticks

Also, here is a link to a site that will help you calculate your total daily energy requirements.  Use this as a general rule of thumb and don't get too caught up in counting calories. Make the best choices you can every day, find what works for you, and if you need help you can always call me!

http://www.drgily.com/basal-metabolic-rate-calculator.php

Adapted from OptimalBodyWeight.com