My 6 Favorite Healthy Snacks
As many of you know, I’m currently doing 75 Hard, which requires that I follow a diet. Beyond that, I generally eat very clean six days a week and have a cheat day on Saturday. Some days, though, I am just in the mood for a healthy snack.
Unfortunately, my love for Taco Bell and cookies falls within a standard deviation of the love that I have for my own children. It has therefore been imperative that I find some (reasonably) healthy (or at least not unhealthy) snacks to stay sane and stick to my dietary plan and objectives. I’d like to share a few, but first a quick background on the criteria for my snacks.
No added sugar. Added sugar is a no-no for me. There are plenty of decent options for low-calorie and low-glycemic sweeteners. My two favorites, though the least common in pre-made foods, are allulose and monk fruit. Erythritol is good, but there are, shall we say, “audible” consequences to over-consumption. Stevia is a great option but less close in taste to sugar. Finally, I’d take xylitol, too, but it also can cause GI discomfort if you consume too much.
No high-glycemic ingredients. That is, the snacks can’t cause a massive spike in blood sugar. No traditional bread or tortillas, sugar, wheat flour, fruit, high-GI starches, etc. Basically, this means a lot of substitute ingredients (e.g., almond flour for wheat flour, sugar alcohols for sugar, etc.).
Limited other “bad” ingredients. In a world of pre-packaged food, you will find additives in just about everything. Even most “healthy” snacks simply are not healthy. I noticed last year when I did the ketogenic diet for about six months that many of the “keto-friendly” snacks were not keto-friendly at all. Most, for example, have high-glycemic ingredients, which is exactly what you don’t want while consuming 70%+ of your calories in the form of fat.
Ideally low-carb and high-protein. And I’m a bit neutral on fat, as long as it’s mostly a good source of fat. I try to get most of my carbs from higher quality sources, such as sweet potatoes and brown rice.
Healthy snacking can get a little tricky. And it certainly isn’t a perfect science. But my goal isn’t perfection. My goal is cutting the 80% of junk that causes the most damage from a healthy and weight management perspective. So here goes.
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Keto Foods Sea Salt Caramel Ice Cream Bars
These are my most recent addition to the “healthy snacks” stash. These ice cream bars are at least 90% as tasty as any normal brand and have less calories per bar than a typical protein bar would have. They are sweetened with a combination of erythritol, stevia and monk fruit and are just great. If you’re looking for low fat options, these aren’t for you – the first ingredient is cream. But for me, that is just fine.
Magic Spoon Cereal
We’ve been ordering Magic Spoon cereal for a couple of months now, and it is awesome. We had to sell the car, pawn off my wife’s wedding ring, and start stealing lunch money from kids walking to the bus stop in the morning to cover our Magic Spoon subscription, but it has all been worth it. It is high protein and allulose sweetened so fits the bill like a charm. My favorite flavor is Cocoa with Cinnamon as my number two, and Alex (and Kennedy) likes Frosted.
Quest Nutrition Cookies & Cream Protein Bars
These protein bars are great, especially for on-the-go (e.g., travel/road trips, attending events where the food doesn’t fit my diet). They contain a few more ingredients than I’d prefer but they aren’t a casual healthy snack, more of a “I need to have something to take with me” kind of thing. Very good for only having four grams of net carbs and 21 grams of protein.
Quest Nutrition Nacho Cheese Protein Chips
Same as the protein bars, there are sub-optimal ingredients. But the chips pass the test for an occasional snack. There are several flavors, but the Nacho Cheese is my favorite. If you eat Doritos every day, these will taste very mediocre. If you eat clean most of the time, these taste like edible gold.
Evolved Hazelnut Butter Keto Cups
I also used to eat keto cups from Evolved back in my keto days, and boy were they bitter. At the time, they tasted great because I was eating almost nothing with sweeteners but there was room for improvement in the product. And improve they have. I think the hazelnut variety offers a nice flavor that inches you somewhere toward Nutella. That said, it’s not even close to Nutella because nothing in the entire world is even close to Nutella – I eat that stuff with a spoon on cheat days.
Lily’s Milk Chocolate Style Peanut Butter Cups
I saved the best for last. Lily’s peanut butter cups have been my salvation of late. They aren’t Reese’s Peanut Butter Cups by any stretch, but these are legitimately a very, very good healthy snack. They are pricing, at almost $1 per cup so it isn’t a daily treat for me, but when I do eat them, I consume the entire bag without exception. Lily’s also has great chocolate bars, chocolate covered almonds and peanuts, and a handful of other great products. Again, fat content is pretty high, but the ingredients are mostly solid for the kind of diet I eat.
There is no excuse these days to not eat reasonably healthy. There is always a way to stay on track and still get in something sweet or salty. The options abound. If you are dieting or sticking to any kind of eating plan, part of preparation is knowing that you’ll have moments of weakness. Set yourself up for success with a healthy place to turn in those moments.
Are there any healthy snacks you love that I should give a try? Send me your thoughts at michael@theothermichaeljordan.com. I hope to hear from you.
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