HEALTHY SNACKS FOR WEIGHT LOSS

healthy snacks for weight loss

WE ALL KNOW THAT THE BATTLE FOR WEIGHT LOSS BEGINS IN THE KITCHEN. TRY THESE HEALTHY SNACKS FOR WEIGHT LOSS IDEAS TO MAKE IT EASY ON YOU.

Anyone can put in time at the gym. However, it takes true dedication and willpower the other 23 hours of the day to stay on your nutrition plan. Finding healthy snacks for weight loss is one of the main keys to succeeding with your fitness goals. So why do so many people struggle with it and reach for the candy jar instead of something healthy? We’ll take a look at these reasons and then we’ll give you 5 ideas for healthy snacks for weight loss.

IT’S QUICK AND IT’S EASY.

With most people running a busy schedule and juggling work, kids, family, gym, and other facets of life, there’s hardly time to sit at home and cook a good meal – let alone pack all that in a lunch. Plus, by the time you get to your lunch, you feel like a kid in school where your banana is smashed and oozing goo all over your peanut butter sandwich. *Hang on while I throw up in my mouth a little bit*

This is why people reach for the quick snacks like candy and bars. They’re quick, they’re easy and most of all, they give you a fast boost of energy in the moment. This energy is fleeting though and will leave you with a nasty crash. Plus, you’re ingesting mounds of sugars that are wreaking havoc on your body’s metabolism, converting into fat, and setting you back from your goals.

Weight loss with healthy snacks

BUT I DON’T HAVE TIME TO COOK AND PREPARE MEALS.

Bullshit. Of course you do. Now before you get offended and click away, you should know that I say this because I’ve been there. I used to work in the corporate world and survive on crap-snack food during work hours, run out for fast food during lunch, and continue snacking on candy and garbage until it was time to go home. I’d eat Panda Express for lunch on the daily and get a giant order of orange chicken. Then I’d wonder why I couldn’t keep my eyes open at my desk the rest of the day.

So what changed for me?

When I realized that I was in control of my life, I started looking at the excuses I was making. The biggest one was, “I don’t have time.”

I did have time.

I just had to find it.

The first thing I did to MAKE time was to turn off the TV. I realized I was spending hours in the evening watching series and shows because I needed to “unwind.” That was the biggest line of BS I was feeding myself.

As soon as I turned off the TV I had at least 3-4 hours every night of time that I used to prepare healthy meals for the upcoming week. We call this, “meal prep.”

HOW DO I MEAL PREP?

healthy snacks for weight loss

Basically, you set aside some time one or two nights a week to prepare food in bulk for the next few days.

For me, depending on which Body Spartan Program I’m following and which nutrition plan that program is using, I would either prep foods for a keto diet, or a low fat and moderate carb diet.

Here’s what that would look like for keto:

Protein sources:

  • Ground beef on the stove – about 20-30oz
  • Grilled chicken breasts (or thighs for higher fats with keto) – about 6-8 breasts
  • Grilled steak – 1 large steak cut into meal sized portions
  • Grilled hamburger patties – about 5
  • Hard boiled eggs – a dozen
  • Deli-sliced turkey or chicken breast – I’d have an entire package ready to go.

Fat sources:

  • Almond butter servings spooned into small zip lock bags – about 6-10
  • Avocados – 4 halves sliced into 4 separate portions
  • Salad dressing (my favorite is ranch) in small Tupperware containers – about 5
  • Cashews or mixed nuts in small zip lock bags – about 6-8 bags

For programs with low-fat and moderate carbs:

Protein sources are the same as above – that never changes.

Carb sources:

  • Wheat or brown rice pasta – entire package boiled and strained
  • White or brown rice – usually I’d measure 2 cups and cook that in 4 cups water
  • Potatoes – 4-5 baked potatoes
  • Sweet potatoes – Cooked in the oven. Usually about 4-5.

PUTTING IT ALTOGETHER

Once everything was cooked it’s just a simple matter of mixing and matching the things I like in a meal prep or Tupperware container. For example, if I was on a low-fat and moderate carb nutrition plan, I’d take a chicken breast and 1-cup of rice and drop them in a container. Then I’d repeat that until I was out of chicken.

Then, I’d move on to the pasta carb source. OK, what do I like with pasta? Well, ground beef works good. So I’d dump some pasta sauce over the ground beef, heat it all up and then distribute the pasta and meat sauce into the next round of containers.

This is how the process goes until you’re out of containers or you’re out of food.

The result is awesome. You have multiple meals that you enjoy eating, all pre-prepared and waiting for you to grab out of the fridge and take with you to work.

How long did that take me? 2 hours, twice a week.

I SAVED MONEY BY MEAL PREPPING

Not only was I now eating according to my Body Spartan Nutrition Plan, which matched my Body Spartan workout program, but I was also saving money.

I always hear the myth that eating healthy is more expensive than eating fast food or eating out. The ONLY time that’s true is on your first trip to the grocery store. You’re going to spend more money at once making a grocery run than you will on one meal – of course! In the long run though, your “per meal” cost when you meal prep is WAY cheaper than eating out.

So now I had money in my pocket, more free time every night to go to the gym, meal prep, and then spend time with my family, AND I was making progress in the gym at a rapid rate. Sounds like a win to me.

HEALTHY SNACKS FOR WEIGHT LOSS

OK, now that I’ve given you all the reasons you should be meal prepping and not reaching for the candy jar, let’s give you a few ideas of what you can grab for a healthy snack to help you lose weight, lose body fat, and stay on target with your physique goals!

KETO SNACKS FOR WEIGHT LOSS:

If you’re doing one of our ketogenic diet programs like Genesis, G2, Ignite, Revolution, or Forge5X, you’re going to want snacks that are higher in healthy fats and ultra low in carbs.

For the purpose of counting macros, we’re going to ignore any proteins and carbs in green vegetables.

Here’s a few of my absolute favorites for quick grab-and-go when it comes to keto and healthy snacks for weight loss:

Hard boiled eggs and salad mix:

Eggs: 7g protein, 5g fat, 0g carbs

Salad: 0g protein, 0g fat, 0g carbs

Olive oil for dressing – 1Tsbp: 0g protein, 0g carbs 14g fat

Vinegar for dressing – negligible macros

I always separate all three of these items so my food doesn’t get soggy and wilt before I eat it. So a container for the salad mix, a container for the eggs, and a container for the dressing.

Deli-sliced naked rolls:

Macros vary depending on brands.

Take a few slices of your favorite deli-sliced turkey or chicken and lay them open face on a cutting board. Then add some mayo, mustard, Sriracha, or whatever you like to them. I usually just put a line of each down the center. Then I add some veggies to make it crunchy – if I want variety. Examples would be carrot strings, cucumber shoots (super thin slices), asparagus, spinach – whatever I feel I want.

For the fat source I would typically put avocado inside the roll as well. The mayo counts as fat too – don’t forget!

Simple roll the slices up and wrap them in some plastic warp or use a toothpick and you’re done.

If you need extra fats to meet your macros for your Body Spartan nutrition plan, use a side of almond butter or a bag of mixed nuts (or your favorite nuts like cashews, almonds, etc.).

Protein shake – with fat source:

Keto protein shake

I know this sounds like a no-brainer, but I’ve seen too many people not use protein shakes properly. To count a shake as a meal on a ketogenic diet with one of your Body Spartan programs, you need to make sure you meet all your macros. So for example if you need 30g of fat per meal and 40g of protein, you would measure out your protein ahead of time and place it in a small zip lock bag. Then you’d measure out a SEPARATE fat source like almond butter or peanut butter and you would place that in a zip lock bag or small container as well.

Now, when you’re ready to eat, just add water to your shaker cup right there at your desk, add your protein and shake.

Eat your almond or peanut butter separately and don’t try to mix it into your shake. It will clump up and you’ll have the most disgusting, lumpy shake ever. I only say this because I’ve been there, seen it happen to others, and am trying to save you the heartache.

Plus, mixing it as you need it, rather than at home, will save you spills, drips, and a heavy lunch to carry with you. You can even drop your zip lock bags of protein and almond butter right into your dry shaker cup and put the lid on it to save space in your lunch container.

LOW-FAT, MODERATE CARB HEALTHY SNACK IDEAS:

If you’re doing Unleashed, Savage Shred, or Forge5X you’re going to want to keep your fats as low as possible, get healthy carbs, and protein as well.

Here’s my go-to’s for carb-centered healthy snacks for weight loss:

Pasta with meat sauce:

Ground beef 80/20 fat drained – each 3 oz serving: 18g protein, 0g carbs, 4.3g fat

Wheat pasta 5oz serving: 0g protein, 38g carbs, 1g fat

Pasta sauce (5 brothers tomato and basil) 4.4 oz serving: 0g protein, 9g carbs, 0g fat

It’s as easy as it sounds.

Cook your ground beef, drain the fat out using a strainer while pushing on it with a spatula. Then measure out your cooked amounts on a food scale so you can meet your macros. Research from at Iowa State University in 2002 found that 4 ounces of 80% lean ground beef that was pan-fried, drained, blotted with paper towels and rinsed with hot water contained 121 calories and 5 grams of fat—roughly the equivalent of 95% lean beef, undrained.

Cook your pasta, strain it.

Mix everything together and separate into containers.

Ground beef/rice/salsa:

Ground beef 80/20 fat drained – each 3 oz serving: 18g protein, 0g carbs, 4.3g fat

White rice – 1 cup serving: 0g protein, 44.5g carbs, 0.4g fat

Salsa – negligible macros

Cook your ground beef and drain the fat. Cook your rice per instructions on package. Measure out your portions and mix together with salsa. Yes, it’s that frickin’ easy. This is one of my go-to’s that I’ll have at least twice a day.

Chicken & carbs

Boneless skinless chicken breast – 3.5 oz serving size: 31g protein, 0g carbs, 3.6g fat

Pasta or rice (macros above)

Side of green vegetables: We don’t count carbs for green vegetables

Cook all items and measure out your portions. Then place in meal prep container.

GABE – ARE YOU EVEN TRYING TO GIVE US RECIPES?

These might seem like a no-brainers, but I’m trying to illustrate exactly how easy it is to prepare a healthy snack for weight loss. It’s not a matter of getting fancy. Rather, it’s a matter of getting your macros for your nutrition plan met so that:

  1. You’re eating for your weight loss (or muscle gain) goal
  2. You’re not actually snacking but rather eating a full meal so that you’re not hungry in between meals. This speeds up your metabolism. And yes, you should be eating full meals 5-6 times a day. It’s smaller portions, more frequently with the result being a faster metabolism.
  3. You have the knowledge now to quickly and easily throw together several options for meals that will help you lose body fat at a rapid rate.

DIAL IN YOUR NUTRITION

I talked a lot about macros and making sure that you portion out your meals accordingly. This may seem tough but with every Body Spartan program, your macros are automatically calculated just for you, and displayed on your dashboard.

We tell you EXACTLY how many grams of protein, carbs, and fats to eat with each meal AND it corresponds perfectly with the workout program you are using.

The beauty in this is that you can trust what you’re eating, and the amounts, are going to get you the results you want!

All access pass

Body Spartan All Access

Access to EVERY Body Spartan Program! 14-DAY FREE TRIAL
  • Get full access to our all of our amazing programs
  • Full, custom calculated nutrition
  • 10 & 12 week programs
  • Instructional videos
  • Full workouts
  • Triphase, polymorphic, and contest prep style training
  • Body composition tracker
$19.00 / month with a 14-day free trial