“This is a great protein-rich snack that will keep you nourished and full!”
Snacks can make or break your healthy eating. Whether you have a specific goal like losing weight, or you just want to eat healthy, it’s important that you plan ahead.
It’s the worst when you’re hungry between meals with no nutritious snacks to eat. This usually happened to me when I was out running errands or when I was at work.
Being a registered nurse, certified personal trainer, and healthy food nut, I knew I had to find good snacks to suggest to others – and to eat myself!
I now have an arsenal of go-to snacks and snack brands that I trust. Having studied the nutrition labels on tons of snack foods, I can honestly say that these are the ones I feel most confident eating on a day-to-day basis.
There’s A LOT of junk food out there, and not all of it is obvious. Granola bars, yogurts, smoothies, trail mixes…these are all foods you’d expect to be healthy – but often aren’t!
What, then, do you eat? I mean, unless you like chewing on a bunch of raw broccoli in your break room…which I certainly don’t!
That’s what today’s post is all about. So keep reading for a healthy snacks list that will not only keep you full, but fit too!
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A Super Healthy Snacks List
String Cheese
You can’t go wrong with string cheese…I mean, unless you’re lactose intolerant. Or vegan.
But if you’re not, this is a great protein-rich snack that will keep you nourished and full!
Pairing cheese sticks/slices with whole wheat crackers is a great way to increase this snack’s fiber too!
Plain yogurt with berries
Fruit yogurt has a TON of sugar, so I no longer feel comfortable eating a store-bought fruit Greek yogurt every day. What I do feel good about eating (and my body appreciates as well) is plain Greek yogurt.
Plain yogurt on it’s own has no sugar, just good old protein and lots of probiotics. But unfortunately, it doesn’t taste all that great.
To combat this, I top mine with berries (I use frozen that I warm in the microwave for about 30 seconds) and shredded coconut.
The result? A tasty fruity yogurt snack that keeps me full without all the added sugar. Give it a try!
KIND bars
I’m extremely picky about granola bars. Ever since discovering that my beloved Clif bars have loads of sugar, I’ve been very selective about the ones I bring into my home.
KIND bars are low glycemic (they won’t drastically raise your blood sugar) while being high in protein and delicious. I eat KIND bars on the reg!
Mixed nuts and dried fruits
Earlier I dissed trail mixes, but remember that not every trail mix is the same. One trail mix on the grocery store shelf may have no added sugars while the one sitting next to it could have 10g sugar per serving.
So one healthy snack that still regularly appears in my pantry is a combination of mixed nuts and dried fruit – with nothing else added!
Just check nutritional labels! Skip the sugar and get a mix of just raw or roasted nuts and pure dried fruits.
Nothing unhealthy about that!
Food photo created by freepik – www.freepik.com
RXBars
RXBars are another “granola” bar that’s impressed me. With ingredients that you can actually pronounce, they’re sweetened with dates and other fruits rather than corn syrup or another unhealthy sweetener.
You can feel much better eating a protein bar made out of 5 or 6 ingredients you’re familiar with, rather than 15 you’ve never heard of before.
Vegetables with a low-calorie dip
Okay, veggies definitely don’t always sound good. Especially when you just saw your coworker scarfing down a chocolate chip cookie.
But between-meal snacks can be the perfect time to sneak in an extra serving!
Cut up a few different vegetables ahead of time – my favorites are carrots, cucumbers, radishes, and cherry tomatoes – and enjoy dipping them into a balsamic vinaigrette or a lemon tahini dressing.
This is perfect for when you’re craving a savory snack!
Fruit bowl
My other favorite thing to do is layer a bunch of different fruits into a container for on-the-go snacking!
Likewise, you could slice or divvy up some fruits into pre-portioned Tupperware. Washing and cutting fruits ahead of time makes it way more likely you’ll actually reach for them when the hunger strikes.
When in doubt, make your own!
There are a few snack foods I love, but will only eat if I made them myself. This is because the foods on this part of my healthy snacks list are usually not all that healthy when bought from a restaurant or store. Unfortunately, most places load them full of unnecessary oils and sugars.
So save yourself the extra unhealthy ingredients and make these healthy snacks yourself!
Homemade smoothie
I think smoothies can be so beneficial to anyone trying to eat healthy…but only if made at home.
Just take a look at any smoothie chain’s nutritional facts and you’ll quickly see how crazy unhealthy they actually are.
For example, a small (16 oz) Caribbean Passion smoothie from Jamba Juice has 55 GRAMS OF SUGAR! In a small!!
Considering your daily sugar intake should be way less, that’s quite upsetting.
Instead, make a smoothie at home that includes no fruit juice! My go-to smoothie recipe includes plain Greek yogurt, frozen berries, almond milk, and Life’s Abundance vanilla protein powder. That’s it!
Homemade muffins
Baking homemade muffins and breads is an excellent way to ensure only wholesome ingredients go into your food.
While muffins are one of my go-to baked goods because they’re already portioned, baking loaves of bread is also a staple in my home.
I think it’s kind of fun looking up healthy baked goods recipes and seeing how alternative sweeteners can transform them. While even healthy baked goods won’t be entirely free from sugar, you can still drastically cut down on the amount versus a store-bought version. Definitely something to feel good about!
For healthy baking recipes, check out my Healthy Baking board on Pinterest!
Homemade energy ball bites
While I haven’t made these too often, the last energy ball bites I made were so good I had to share the idea.
Usually energy ball bites will include a mix of oats, nuts or nut butters, and dried fruit. Although they take a little extra elbow grease to make, they’re a snack that will last you all week. And they don’t even have to be baked!
I wish I could find the exact recipe I used to make mine. But since I can’t, I’m going to link this post from Alyssa, a holistic nutritionist at Simply Quinoa, with 10 different recipes! The post also tells you how to customize your own energy ball bites!
I hope y’all find this helpful and got some new ideas for your healthy snacks list!
For more healthy eating inspiration, check out these related posts:
Healthy Grocery List: 12 foods I refuse to buy on my weekly shopping trip
How to Crave Healthy Foods (including ones you used to hate!)
What’s on your go-to healthy snacks list? What do you love about these snacks? I’d love if you’d share in the comments!
thanks for sharing. I know that I should eat healthy. Luckily I am not a big snacker. But before I a run, I usually grab a banana.
Healthy eating is one of the best preventative measures to protect against many different diseases. And bananas are one of the best natural snacks – especially for us runners!
Great list. Snacking wisely between meals is a great way to ensure that you’re getting the proper nutrients needed throughout the day, while keeping hunger in check between meals. Thanks for sharing ♥️ ♥️ Interested in doing collabs? xx
Thanks so much! Healthy snacking is definitely a helpful clean eating hack!
This is awesome! Thanks for talking about how so many protein bars are bad for you. In a rush I picked up some CLIF Builder’s Protein bars at the grocery store the other day – I saw 20g of protein and figured they weren’t horrible. They have 22g of sugar per bar! I’ll finish the pack I bought, but definitely won’t be repurchasing.
I know, right?? I was floored when I found out. KIND bars and RXBars are definitely the way to go!
I love your ideas for healthy snacks. Will implement a few for sure. Something here for all.
Thank you! And yes, there’s something here for everyone!
Almonds are a favorite of mine. Also, this time of year, cherry tomatoes are crazy good.
Oh my word, I’ve been absolutely loving cherry tomatoes lately too! I can’t believe I despised them growing up haha.
I’m a HUGE snacker and appreciate having healthy options to pick from. Thanks so much for this great list of healthy snacks.
I am too! I love snacking and love to use it to sneak in some extra nutrients!
Your snack list sounds a lot like my snack list. I also prefer to make my own when I can. nuts and chocolate chips are a must
I’m a big chocolate fan myself! I like opting for dark chocolate to decrease my sugar intake!
Unfortunately I can’t do any sort of nuts in a big enough quantity to satisfy hunger and I can’t do string cheese anymore either! Whomp whomp. But fruit, muffins, etc., all delish!!!
Everyone has their foods they can’t eat, unfortunately. But yes, there’s something on this list for everybody!