healthy snack – Page 3 – Every Step Fitness

Munchie buster! Cocoa-orange balls!

April 4, 2020April 4, 2020 Dr Nancy P

These are a perfect snack if you want something chocolatey but a little more filling. You can use orange zest or natural orange flavouring – whichever (or both if you like it really orangey). You can also leave out the orange altogether and just have them plain chocolate. They are around 158 cals per ball, but it very much depends how large you make them of course! This recipe makes approx ten.

You will need:

175g cashews

200g Medjool dates, pitted

20g rasins

30g cocoa powder (plus a little extra for rolling)

Zest of 1 orange or natural orange flavouring

Pop the cashews food processor and pulse until they’re in small pieces.

Add the rest of the ingredients to the processor and pulse until you have a sticky dough.

It’s very sticky at the moment so scoop it out into some cling film and pop in the freezer for around 20 mins.

Once it’s a little firmer, remove and roll into small balls. Roll the balls in cocoa powder and then store in the fridge in an airtight container.

Enjoy 🙂

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

Consider your snacks…

January 15, 2020 Dr Nancy P

Consider your snacks…

I think we’ve all experienced that mid-afternoon snack attack. You might be tempted to grab a muffin with your coffee. Now I’m not suggesting that a muffin is a great choice for a snack, nor are the items on the other side either as both are probably far more calories than you need for a snack, but I think the comparison is really useful.

I think most people realise muffins are quite high calorie and sometimes you may just want to spend those calories on one, and that’s fine! But whilst the muffin might taste good, in terms of keeping you full it’s not going to be that effective. It’s a calorie dense option – high cals, high sugar, in a relatively small package.

If you are trying to lose weight/fat and tracking your calories then it’s worth considering the volume of the food you’re having as well as the absolute calories. Higher volume foods will help to keep you fuller for longer. For fewer calories than a blueberry muffin you could have a bag of popcorn, a yoghurt, two squares of dark choc and a skinny flat white! Now that will definitely keep you full! And it has the added bonus of more fibre and protein which also help keep you fuller.

So if you’re looking for a snack – try to consider volume as well as absolute calories. If you really want a muffin, then have it, be aware of the calories it contains though.

Enjoy 🤗

xxx

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

‘Too Much sugar….’

November 6, 2019 Dr Nancy P

‘Too Much sugar….’🍬 🍎

Sugar – so often vilified as something to be avoided, something bad, the root of all our health problems… yet is it really?

The simple answer is no. We need sugar – it’s a great source of easy energy and it also tastes great. Sugar is made up of two components, fructose and glucose. The molecular structure is the same no matter where they come from. Fruit contains fructose, glucose and also some sucrose (a combination of fructose and glucose). Sweets will tend to be higher in sucrose.

Once digested the sugar from 40g of haribo has the same effect in terms of calories as the sugar from an apple. It’s not worse, and no better. There is a however a difference in how it’s metabolised – fructose is metabolised in the liver so doesn’t produce the same blood sugar high and insulin response – fruit is therefore a better choice in that respect.

In the case of the haribo you’re getting mostly just sugar (and a small amount of protein), with an apple you’re getting the sugar, fibre, vitamins and minerals. The fibre slows digestion making it more filling (and good for your gut heath). This means you’re less likely to want to eat more later, and it’s better for your blood sugar levels. So objectively the apple is a better choice health-wise.

However, foods also provide other things – such as pleasure, convenience etc. So if you’re trying to watch your calories, and you really fancy some sweets you’re better off just having them. If you’re rushing and need a quick burst of energy before a run you’re also better off going for sweets. In terms of the impact on weight/fat loss there will be no difference as long as you stay within your daily calories and are aware they will be a less filling option. And in terms of sugar content the apple is actually higher.

I’m not suggesting sweets are better than apples for you, nor that you swap all your fruit for haribo. I’m just suggesting we recognise that no foods are ‘bad’, and that as part of a balanced, healthy diet you can have both! Sometimes the haribo will be what you need, sometimes the apple!

Enjoy 🤗

Nutrition and Calorie Tips

‘Just a banana…’

October 30, 2019 Dr Nancy P

‘Just a banana…’ 🍌

Bananas make a fab snack option or addition to your breakfast or lunch. They’re full of carbs for energy and a reasonable amount of fibre and are a great source of potassium. They’re also easily portable and have their own in build packaging so are handy for when you’re on the go.

However, if you are trying to lose fat/weight and watching those cals then it’s worth just being aware that bananas can pack a punch when it comes to calories and they also vary wildly. If you’re using a calorie tracking app you’ll often find entries like ‘one small banana’ or ‘one medium banana’ with the associated calories. You’d probably just enter that and assume you were pretty much right. But how small is small? What exactly is ‘medium’? Small to me may be medium to someone else and the calorie differences are pretty large!

The difference between these two bananas is nearly 100g and both are sold as ‘bananas’ – not small or large. So if you were regularly snacking on the larger one you’d be taking in almost 80 extra calories every time. That may not sound like much but over the course of a week or month that will add up. I’m not suggesting you stop having bananas – they’re fab! But just have a go at weighing the next banana you have and see exactly how many calories it does contain.

Knowledge is power right? And if you’re trying to lower that bodyfat then every calorie counts! The more aware you are of what goes in to your mouth the better!

Enjoy 🤗

Recipes

Courgette, leek and spinach soup

October 27, 2019 Dr Nancy P

The clocks have gone back and it’s chilly out there today, so it’s definitely soup season!

This is a quick, easy, light soup for these cooler days. It is ridiculously low calorie – at around 100 cals a bowl (less if you leave the goats cheese out)! I made a massive batch as we had an over-grown courgette (basically a marrow) that I wanted to use up so it made over ten servings but the amounts below will make at least 5-6 portions.