Need new lunch snack! (Read 1070 times)

I decided a while back to drop some pounds and have been very successful through an increase in milage and a modification of intake. One of the things that (I think) has allowed me to be successful was one small indulgence every day (a ~150 calorie) bag of chips... hang on, I gotta wipe cheese curl dust off my fingers... Where was I? Oh yeah, so I'm ready to give this up and replace it with something that might help my running a little more. I'm happy with my weight loss ~2lbs/week and so I'd like to replace those calories instead of removing them. Currently I am not consuming anything that is fitness targeted (Power Bars, gels, gatorade). Ideally I like the "eat real food" mantra, but there is probably a balance between "performance enhancing nutritional supplements" and real food that can aide muscle development. Any suggestions?

Most of your running should be easy. Easy running primarily burns fat. Even the skinniest of runners still has several pounds of fat on them and each pound of fat fuels some 30-45 miles of running. So why do you feel you need to snack to fuel your runs? I agree that an indulgence is great. So indulge. Don't worry about "fitness targeted" snacks, they are junk food as much as anything else is. Enjoy!

Right now, all of my runs are easy, because I'm not at an endurance level that would have me do any other kind. Still, I am seeing my miles/min drop even with just the easy runs. I just thought that I was ready to give up the snack, and was looking for something to help the running. I'm not going to give up the calories because I like the "extra" thing to eat with my lunch (yes, it's all psychological, but it's working for me).

You could always just replace your snack with a healthier one. I go for anything that is nutrient dense... blah blah blah... ok.. for my snack... I really like CRAP... Candy Raisins and peanuts... but since I leave out the candy... it is just RAP... half a handfull of Raisins ... and half a hand full or nuts... usually of the mixed low sodium variety... The thing I have found is that the more raw veggies I eat the better I feel. So often I'll have some raw baby carrots as a snack too. Plus I look at carrots as free food... like 13 of those little guys pack a whole lot of vitamin A... and I think less than 50 calories... and by the time I eat 10 of them I am tired of chewing. So I'll grab handfull fo them... handfull of carrots... and a pinch of raisins... pinch of nuts... swig of water... and I have eaten a pretty healthy snack... I'm satisfied for a long time... and it is all good for you... Healthy fat A bit of fruit Vitamins.

Since you are eating chips I suggest you change to Trail mix. Something with some nuts, almonds, raisins, (maybe a little chocolate covered raisins). I like it because it is slightly salty and got some extra protein. So it might work for you because it's thought of as healthier than chips and would still fill your desire for salt (guessing that's why it's chips and not chocolate chip cookies!)

Well, I ate chips to try and break my sweet tooth. I was always craving something sweet at the end of a meal and chocolate chip cookies are how I got to this weight in the first place!. I tried sugarless gum, but that didn't work. So I tried chips and that broke me of the sweets... Although I've been eyeing the Odwalla bars are a replacement...

Most of your running should be easy. Easy running primarily burns fat. Even the skinniest of runners still has several pounds of fat on them and each pound of fat fuels some 30-45 miles of running. So why do you feel you need to snack to fuel your runs? I agree that an indulgence is great. So indulge. Don't worry about "fitness targeted" snacks, they are junk food as much as anything else is. Enjoy!

Very true. I am in the belief that the optimal fat buring occurs during excercise when HR is lower - (145ish), after that you begin burning more carbs than fat. Secondly, eat carrots. They now come in small easy to use bags. Banana's or sun chips! Soy nuts are good, but they make me fart. Drink a ton water. I need to layoff the wheat thins and goldfish myself. Do you eat breakfast?

I don't see too much wrong with a small bag of chips with your lunch. No, it's not good food, but it's not tons of bad food either. You're losing weight at a healthy rate so you must be doing something right, chips or not chips. If you really feel horrible about eating them, try the same portion of baked or low fat Cheetos or chips. The only thing that I'd worry about is if you cut out all your indulgences you'll feed deprived, splurge, then feel discouraged and give up.

Very true. I am in the belief that the optimal fat buring occurs during excercise when HR is lower - (145ish), after that you begin burning more carbs than fat. Secondly, eat carrots. They now come in small easy to use bags. Banana's or sun chips! Soy nuts are good, but they make me fart. Drink a ton water. I need to layoff the wheat thins and goldfish myself. Do you eat breakfast?

Yeah, but I've been pretty regimented about breakfast. One packet of oatmeal for breakfast and that's it. I know I should switch to steel cut instead of instant, but hey - - one step at a time! And this is from I guy who used to eat plates of pancakes for breakfast. I LOVE breakfast. I could eat breakfast for every meal of the day.. Mmmm... banana-pecan pancakes... I'm sorry, what were we talking about again?

UGH!!! That's a good one! Someone got me hook on the stuff from New Holland Meats a few years ago. Really good stuff. Expensive though. It's like dried meat crack in a bag. Thanks for the suggestion!

Ha! Beef jerky IS $$...yeah, like little bags o' crack! We have a food dehydrator and make our own sometimes, which is a lot cheaper...but then there's that portion control thing. Did you know that eating a lot of beef jerky in a 24 hour period will also plug one up pretty bad...? Hard boiled eggs are another good snack. We have a few of those around right now...