The Guide to Low Carb Snacking
Low Carb Snack Foods – Snacks You’ll Love (and are low in carbohydrates!)
Whether you’re settling in for a TV marathon of your favourite show, or packing up the car for a long summer road trip, you’ve simply got to have the right snacks on hand. Let’s face it, sometimes the time between meals winds up being way too long, and having a good snack on hand to help bridge the gap is important. But how do you make sure that you keep your low carb diet on track, while satisfying the cravings you prefer?
This article will help guide you through the world of low carb snacks, and give you a few new low carb snack ideas that you might want to try.
Low carb dieters can sometimes struggle with finding the right snack foods, since so many of them are inherently high in carbs and high in sugars. Salty snacks like crackers and chips have lots of carbs in them in the form of starches, while sweets like chocolate and hard candy are loaded with sugars. Reading the ingredient labels will give you the info you need to quickly determine whether a snack is a good choice, or if it should be left on the shelf. Counting those carbs is the only way to be sure that you’re not negatively affecting your low carb diet.
When examining any snack food label, you’re going to want to look for the total carb count, as well as the amount of sugars, sugar alcohols, and fibre that makes up the total carb number. Based on your individual diet plan, and your daily target for carbs, you can determine what impact those snacks will have on your daily goals.
For more info on counting carbs, read our article on how to count carbs here.
Fortunately for low carb dieters, there are countless healthy options for snacks available that are perfect for the low carb lifestyle. You can find something suitable for every kind of taste and craving that you might have. Let’s have a closer look at the different kinds of snacks most of us crave, and review a few popular low carb snacks that our customers love!
Snack Categories
Most snacks can be easily categorized in to a few main groups based on their characteristics. Here’s a list of the main groups:
Salty Snacks – Typically crunchy and sprinkled with salt or some type of a salty seasoning, these snacks include things like chips, peanuts, popcorn and crackers. Salty snacks are extremely popular, and are great for a wide variety of snacking situations, since they are usually dry snacks and can be eaten in small batches at a time, which makes it easy to moderate your intake. You just need to watch your sodium intake. These snacks can easily be made from ingredients that are lower in carbs than the traditional versions, and the taste and texture are virtually identical.
If you love salty snacks, we recommend you try Atkins Protein Pretzel Bar Meals. Made from non-GMO lean soy protein and whole grains, these deliciously crunchy pretzel sticks are perfect anytime.
Sweet Snacks – This snack category is usually dominated by one thing: chocolate! However, it also includes things like hard candies, soft candies, licorice, and toffee. Sweet snacks are often viewed as a ‘guilty pleasure’ that we are careful to avoid indulging in too often. We tend to view sweet snacks with a much stricter eye than we do some other types of snacks. Fortunately, there are plenty of sweet snacks available that are low in carbs, low in sugar, and even completely free of sugar. Even peanut butter cups and gummies are available in sugar-free versions!
If sweet snacks are what you crave, we recommend you try Atkins Endulge Peanut Butter Cups They have all the taste of world-famous peanut butter cups, but none of the guilt! These are simply delicious, and very hard to resist.
Savoury Snacks – These snacks run right down the middle between salty and sweet and include cheesy snacks, as well as muffins, cookies, and other baked goods. While cheese is already a common component of most low carb diets, many of the other foods in this category would need to have their ingredients adjusted in favour of low-carb versions. Luckily, there are many different types of low carb flours and bake mixes for virtually any kind of savoury snack you can think of. Whether you choose to bake them yourself, or choose pre-made snacks from popular low carb brands, savoury snacks are filling and satisfying.
If savoury snacks are what you prefer, we recommend trying ThinSlim Cinnamon Muffins. These tasty muffins are free of sugar, and very low in carbs. A great choice for a quick snack to satisfy your cravings.
Chewy Snacks – Granola bars and fruit leathers are typical examples of snacks that fit the chewy category, as are dried fruits like raisins, dates and apricots. While at first glance, these kinds of chewy snacks may seem like perfect options for a low carb dieter, they can be loaded with high levels of sugar. Fruits contain varying amounts of natural sugars, so it’s a good idea to do a bit of research first on what fruits are lower in natural sugars and more suited to a low carb diet. For example, raisins and dried mangoes are very high in sugar, but dried berries and plums have lower amounts of sugar. Be cautious when choosing fruit-based snacks and make sure you opt for products that are low in sugar, or sugar free.
If you’re hunting for a new chewy snack, try Atkin’s Soft & Chewy Cookies. These cookies are high in protein and very low in sugar. Filled with 10g of protein, 3g of net carbs, and less than 1g of sugar per cookie. Bring them on the go and treat yourself while staying on track.
Fresh Snacks – Fresh fruit and vegetables are great snacks and very healthy. This includes things like carrot and celery sticks, as well as apples, berries, and melon. While vegetables are generally safe for any low carb dieter, there are certain fruits that contain higher levels of natural sugars, as we mentioned in the previous snack category. These fruits should be carefully moderated, or swapped for a fruit with lower natural sugar content. Some examples of fresh snacks include celery sticks with peanut butter, carrot sticks with hummus, or peaches with yogurt. These are simple and tasty snacks that are fresh and filling.
If you’re looking for a refreshing snack, try Fiber Gourmet High Fiber Hexagon Snack Crackers with Jok’N’Al low-sugar fruit spreads. Or, if you want something with a kick, you can try Eve’s Gluten-Free Chili Pepper Pumpkin Seed Crackers with Green Mountain Gringo’s All Natural Pasilla and Jalapeno Pepper Salsa!
Conclusion
Choosing snacks can be a fun experience, especially if you like to explore new taste experiences. Low carb brands are coming up with new and exciting flavour combinations all the time, so trust us when we say that low carb snacking is definitely not boring!
If you prefer to prepare your snacks yourself from fresh ingredients, check out this handy low carb snack reference article from http://www.dietdoctor.com that lists lots of options for low carb snacking, and many links to recipes you can try today.
However, like anything else you eat on the low carb diet, it’s very important to track your intake and count those carbs, so make sure that all of your snacks are factored in to your daily tally.
We hope that you’ve found this information helpful. Happy snacking – get started with the full selection of low carb snacks.
