Is there such a thing as a healthier cookie and or a healthier cracker?
By: Cristiana Paul, MS Celebrity Nutritionist and Nutrition Researcher
We all know it’s easy to overindulge a little during the holidays. That’s OK, but now it’s the time to pay attention again to our intake and hopefully lose the few pounds that came on as a result of the “holiday treats”.
Whether we have to lose a few or a lot of pounds, the process is the same; we have to start making some smart food choices that will help our bodies burn fat and avoid depositing fat as much as possible.
Most people will say, “I know what I need to do, but I just fall for temptations when I am on the run and grab whatever is available.” Well, if you fail to plan in advance your meals and snacks, you plan to fail.
The reality is that most of us still want to have “treats”, even if “we are on a diet”. People cannot stand the thought of dieting for too long when they feel deprived of “goodies”. Most people crave something sweet or something crunchy and salty.
The good news is that the Endless Youth and Life creative team has produced two delicious on-the-go foods: Endless Youth and Life Superfood Protein Cookies (oatmeal or chocolate chunk) and Endless Youth and Life Superfood Protein Gourmet Crackers, which can fit in a smart eating strategy plan and still allow you to continuously lose body fat.
These Endless Youth and Life treats are much healthier and more balanced than the regular cookies and crackers you normally find in stores, simply because they have a lower content of carbs with higher protein, while also providing fiber.
How does the Endless Youth and Life cookie measure up against other popular cookies?
One of the Endless Youth and Life cookies has 85 or 110 calories (oatmeal or chocolate chunk), 4g of protein and only 8g of carbs, with 1g of fiber. Also, compared to a typical Pepperidge Farm or Mrs. Fields cookie, the Endless Youth and Life cookie has approx 50% less carbohydrates and 2-4 times more protein. Most people look at the calories, but what is most helpful for supporting fat loss is to look for higher protein and lower carbs. In other words, let’s maximize the protein at every meal and snack while keeping carbs at a low to moderate content.
Incidentally, the Endless Youth and Life cookies are lower in calories than the other two cookie types. The calories in the Endless Youth and Life chocolate chunk cookie are 15-30% lower and in the oatmeal cookie 30-50% lower.
It’s important to keep in mind that high carb diets are only useful for people that have a high level of activity and muscle mass, but they are counterproductive those who are sedentary and have low muscle mass, especially if they need a lot of fat burning. However, that does not mean we should eliminate carbs altogether, but keeping them low is the best strategy. Also, the fat in the diet should be kept moderate, while providing as much fiber as possible.
Protein is so important that we encourage you to have some additional protein sources right before eating the cookie.
When is it OK to eat the Endless Youth and Life Superfood Protein Cookie?
You can use the cookie as your desert after a meal for which you kept the carbs as low as possible. For example, you ate your protein with just salad and/or light vegetables (not potatoes or corn). In other words, you can substitute the carbs from a particular meal with the carbs from the Endless Youth and Life cookie, which is perfectly OK. The 8-16g of carbs contained in one to two Endless Youth and Life cookies is a reasonable amount to have at a particular meal and acceptable for any fat-loss plan. And let’s not forget that 1-2 cookies also bring in an extra 4-8g of protein and 1-2g of fiber.
Or maybe you want to use 1-2 cookies as a snack. A good strategy is to eat some protein first, such as 1-2 low fat string cheese or ½ cup low-fat plain cottage/ricotta cheese or ½ cup Greek yogurt before eating the cookies, so that you will feel full and less tempted to eat too many cookies. The best thing is to bring along with you just the amount of cookies you intend to eat. If you do not trust yourself, have your partner or friend hide them from you and control the amount you have available each day.
How does the Endless Youth and Life Superfood Protein Gourmet Cracker measure up against a regular saltine?
A serving of 14 Endless Youth and Life crackers has only 120 calories, 9g of protein and only 11g of carbs, with 2g of fiber. Also, compared to a Nabisco saltine, the Endless Youth and Life cracker has approx 50% less carbohydrates and 5 times more protein. The goal of the formulators was to keep the carbs as low as possible while maximizing the protein content, while still making it a tasty cracker. The fat content is low at 3.5g/serving, with 2g of fiber and with a total of 15% less calories than an equivalent serving of Nabisco saltines.
How do the Endless Youth and Life crackers fit a smart eating strategy?
The crackers can provide the carbs portion of any meal or snack while also contributing some protein. Eat with 1-2oz of low-fat/non-fat cheese, ½ cup low-fat cottage or ricotta cheese, throw in a salad, eat with a soup, or scoop with them a low-fat dip (such as humus, Greek yogurt or a 50:50 mixture of the two).
Why is it important to maximize your protein intake and minimize the carbohydrates at every meal and snack for supporting fat loss?
Snacks that contained higher protein were found in studies to have the following effects:
1. They increased the sensation of feeling full with reduced hunger in the hours following the snack.
2. Subjects were hungry for the next meal (such as dinner) much later after eating a high protein snack as compared to a high carbohydrate snack.
3. One study showed that ingesting a higher protein snack caused a metabolic rate increase twice higher as compared to the one following ingesting a high carb snack (this is called the post-meal thermogenic response). This is because the body requires more energy to metabolize protein.
4. A few hours after ingesting a high protein snack, there is a higher fat release from body stores than after a high carb snack (this is the time to exercise and take advantage of burning body fat more efficiently). The high carb snacks force the body to burn sugar instead of fat.
This is because following a snack that is balanced with more protein and less carbs, your blood sugar levels will likely be stable with insulin levels low and your body will be in fat burning mode. On the other hand, after a high carb meal or snack, most people would experience “a sugar high” which then triggers one hour later a “sugar-low”. This in turn causes more carb craving as a “fix” to bring the blood glucose back up. And so goes the carbs to blood sugar roller coaster. In this metabolic situation, insulin levels run high all day and fat burning is completely blocked.
Here are some simple tips for a smart eating strategy.
Make sure you eat a good amount of protein 3-5 times per day, spaced at around 3-4 hours throughout the day, not more not less. For a woman, have 20-30g, while for a man 30-40g of protein per meal intervals. (a 3oz portion of any meat/hard cheese or 5 egg whites contain 20g of protein and is about the size of a deck of cards. For cottage/ricotta cheese and Greek yogurt, read the label for the amount providing 20g of protein)
b. Minimize your carbohydrate intake as much as possible, except for the meals before or after weight training workouts where you can have more to support muscle recovery. (Carbohydrates come from bread, pasta, rice, potatoes, cereals, sugars, fruit, beverages, sauces, processed foods, milk/yogurts)
c. Make sure you have around 15g of “good” fat in each meal, and avoid excesses. Minimize animal fats and avoid fried fats. (one tablespoon of oil/butter/animal fat contains 15g of fat, read all labels).
d. Add as much fiber from foods or supplements at as many meals and snacks as possible. Consider supplementing with the Endless Youth and Life AbSolution special fiber supplement. Fiber reduces hunger, speeds up fat loss and improves regularity (which reduces abdominal bloating, so you will have a flatter stomach!!)
e. For snacks, follow the same rules stated above for meals but reduce all amounts of protein and fat and carbs by approx 50%.
And finally keep in mind:
Snacking on junk food (high in sugar and fat) is associated with obesity in adults, teens and children. Peer pressure and close availability of junk food (such as vending machines or your own pantry) increase its consumption and the risk of gaining weight.
In general, eating excessive amounts of carbohydrates and sugar from meals, snacks or desserts is associated with obesity and diabetes.
Eat well and balanced and choose the “smarter treats” whenever possible. Every good eating choice takes you closer to a healthier you, it will keep you on track and you will not feel deprived.
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