Mindful Snacking

Being hungry and not having fruit or veggies ready = a strong possibility that you will reach for the bagels, bars, and or anything you can get your hands on that is conveniently ready to consume. The problem with this is that most of the time these snacks aren’t the best choice and can actually prevent us from reaching our health and fitness goals. I just designated the middle shelf in our fridge “the snack shelf” and it literally took me 10 minutes.  Several years ago I found some cool metal baskets for outdoor eating.  I can’t even remember where I found them. Just recently I’ve discovered a use for them that I think is worth sharing.

Small fruit baskets/burger baskets work GREAT for organizing your fridge so that your entire family has access to healthy snacks.  I can’t tell you how many times I’ve found my girls (myself included) reaching into the fridge for a snack and grabbing an apple, carrots, or snap peas because it is ready, available, and within an eyes shot.

The trick is to place them eye level and wash the produce so it's ready to consume. I’ve found the carrots and snap peas last for 2-3 days but we usually devour them before that is even an issue.

I don’t know about you, but my kids often claim they are “STARVING” before dinner and now I just reach in and grab the veggie and hummus basket (see photo - and by the way King Harvest is our favorite hummus - made in PDX, Oregon) and let them eat as much as they like before dinner.  It’s perfect; they eat more veggies and I can finish dinner.

I found these on Amazon that are great and could work:

You may even have some baskets hanging around that can work. I’ve found the more organized and clean your fridge is, the more likely your entire family will be to eat healthier. Make it easy: spend a few minutes prepping your snacks for the week. It will make a difference and every good snack adds up!

Cheers to a little prep and a lot more nutrition!