There’s nothing worse than turning up to football ravenous. Your body needs fuel to kick those winning goals. Rather than grabbing a pack of crisps or a chocolate bar in a race to club night, get your mitts on one of these snacks that your body will thank you for.
Apple and peanut butter
Simple but effective. Cut an apple into pieces and pair it with a fan favourite, peanut butter. Around 2 teaspoons or 30-35g is a great portion size to make you feel satisfied and full while keeping the calories on the lower side. Be careful though, peanut butter can have added sugar, salt and oil so pick your brand carefully and go for one that’s purely peanuts.
Nutritional benefits:
- Tick 1 of your 5 a day
- Source of fibre and protein to keep you feeling full
- Source of monounsaturated fat – the good sort of fat we need in small amounts
Banana on toast
What’s not to like? Banana… good. Toast…gooood! Grab a medium sized banana, chop it up and spread it over a slice of toast. An average banana and one slice of toast keeps the calories down but again is geared to help you feel topped up. Want a healthy option again? Aim for wholemeal bread.
Nutritional benefits:
- Tick 1 of your 5 a day
- Source of fibre (for fullness)
- Source of potassium (for energy and endurance)
Almonds
Around 20 almonds count as a serving. Perfect snack for having on the go and the health benefits are well worth considering.
Nutritional benefits:
- Packed with magnesium (improves exercise performance) and potassium (energy and endurance)
- Source of monounsaturated fat (good fats)
Hummus with…
Okay let’s take a second to confess our undying love for hummus. It’s just so damn versatile. The choice is yours. Scoop it up with sticks of carrot, cucumber or pepper. Bonus points awarded for a little of each. Cut up one of each and put the rest in Tupperware to snack on tomorrow. Sly meal prepping you’re getting in there. Win win.
Nutritional benefits:
- Source of protein (great for building muscle)
- Source of fat (giving you energy aplenty)
- 1 (or more) of your 5 a day
Protein shakes/bars
Protein and exercise go hand-in-hand, with good reason. It helps you build muscle and keeps the wolf from the door and you feeling full. You can get protein from lots of sources but bars and shakes are convenient and can be tasty. Just be sure to check the labels as bars in particular can be higher in sugar and calories than you’d expect. Here’s a few of our favourites and how they stack up.
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Clif Bar Whey protein and salted caramel cashew flavour. 1 bar contains 250 calories, 11g fat, 25g carbs and 14g protein. Nice.
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RXBar Chocolate sea salt flavour. 1 bar contains 210 calories, 9g fat, 24g carbs and 12g protein. Tidy.
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MyProtein Protein Latte. A high protein hot drink made with coffee to really boost your energy pre-match. 1 serving contains 79 cals, 0.3g fat, 4.8g carbs and 15g protein.
Of course what’s delicious to one guy is disgusting to another so experiment until you find a combo of snacks that you love and that will get you ready for action.
