Eating Better During the Summertime

I tend to crave sweets in the summer. I think the hot weather makes me want all kinds of treats. This obviously is not good for my health. I started researching what I could do and came up with creative alternatives for my diet while still quelling my screaming sweet tooth:

Unhealthy treat: ice cream and frozen yogurt
Swap: Try using thick and flavored Greek yogurt. You can find even find chocolate flavored. Mix in some cut up fresh fruit like strawberries, mangoes and kiwi. It’ll be like a trip to the frozen yogurt shop but a little healthier. Greek yogurt does come with added sugar, but it’s better than all that cream used for the sweeter treats.

Unhealthy treat: popsicles
Try mashing up fresh fruit and putting them into popsicle trays and filling it up with low sugar juice. Then freeze. You can also do the same thing with thick yogurt. Granted it’s kind of a childish treat, but it’s fun for summer.

Unhealthy treat: popcorn
I like to watch outdoor movies during the summer and have found that air-popped popcorn is just as good and then I add a little bit of trail mix to it. It gives it that sweet and salty combination without all the added butter. Plus, it adds in some protein from the nuts.

Unhealthy treat: summer fruit pies
With berries in season, I see more strawberry and blueberry pies popping up at the grocery store and being brought to backyard barbecues. You can smash up granola to the consistency of pie crust and layer fresh berries on top of it. Then add a dollop of whipped cream on top. Most whipped cream is only 15 calories per serving.

Unhealthy treat: S’mores
If your summer includes bonfires and making s’mores, you can substitute chocolate for peanut butter and low-fat graham crackers.

Happy eating!