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Burn Off the Snacking Calories

How long do you need to exercise to burn off that snack? Often, you'll need to rev your motor lots longer than you think.

Like gas to a car, food is fuel for you. However, unlike cars, the fuel in your tank doesn't just sit there, waiting for you to put the pedal to the metal. Instead, your body processes that excess fuel into body fat, making bellies and bulges—unwanted accessories to your chassis.

One possible culprit of unwanted calories is snack food, according to Roberta Duyff, MS, RD, author of the American Dietetic Association Complete Food and Nutrition Guide. "A lot of people seem to think that if they play 10 minutes of tennis or jog a few laps, that can justify eating a candy bar," she says. "Understanding the relationship between calories burned in exercise and calories contained in food can help guide you to make better snacking decisions. Knowing how much you have to sweat to burn off snack calories helps you look at food in a different way."

To help you keep track of snacks and calories is a chart listing some common snack foods, the amount of calories in each, and different activities (and their duration) that'll burn off those calories. The number of calories burned during the activity is for a 150-pound person. If you weigh more, you'll burn more calories; if you weigh less, you’ll burn fewer.

THE TREAT		THE BURN
Apple, large	110 calories	Throw a Frisbee for 30 minutes
Sports drink, 20 ounces	160 calories	Go hiking for 25 minutes
Trail mix (nuts, dried fruit, grains), 1/4 cup	175 calories	Rake leaves for 30 minutes
Pretzels, 2 ounces	220 calories	Play tennis for 25 minutes
Candy bar, 2 ounces	280 calories	Ride a bike at 10 mph for 40 minutes

Instead of consulting a calculator each time you reach for a snack, Duyff offers four tips for making healthier choices:

Aim for low per-serving calories. "In prepackaged snacks, we often don't pay attention to serving size," Duyff says. "Sometimes a snack contains two servings, doubling the amount of calories you may be eating." Check the label for calories and how many servings are contained in the package.

Complement your day. Duyff says, "If you haven't eaten enough fruits and vegetables or foods made with whole grain, use a snack to add those." She recommends having raw vegetables handy along with crackers made with whole grain.

Chew, chew, chew. "Snacks that take longer to chew may help you eat less," Duyff says. "It allows your head to catch up with your stomach before you overeat." Some good suggestions: crackers with hummus that you need to spread or a small bunch of grapes still on the stems.

Go for fiber and protein. "Protein and fiber as part of a snack can help you feel full longer," Duyff says. A hard-boiled egg with a piece of fruit, or skim milk and a high-fiber cereal with whole grain, or a small handful of nuts and dried fruit are healthy snack options.