Just because you lead a busy life doesn’t mean you have to settle for junk food and empty calories whenever you need a quick snack. Constantly opting for chips, cookies, and candy is far from ideal, especially if you’re actively trying to improve your health and fitness. You might not have the time to prepare homemade treats, but even among pre-packaged, ready-to-eat snacks, there are still plenty of great alternatives. In this post, I’ll share with you some of the best healthy, high-protein snacks you can grab that’ll get you through the day while helping you reach your fitness goals.
Not all Protein Is Created Equal
When looking for a high-protein snack, the amount of protein it has is obviously important, but there are other factors to consider as well. Some snacks contain a high number of calories relative to the amount of protein they provide. This could be an issue if you’re trying to limit your caloric intake. Some high-protein snacks contain large amounts of sugar and artificial ingredients, which might do more harm than good to your body.
Lastly, some snacks aren’t practical all the time. They might require preparation beforehand, need to be stored at specific temperatures, or not be very portable. They don’t make for the best options if you’re a busy person who just wants something to grab on the go and eat anywhere at any time. Snacks such as overnight oats and Greek yogurt might fall into this category, despite them being solid choices in general.
I’m not necessarily saying the above examples are bad choices. However, I want to give you a list of snacks that are truly fit for any occasion, so I’m only going to pick snacks that are healthy, don’t require any special preparation or storage, and are convenient to eat no matter where you are and what you’re doing.
Jerky (1 oz: 70 calories, 9-10g of protein)
Unless you’re vegan or vegetarian, meat is one of the best overall sources of protein. Therefore, it’s no surprise that jerky makes for a great high-protein snack. With all the different flavors out there, it’s also one of the tastiest ways to get additional protein into your diet.
While the type of meat that’s used (beef, pork, turkey, etc.) is more of a personal preference, as I mentioned before with processed foods, what’s important is choosing brands that minimize the use of artificial ingredients. In this regard, I recommend Country Archer jerky because the only ingredients they use are grass-fed and finished beef and natural ingredients for flavoring.
Meat Sticks (1 stick: 90 calories, 9g of protein)
Meat sticks are another great meat-based snack that serve as an alternative to jerky. What I like about meat sticks is that they tend to be softer and easier to chew. Sometimes I find jerky a bit tough, so meat sticks can be a nice change of texture when I’m not looking for a full jaw workout.
Another benefit of meat sticks is that because they’re usually individually packaged, it’s easier to keep track of calorie and protein consumption. With jerky, unless you measure it out with a scale, it might be hard to know just how many calories and how much protein you’re consuming if you’re not eating the entire bag in one sitting.
Like with jerky, the more natural the ingredients the better. Because of this, CHOMPS meat sticks are great because they only use grass-fed and finished beef and natural ingredients for flavoring.
String Cheese (1 piece: 90 calories, 7g of protein)
This might come as a surprise, but string cheese is more than just a fun snack; it’s quite high in protein and very convenient to eat on the go. In general, cheese is a good source of protein, but recommending that you snack on sliced or shredded cheese might seem a bit weird to some people, and certainly isn’t as satisfying as peeling away at a stick of string cheese.
Within the realm of cheeses, cottage cheese is another fantastic choice for getting your protein. It’s more protein-packed than string cheese, with up to 14 grams of protein in half a cup and coming in at only 110 calories. However, string cheese makes the list over cottage cheese because in my opinion, it’s easier to eat as a grab-and-go snack. Plus, it gets bonus points for fun factor.
Almonds (1oz: 170 calories, 6g of protein)
Almonds are a nice source of protein, but they make for a particularly appealing snack because they’re also rich in healthy fats, magnesium, vitamin E, and other important nutrients. Other nuts such as pistachios, walnuts, and cashews are also very nutritious and contain a decent amount of protein. However, almonds top the list because they have slightly more protein than these alternatives.
While they’re very good for you, almonds and other nuts are also rather high in calories. If you’re trying to remain calorie-conscious, don’t rely on them for any significant portion of your protein intake, and be careful of how much you eat in one sitting.
That’s easier said than done, because almonds can be addicting to snack on and you might end up munching through handfuls without realizing. Luckily, Blue Diamond 100-calorie travel packs make it effortless to bring almonds on the go and limit how much you eat at once.
Protein Snack Alternatives
If you’re a big fan of traditional snacks like chips and cookies, you might be delighted to know that there are high-protein versions of these foods. Quest is one such brand that offers products like protein chips, crackers, cookies, and even peanut butter cups.
Personally, I really enjoy their protein cookies, and I always have a box on hand. I have a pretty big sweet tooth, and especially after meals, I often crave something sweet. The cookies are great because with 250 calories and 15 grams of protein per cookie, a single cookie is enough to serve as a filling snack that simultaneously satisfies my cravings and adds a significant boost to my protein intake for the day. Furthermore, while they’re sweet enough to the taste, each cookie contains less than one gram of sugar.
If you want to increase your protein intake without having to switch out many of the foods you’re used to eating, these protein-filled alternatives to many popular party snacks are definitely worth a try.
Protein Bars
The protein bar is the quintessential high-protein snack. You can easily pack one to eat at any time, and it’s a very efficient source of protein; protein bars typically average close to just 10 calories per gram of protein, which is about as good as snacks get.
One problem I have with them, however, is that they’re not always the most enjoyable to eat. Some are too rich, some are too chewy, and some sit like a brick in the stomach. Certain brands are definitely better than others in this regard, and you can check out my top protein bar recommendations or shop around to find the brand you like the most.
Even then, protein bars just might not be for everyone. If that’s the case for you, there are also plenty of other bars that aren’t necessarily “hardcore” protein bars, but they still pack a decent amount of protein and are easier to consume. RXBAR protein bars might not have the 20+ grams of protein you’d expect from traditional protein bars, but with 12 grams of protein per bar and only 210 calories, they’re more like casual snack bars that have the added benefit of being a helpful protein supplement.
In addition, while some protein bars contain lots of sugar and artificial ingredients, RXBAR products have no added sugars and only use natural ingredients like egg whites, cashews, and almonds to source their protein.
Protein Shakes
Similar to protein bars, protein shakes are another very common way to greatly boost protein intake. They typically provide between 20-40 grams of protein per serving and are one of the most efficient ways to consume supplemental protein, since they can pack up to twice as much protein per calorie as a protein bar. Also, unlike protein bars, protein shakes are very easy to consume. They taste pretty good, and despite all the protein, they’re not overly rich.
When you’re at home or going about your regular routine, it’s more cost-effective to simply buy protein powder in bulk and make your own protein shake every day. However, when you’re away from home and can’t bring an entire jar of protein with you, there are great prepackaged shakes out there to choose from.
Muscle Milk makes great protein shakes that come in varying flavors and protein content, and I particularly like the ones that contain 40 grams of protein per bottle with only 210 calories. The 40 grams of protein can really come in handy especially when you’re traveling and eating out most of the time, since it can be difficult to ensure that you’re getting as much protein as you’d want from your meals. However, having these shakes on hand gives you a lot more freedom to eat what you want at restaurants without worrying too much about whether you’re getting enough protein.
The List Doesn’t End Here
As I mentioned in the beginning of the post, this list only includes snacks that fully fit the criteria of what I believe a a great snack should be: simple, healthy, and convenient. However, this doesn’t mean that there aren’t other delicious, protein-filled options for you to try. If you have time to do a little preparation and resources to properly store your snacks, your options become endless: peanut butter and apples, hard-boiled eggs, homemade trail mix, just to name a few.
These snacks aren’t necessarily superior or inferior to the choices I recommended above, but it goes to show you that just because your diet is more protein-oriented now doesn’t mean that there needs to be any less variety in the kinds of food you can eat.
