Last Updated on January 2, 2026 by Mandy Tyler, M.Ed., RD, CSSD, LD
10 Healthy After School Snacks for Athletes
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Looking for healthy after school snack ideas for athletes? Check out these 10 athlete-approved after school snacks to keep athletes fueled and support their sports nutrition needs.
Building a Healthy After School Snack for Athletes
After a busy school day, it is normal for athletes to arrive home hungry and ready to eat. For many athletes, school lunch was early in the day and they have had an athletics period or practice since eating.
A healthy after school snack can be an opportune way to support athletes with refueling and filling nutrient gaps in their diet. To create a balanced after school snack, athletes should aim to combine a food high in carbohydrates with a food providing protein.
In addition, athletes should include a healthy beverage with their after school snack to support their hydration needs. Nutritious beverage choices include water, low-fat milk, 100% fruit or vegetable juice, sparkling water, or infused water.
Pro Tip: Take time to meal prep healthy after school snacks on the weekend so athletes are set-up for sports nutrition success during the week.
10 Healthy After School Snacks for Athletes
Now that you understand how to build a healthy after school snack for athletes, let’s take a look at 10 of my favorite snack choices.
#1 Fruit Smoothie: Healthy After School Snack for Busy Athletes
A fruit smoothie is a nutritious, refreshing after school snack that athletes can enjoy after a busy day. Smoothies can support athletes with meeting their carbohydrate, protein, and hydration needs after school.
Athletes can add carbohydrates to their after-school smoothie by including a variety of frozen fruits, sliced bananas, milk, 100% fruit juice, and honey.
In addition, athletes can boost the protein content of their smoothie by adding in Greek yogurt, high-protein milk, dry milk, nut butters, and chia seeds.
Personal Blender for After School Smoothies
A high-quality personal blender can help athletes easily prepare their after school smoothie. My favorite blender for making individual smoothies is the NutriBullet® PRO (available on Amazon).
This blender is easy to use, it fully processes all ingredients, and most importantly, when looking to save time, it is dishwasher safe.
My teen athlete frequently uses our NutriBullet to prepare smoothies to enjoy for breakfast on-the-go or a healthy afternoon snack.
Pro Tip: Make sure to check out my blog on building a healthy fruit smoothie for athletes for additional tips and recipe ideas.
#2 Greek Yogurt Parfait: Protein-Rich After School Snack
A Greek yogurt parfait is a nutritious, protein-rich after school snack option for athletes.
Using Greek yogurt in place of regular yogurt is an easy way to boost the protein content of an athlete’s after school snack. A 5.3 oz individual container of Greek yogurt contains ~13 grams of protein compared to ~5 grams of protein in regular yogurt (1, 2).
I recommend athletes use mixed berries in their parfait, which provide vitamins, minerals, and phytochemicals. Berries also provide a rich source of bioactive compounds that have antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects in the body (3).
For added crunch, athletes can top the parfait with protein granola or whole grain breakfast cereal along with sliced almonds or walnuts.
Pro Tip: Keep frozen mixed berries on-hand in the freezer so athletes can easily make a parfait when getting home from school.
#3 Waffles Topped with Nut Butter
Toaster waffles topped with nut butter and honey is one of my favorite after school snacks for athletes. It is a simple snack that is easy for athletes to quickly prepare when they get home from school.
For added protein, I recommend trying the new protein toaster waffles available at the store, such as those made by Kodiak® Cakes.
To further boost the nutrient content of the snack, athletes can top the waffles with sliced bananas or strawberries. In addition, I recommend pairing the waffles with a glass of milk.
#4 Trail Mix: Simple After School Snack for Athletes
A simple after school snack item that athletes can ingredient prep in advance is trail mix. Athletes can have fun mixing together their favorite nuts, seeds, dried fruit, pretzels, dry cereal, and snack crackers to create a wholesome mix.
Some of my favorite trail mix ingredient ideas include:
- Grains: Pretzels, pita chips, snack crackers, dry cereal
- Dried fruit: Raisins, cranberries, blueberries, pineapple, mango, papaya
- Nuts: Almonds, cashews, walnuts, pistachios, pecans, macadamia nuts
- Seeds: Pumpkin, sunflower kernels
- Legumes: Roasted chickpeas, peanuts, edamame
- Additional item: Beef jerky bites, dark chocolate chips
Pro Tip: Athletes can package their trail mix into individual serving size bags so they can easily enjoy this after school snack on-the-go.
#5 Turkey and Cheese Wrap
A turkey and cheese wrap can be a quick after school snack for athletes to prepare and enjoy.
Making a turkey and cheese wrap does not have to be complicated. Athletes can simply grab a whole wheat tortilla or flatbread, add sliced turkey deli meat as well as a slice of cheese or cheese stick, and roll it up.
Pro Tip: To jazz up the turkey and cheese wrap, athletes can add items such as sliced avocado or guacamole, hummus, sliced tomato, and spinach.
#6 Jerky, Bars, and Grapes
Beef or turkey jerky is an easy way for athletes to add protein to their after-school snack. Jerky is shelf-stable; thus, it is a great snack option to keep stocked in the pantry for after school.
Athletes should make sure to enjoy the jerky along with carbohydrate-rich snack items such as a bar, grapes, or other piece of fresh fruit.
Some of my favorite bar options for athletes include (available on Amazon):
- Kate’s® Real Food: Protein bars and energy bars
- Made Good®: Granola bars and granola minis
- Bobo’s®: Oat bars and bites
- Nature’s Bakery®: Fig bars
- KIND®: Healthy Grains® bars, breakfast bars, nut bars
#7 Hard-Boiled Eggs, Graham Crackers, Apple Slices
Hard-boiled eggs are a great option to keep on hand for athletes to add protein to their after-school snack.
A large egg contains ~6 grams of protein, along with choline, selenium, riboflavin, Vitamin K, and antioxidants (4). Consider taking time on the weekend to ingredient prep hard-boiled eggs to have available for the week.
You can also purchase premade, hard-boiled eggs at the store, which come peeled and ready-to-eat making them an easy option for after school.
Along with the hard-boiled eggs, I would suggest adding a high-carb snack such as graham crackers, apple slices, or one of the bars listed above.
Pro Tip: For added protein and healthy fats, consider topping the graham crackers and apple slices with nut butter.
#8 Chicken Quesadilla
A chicken quesadilla is a simple, satisfying after school snack that athletes can enjoy after a busy day. I suggest keeping whole wheat tortillas and fully-cooked chicken fajita meat on hand in the freezer. This way all athletes need to do is defrost the items and they are ready to prepare their snack.
For a quick and easy option, chicken quesadillas can be prepared in minutes in the air-fryer. Make sure to check out my blog, dinners for athletes, for cooking instructions.
Pro Tip Athletes can top their quesadilla with salsa and guacamole to further boost the nutrient content of their after-school snack.
#9 Cereal with High-Protein Milk
Cereal with high-protein milk can be a simple solution for a wholesome after school snack for athletes. I recommend choosing a whole grain cereal and then adding on nutritious toppings such as: sliced banana, berries, dried fruit, seeds, and nuts.
Some of my top choices for whole grain cereal include:
- Kashi Go® Crunch
- Quaker® Oatmeal Squares
- Kellog’s® Special K®
- CheeriosTM
- WheatiesTM
Using an ultra-filtered, high-protein milk will boost the protein and nutrient content of the after-school snack. A 1-cup serving of high-protein milk, such as Fairlife®, provides 13 grams of complete protein as well as calcium and Vitamin D (5). Athletes should just make sure to drink the milk out of the bowl when they finish the cereal.
Pro Tip: Athletes that love sugary cereals can sprinkle it on as a topping – that way they get to enjoy their favorite flavors, while still getting the nutritional benefits of the whole grain cereal.
#10 Protein Oatmeal Balls: After School Snack On-the-Go
Finally, if athletes need a quick snack before heading to afterschool sports practice, protein oatmeal balls can be a convenient option.
The Simply Fuel® Protein Balls (available on Amazon) are a great snack item to keep on hand. The protein balls are made with whole food ingredients, come in a variety of flavors, and provide 8 grams of protein per serving. In addition, they are gluten-free making them a great option for athletes following a gluten-free diet.
Protein oatmeal balls are also a simple snack item to meal prep in advance. If you are interested in making your own, make sure to check out the Oatmeal Protein Balls recipe from Kiran Campbell, Registered Dietitian.
10 Healthy After School Snacks for Athletes
You are now set with a variety of healthy after school snack ideas for athletes. Make sure to stock your kitchen with these items so that athletes have healthy snack foods available when they get home from school.
For additional sports nutrition tips, make sure to check out my blog with healthy grab-and-go lunch ideas for athletes.
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About the Author
Mandy Tyler is a Sports Dietitian Nutritionist in the San Antonio, TX area. She is a Registered and Licensed Dietitian, a Board-Certified Specialist in Sports Dietetics, a Licensed Athletic Trainer, and is a Certified Exercise Physiologist through the American College of Sports Medicine. Mandy has experience working with athletes at the high school, collegiate, and professional levels. She believes the key to reaching one’s full potential, both in everyday life and in sports performance, relies on a healthy nutritional foundation.
If you are looking to take your performance to the next level, make sure to check out my new Sports Nutrition Game Day Guide. This downloadable guide is written to help athletes develop an individualized plan to achieve peak performance on game day.
