Lunch... for Teachers?

trudijoy

i'm a teacher... in summer I take salad, fruit, maybe a yoghurt.

at the moment (winter) I usually steam vegies the night before and mix in some cooked chicken or leftover meat with some sunflower seeds and a big of dressing, reheat it at work.

don't underestimate kids lunchbox food too.... I have a stock of (healthy) ones of those in my cupboard.

lots of raw veges, fruit, crackers, all sorts. easy as

SunnyDuckling

Another teacher weighing in!

I struggled a lot with this my first few years of teaching. It's one of the reasons I gained a lot of weight when I started teaching, because I wasn't eating properly and was working long hours. As someone pointed out above, you work through lunch and grab something (usually unhealthy) to eat after school because you are soooo hungry!

As a high school teacher, I don't get the benefit of my own classroom. I am in a communal staffroom, which has some lunch facilities like a fridge, boiling water, microwave and *spoilt!* a cafe sandwich press toaster.

What's worked for me:
I have a light breakfast at home, around 6am.
I have another light breakfast at work around 8-8.15. By something light I mean a small bowl of porridge, usually made on water.

Morning Tea: 10.20-10.40
Something I can eat quickly and will be filling, and usually keep my hands clean. Pre-cut fruit, rice crackers, airpopped popcorn.

Lunch: 1.10-1.40
This will depend if I have preparation/correction time on this day or if I am working all the way through. On days where I have P/C time, I bring in food that I can take time to eat - stuff that needs reheating like leftovers or soup. On the no-time 'go-go-go' days, I will bring in a sandwich.

Afterschool: 3-4.30
/This/ is the most important for me. Because we often have meetings or other commitments afterschool, I can't bear to go without eating from 1.30 to 7.00 (which is when I'll have dinner). I'll bring food with me to whatever we do afterschool. These are usually the same unobtrusive snacky things that everyone else has mentioned, almonds, fruit, vege sticks, yoghurt, crackers.
If there's no meetings, but I know I'm going to be home late because I'm going to a dance class at 6.30, this after school time is when I will eat my dinner. Most evenings, I stay back and work at school until around 5-5.30, just because I don't have a study space at home. All my resources at school, so it's easiest to just stay there. This means I'm driving in rush hour traffic and am home somewhere around 5.45-6.00.

I also struggled in my early years of teaching with coming home and then having to cook dinner. As it was just one person, it was so hard to motivate myself to cook and eat properly. I fell into a lot of bad habits, like eating a packet of 'microwaveable side dish pasta & sauce' as dinner. *Every night*. :frown:
I told myself that I was making it healthier by dropping in a handful of frozen veges in the last 3 minutes of cooking. <--What a lie!

The turn around for me came when I started to take Sunday as a cooking/prep day. On Sunday, starting after lunch, I take the time to cook two or three different meals, which I can portion out and put into the freezer. This means that I don't have to worry about dinner on the nights I get home late, or don't want to cook (many a Friday night!), and I always have something to take to school for lunch if I forget to make a sandwich. I will always label the container with the date that I made the food, so if I come across something that is the same food type (eg: bolognese), I know to pull out the older on first.

It's something I have gotten out of the habit of since moving cities earlier this year, but as I am on school holidays now for two weeks, and it's winter, I am going to stock my freezer up once again!

Good luck with your first year of teaching!! Hope you enjoy it! :flowerforyou:

ellepribro

Be advised, a teachers lunch can go by quickly. That's the main reason I don't like bringing frozen dinners - takes too long to heat them (esp. if there's a line for the microwave). I usually bring chicken lettuce wraps or a chicken salad coupled with fruit and crackers. Sometimes I will bring leftovers from dinner.

MyJourney1960

good luck!

I'm not a teacher but my sister is and she takes her own food with her - depending on her schedule, it is usually yogurt, fruit, cheese, or a sandwich or two (whole wheat bread with PB&J, tuna, chicken etc), or a salad with a protein (low fat feta cheese, tuna, chicken etc). (I'm not a teacher but i take food to work on a daily basis - I make a pile of chicken breast or turkey or whole raost chicken, or patties, etc on the weekend, portion it out, and freeze. Then i make a salad and add the protein - I don't even keep it in the fridge. At lunchtime i either eat the protein cold with the salad or microwave it).

She mentioned that they have these buffet meals every now and then (not sure if it's weekly or monthly or once a semeseter, anyway, there are various occassions when there are food offerings). she learned to first look, decided what she will take, and then eat. so if it's Pizza and Salad - she'll fill up on salad and take a slice or half a slice. if it's chinese, then she'll take veg and chicken. and so on.

mlogantra76

Your post has sent me in a panic because I realize soon school is starting:)
I have about 30 minutes for lunch. I have access to a microwave and a frig to keep my lunch in. Here are some of the things I take. I don't mind eating the same thing for a week so I pack ahead on Sunday so I only have to grab it and go in the mornings.


Greek Yogurt and PB2
Fruit
Nuts
huge salad with grilled chicken on top(I freeze the grilled chicken for later in the week or make more mid week).
Whole Wheat wrap with lettuce or spinach, hummus, and cheese
Whole Wheat wrap with spinach, a lean protein, and cheese(I microwave mine to melt the cheese).
Oatmeal with fruit


I do not eat from the cafeteria. We do get a discount but the choices are slim and it saves me time to not even have to go to the cafeteria and through the line. In the 13 years I've been teaching, I've never eaten in the cafeteria.

Hint: Bring some healthy snacks! There is often not so healthy food in the teachers lounge and if I'm hungry, my will power wains. I rarely eat anything at school that I didn't bring!

mickey2168

Congrats on your first year! Teaching is the best job in the world. Hang in there those first years - it'll be worth it in the end! If you can, read The First Day of School by Harry Wong. Best teaching book ever. Don't be afraid to ask for help. Make friends with the secretaries and the custodians,
As far as lunch goes - I keep microwave popcorn and protein bars for the busy days I forgot to pack a lunch in the morning rush, I have a small fridge in my room with apples, peanut butter, bread and or wraps. If I take a lunch, it's usually chicken or turkey and a wrap with a little lettuce and light dressing. The school only provides school lunch for the kids which we can buy but as the kids will tell you - it's not very good.

WillowWindow

The good thing is you should be burning off a LOT of extra calories teaching.

When I was teaching ( retired now) I used all the suggestions above. My mainstays were natural peanut butter sandwiches on toast, ( soy) cheese sandwiches, hummus wraps, cut up veggies-- or sometimes just washed if I was in a hurry, apples ( whole), bananas, raisins, nuts, oranges, any whole fruit easy to eat. I brought a leakproof large cup ( from LL Bean) with coffee or tea that I could recover and drink from all morning( before school and breaks). I kept a supply of water, napkins and utensils in my desk, not that much different from everyone else. My tip is for leftovers, cut up fruit, or anythng "messy". Put them in mason jars. There are small and medium ones that work the best for portability. The great thing abut mason jars is that you can fill them up after dinner with leftovers, keep them in the fridge overnight, put them in your pack, then remove the lid and put them directly in the microwave. Or if not heatable stuff in them, they are easy to eat out of without spilling on your lap. Then you can put them in the diswasher. Just have to say it -- teachers need a decent lunch hour like everyone else! Have a good first year.

hmuh

Hint: Bring some healthy snacks! There is often not so healthy food in the teachers lounge and if I'm hungry, my will power wains. I rarely eat anything at school that I didn't bring!

The lounge is a sugar trap for sure!

Congrats on accepting the new position! Education is a very rewarding field. The key is to remember to take care of yourself while you're helping everyone else all day. If not, you can look up at the clock, an entire day has slipped away, and you havent refueled yourself. It's not a pretty sight! lol
It helps to have a huge tumbler of water and lots of balanced snack choices stored away for the days that you're busy such as nuts, dried fruit, meal replacement bars, etc. On most days, you can take leftovers or whatever else you like because your campus will likely have a microwave and fridge. My biggest advice is to try your hardest to use your lunch time to refuel yourself physically and mentally (Don't spend those precious twenty or thirty minutes returning calls, emails, etc. You can do that at the end of the day!). Your students deserve a healthy, happy, calm, but energetic teacher! Best wishes.

ajbloomu

I've been teaching for 8 years now (glad to see so many fellow teachers on this thread! Add me as a friend, teachers should motivate each other!) and I avoid the cafeteria food like the plague. Nothing healthy there most of the time, so I take the time the night before to pack my own lunch. I would echo a lot of the comments made here already. I usually take the same thing every day:

1. Wheat bread turkey sandwich (110 calories)
2. Fat Free Yoplait yogurt (90 calories)
3. Fat Free Chocolate Pudding (90 calories)
4, Mini Raisin Box (90 calories)
5. Apple (48 calories to 80 calories depending on size)
6. Orange (44 to 80 calories depending on size)
7. Bottle of Water

Total: Usually between 450 to 500 calories a day. I never find myself hungry and it is all good tasting and healthy for me. It is what works for me, find what works for you and go with it!

grrrlface

My OH's mother is a teacher and very health concious.
She takes her own lunch of salad, with which ever lean meat has been prepared and left over, with a few small squares of cheese, nuts, seeds and her own dressing. Then she takes different fruits for dessert.

I'm always jealous of her lunches, they are delicious!

samrockrocks

WOW, guys!! Thank you for all the awesome responses!! THANK YOU for all the congratulations! I'm very excited to finally have a full time job in my OWN classroom! The substitute teaching was wearing on me..

Where to begin...

I've been subbing for a year, so I know that teachers don't get much of a lunch. Actually, I figured that out during student teaching! It's those experiences that have showed me I do NOT want to eat crap for lunch all the time.. that's what I did before and it was not satisfying.

I should have clarified... when I said "frozen meals" I meant Lean Cuisines and Healthy Choice meals... those kind of frozen meals. I would be totally content with preparing a few meals ahead of time, storing them, and taking them out as I want them. However **I don't know how to do that**. That sounds ridiculous saying it out loud, but it's true. Can I freeze anything? How long will it keep just in the refrigerator? How long do I reheat it for?

I'm fairly positive I have a microwave and fridge available to me. If not, I'll bring my own. I have an extra microwave at the house from college and a mini-fridge can be found.

Also, I don't like some of the foods you guys (so kindly) suggested. I hate tuna! You guys love your tuna! Haha. I hate cherry tomatoes and even slices tomatoes on sandwiches. Cottage cheese? Ewwww. I'm not a big lunch meat eater either. I hate ham and bacon (I KNOW I'm so un-American!). I don't even like hamburgers. It's a sacrilege!

Someone mentioned not having money to go out to eat... I definitely do not plan on doing that. My school is at least 10 minutes away from any type of restaurant. I simply wouldn't have the time for it (nor would I want to spend the money!)

I am interested to see what the cafeteria provides for meals. My guess is that I will avoid it. I'm too picky of an eater to deal with any of it except maybe pizza day

Whoever suggested the mason jars... great idea!

I see a lot of homemade hummus with raw veggies, fruit, CLIF bars, yogurt, and homemade salads in my future. I also have this yummy recipe with penne pasta, zucchini, tomatoes (i like them if they're cooked), scallions, and garlic that I know I'll be eating at least once a month for the whole week! Haha.

So, perhaps some more specific questions:

- What are your favorite sandwiches besides tuna/chicken salad and deli meat?
- I really like the idea of wraps... I've never made my own though. Suggestions? Website? I'll have to do a search..

Thank you, again, for all the suggestions so far!

jessIcalynn63

This has been something that I also have been thinking about. I have been teaching for 5 years now. Lunch and being sure to drink lots of water are so hard. Teachers don't have the luxury of bathroom whenever. This past year I have been taking leftovers from my dinner the night before. It seems to work for me. Now my goal is snacking. I want to keep my schedule of eating every three hours. Any one have suggestions for that?

samntha14

Our food service company also services the local county prison. I wouldn't feed it to my dog. I do frozen meals about 2 or three days a week but I'm really picky and stock up when my favorites are on sale. Otherwise, I use cooked chicken breast in a homemade salad, make tuna sandwiches, I also make egg sandwiches I can heat up, I'm boring and redundant . I do take lots of food to work though. I take breakfast, lunch and tons of snacks to work. I take my greek yogurt, my protein bars, quakes, I make ants on a log, crackers or red peppers with hummus, fresh cut fruit etc. I've had my food stolen from the fridge too many times, so I use a cooler bag.

CMB1979

I'm a teacher in South Korea. We eat with the students typically. I'm the only teacher (or student) I've seen who has ever brought a lunch. Of course, we don't have a microwave or fridge so that makes it harder.

On a good note, our lunches are far healthier than American ones I used to eat as a student.

I sometimes take pics of my school lunches:

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10201080691445213.1073741826.1406292706&type=1&l=185d7662ed

wrightfit2013

I have been teaching for over 20 years. Eat breakfast before you go to work. Don't skip lunch-eat something ( carrot sticks, fruit etc.). Your first year is going to be very stressful. Remember to take time out for yourself-your students will survive.

simply_meggie

Hello Fellow Teacher,
I try to bring leftovers myself as often as I can as I will make large dinners with enough for packable leftovers. You might try preparing a set of homemade meals and freezing them during the weekend. It certainly can help you save time during the week. Sandwiches and finger foods are sometimes your best option as the first year can often be super busy. When that fails, try seeing what options you have in the cafeteria. I typically will not get the most healthy things, I love the mac and cheese and cheese burgers, but I have been able to lose weight while eating the food, so it just depends on how you budget the rest of your calories. Just don't skip lunch though, I learned that the hard way when my metabolism slowed and I gained 30lbs in a month when I could eat normally again. It was terrifying. After starting at a new district the following year, I began to get my weight under control by actually taking the time to eat and hydrate.
I don't snack during class usually, but I find if you come up with a rewarding treat for your students, they don't seem to mind if you snack on something healthy.

cchardy82

I am a picky eater as well so I understand! My post will be choppy because my three year old is "helping" me type LOL.

I will cook chicken and keep it in the fridge for a week. I will store it in a large tupperware container and then in the mornings put it in a smaller container. I put my lettuce (I buy organic romaine, spinach, and arugula) in another container, and also separate my other veggies and dressing. You can find awesome containers for salads and those are worth the purchase. I always lose mine in all of my kid's lunch containers or my husband steals mine LOL. If you have a fridge it will be easy to keep things cold.

If you would rather not have a salad every day, use the chicken on a tortilla or bun as a wrap or sandwich. I also cook lean steak and pork chops as another meat option.

I love peanut butter and treat myself to a good peanut butter and jelly sandwich once or twice a week . They are filling if you add fresh cut up veggies and fruit as a side.

The worst part of Lean Cuisines and other "healthy" frozen meals is the sodium content. They are not good for you and can hurt your weight loss efforts. An occasional one is not going to hurt you but I wouldn't recommend eating them often.

You can play with the pasta and other veggies and meats. You can add any meat to that pasta dish you like and that is a good, filling lunch! You can also add other veggies to change it up.

2013sk

Make your own healthy salads and take them in

Chicken wraps with salad

Whole meal sandwiches etc

sshintaku

I know you asked about lunch, but I remember my first year teaching, I was EXHAUSTED by the time I got home and wouldn't want to cook myself dinner (which of course leads to microwave food, take out, etc). Now, I'll throw something in the crock pot in the morning before I leave (chicken breasts, chili, etc) and I make sure to make a lot of it. I especially like it for cooking proteins, which usually take the longest. Sometimes I buy a whole chicken, throw it in there on a Monday, and have chicken meat for other dishes the rest of the week.

Then, when I get home, dinner takes like 5 minutes to put together, and I usually have something for left overs for lunch the next day.

mrk1185

Hey everyone,

I'm starting my first year of teaching in a month! I don't yet know when my lunch hour will be or how long it will be... but I know I don't want to eat frozen meals every day! I would love to hear all your suggestions. I also plan to look through other posts on the message boards, but I thought I'd start a new thread, too. (The search function on here really stinks.)

I eat a quick snack (banana, apple, almonds, whatever) in passing time between classes, and then do a salad at lunch with some fresh fruit and a hummus/tabouleh wrap. Sometimes I bring leftovers if the school I'm at has a microwave in the teacher's lounge.

I would second the recommendations to do crock pot meals for dinner too! If you make them in large enough batches you can take the left overs for lunch!