Low cal/healthy lunches to send with kids to school

darcymae25

I send my kids with lunch from home every day but could use some tips/ideas on healthy, lower calorie substitutes to the usual sandwich, etc. Or even just some fresh ideas on how to liven them up in a healthy way that they still want to eat.

andreaen

Are your children overweight? What do they normally eat?

I would give them whole grain bread for the toast, and top it with ham and cheese (or one of those), cream cheese, or whatever else they like on it that isn't full of sugar. Add in a piece of fruit and some carrots if they like them. I was told as a child that broccoli was baby trees, which made them much cooler. Also carrots makes your night eye-sight better - kids care about that stuff!

Alternatively you could cut cucumber into funny shapes (use the tiny cookie molds to speed things up).

L1zardQueen

Do they need to lose weight?

cwolfman13

darcymae25 wrote: »

I send my kids with lunch from home every day but could use some tips/ideas on healthy, lower calorie substitutes to the usual sandwich, etc. Or even just some fresh ideas on how to liven them up in a healthy way that they still want to eat.

Why do your kids need "low cal"...they're growing and need calories. Why are you trying to put them on a diet?

Not sure what you mean by a healthier sandwich...I don't think there's anything particularly unhealthy about a sandwich. My kids usually have either a turkey and cheese or ham sandwich most days. They also usually have an apple or banana or strawberries. A cheese stick, maybe a small serving of cheetos or something and usually a small desert item.

My two boys eat like horses, and they need to...they're 8 and 6 and growing and super active, and skinny little rails.

If your kids need to lose weight, I'd make an appointment with the pediatrician as to how to best go about it. Having them go on "diets" can cause issues down the line with food relationships, etc. My niece was once upon a time starting to get a little overweight for her age...her pediatrician basically had her parents enact some stricter snacking rules and introduce family physical activities like going for walks in the evening, etc.

tcunbeliever

My kids love salads, or meat/cheese rollups particularly bologna and cream cheese, peanut butter and crackers, carrot sticks, clementines, baby bell cheese wheels...plus, I try to change up the lunchmeat for sandwiches, so sometimes ham, sometimes turkey, sometimes sandwich pepperoni or bologna...keeping it nutritious and not boring as much as possible.

busyPK

My kids like crackers with slices of meat (or summer sausage) with a fruit (apple slices, grapes, cutie oranges, berries of any kind, applesauce, etc.) and they get a small zip lock back of chips and either carrots or small treat like a cookie. P.S. unless my kids pediatrician mentioned my kids were overweight with posing health risks I wouldn't consider low calorie diet for my kids.

Dani9585

If your children are needing to lose weight, it's best to speak with their pediatrician and a dietician. Good luck!

Momepro

I was doing lots of fresh fruit, and raw veggies she likes, 100% natural peanut butter with multigrain crackers or bread, meat and cheese without bread (she hates sandwiches and sauces) or leftovers from dinner.
But now she's too cool for home lunches, and is very forgetful in the mornings, so she eats whatever the school has that day.

Cbean08

Unless there is a health reason, your kiddos don't need low cal lunches. They need nutritious and yummy and balanced lunches.
You can do kebabs - chicken, cheese, tomato and pickle. Send them with some pita bread or some pasta salad.
Homemade chicken salad - diced chicken, light mayo/greek yogurt, seasoning, celery and carrot. Serve with celery sticks or crackers.
Rolled cheese enchiladas with a side of guacamole or bean dip.

Always send a piece of fruit (like a cut up apple) and a water bottle too.

DragonHasTheSapphire

darcymae25 wrote: »

I send my kids with lunch from home every day but could use some tips/ideas on healthy, lower calorie substitutes to the usual sandwich, etc. Or even just some fresh ideas on how to liven them up in a healthy way that they still want to eat.

Is there a reason they need to lose weight? Has their health professional said anything about them needing to lose weight?

Children's calorie needs, depending on activity and age, are usually a lot more than ours. I am by no means a doctor, but it would be best to feed them a well balanced lunch. Since my younger cousin likes salads, I will sometimes fix him a mixed veggie salad with baked skinless chicken on top with cheese and some type of whole grain pasta he can'tget enough of. Can't get him to eat olive oil (I make faces too when I use it as a dressing, so I just use plain old ranch.)

Fruits, nuts, and raw vegetables such as carrots or celery served with hummus has been successful. Most of the times I just fix whatever we had leftover from last night with a few mandarins or strawberries. Chobani makes plain low fat plain yogurt with no added sugar in single serving cups, I personally don't eat these and just use the big tubs. My younger cousin has to have it sweet, so I make sure there's fruit to make it taste better. Applesauce is a huge hit, I have to have the stuff too lol.

By all means, however, it's best to speak to an actual health professional about their nutritional needs.

Lounmoun

What do your kids like?
Are you going to cook things or do you want little to no prep?

Sandwiches or wraps- possible fillings could be fruit and peanut butter if allowed, meat, cheese, spinach, peppers, beans, hummus, egg, etc
Pasta salad or pasta with marinara sauce
Bean and cheese burrito
Veggies and yogurt dip or hummus
Fruit
Yogurt
Hard boiled egg, egg muffins, rolled omelet
Cheese cubes or sticks
Meat cubes
Meatballs
Zuchinni or broccoli tots
Muffin, baked oatmeal
Stuffed tomato, cucumber, zucchini or peppers
Taco salad
Pretzels, crackers, popcorn, cereal

Look on pinterest for ideas.
https://www.pinterest.com/search/pins/?rs=typed&q=packed lunch
https://www.pinterest.com/Artsy_momma/fun-food-ideas-for-kids/

Fitnessmom82

My kids got bored with sandwiches and I don't want them eating the nasty school lunches every day. I found these salad containers on Amazon. They pack a salad with a few veggies that they like, then there is an insert for the top of the container. We put some lunch meat, cheese, nuts. And then there's a little container that goes in the middle for salad dressing. They like it because they can customize their lunches, I like it because it's a healthy option and an easy way for them to get their veggies in! Plus, no matter what I do, sandwiches always get soggy in their lunch boxes.