I need some serious help with food at work

Cut vegetables for sure. Recently, I've also been making a ton of grilled chicken on Sunday and cutting it into cubes and eating on it all week. I just switch up the marinade so I don't get bored.
Cheese, beef jerky, clementines, hummus and jicama are some other things I brought for this week.

Steph38878 wrote: »

I made some hummus using canned butter beans. It was great. I don't like the texture of chickpeas. Anyways:

1 can drained large butter beans
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp seasame oil
Cumin and cayenne to taste. I used about tsp each
Lemon juice. I used juice of 1/2 of a lemon

Blend and add water or chicken broth to thin out to right consistency.

I eat it with sliced cucumbers, carrots, peppers. It's also good in wraps.

This sounds really good, I am definitely going to try it. Thanks!

beef jerky, quest bars, popcorn, vita tops muffins (100 calories), pb2 and toast

If you are boredom eating, can you do something else like take up knitting? Just to see if maybe you don't need to eat, but as long as your hands are busy?

*20 grams protein

I would suggest that taking your food to work is not causing you to gain weight, but eating too many calories for your activity level probably is. Is the issue that you are eating too much food which is available at work, or you are taking too much food with you?

I work Event Security and am on my feet for sometimes 6 hours or more and with little chance for a break sometimes. So what I started doing is before an event I eat a Tortilla...my recipe is simple enough. I use Flatout Tortillas (usually the one with Flaxseed but they have different varieties), I put spinach, sliced turkey breast, Crystal Farms Liquid Egg whites and cheese). Heat it up. It roughly has something like 30 grams of protein and only 400 calories. And it will keep me full during my entire event.

This will initially sound weird but TRY IT first...
Carrot sticks and celery can be a bit boring on their own...but I've found that with a good salsa, they're pretty tasty. Salsa itself is low-cal unless you get some sugary variation...it's usually that big bag of tortilla chips you have WITH the salsa that's the problem.

And you're getting antioxidants from the tomato as a bonus...

We also just got a "YoNana" machine...that lets you make soft-serve-ish "ice cream" from bananas and also sorbet from frozen fruit. I've yet to try the banana-based stuff yet but we did sorbet with it yesterday and it was TASTY. So if you want to invest in one, that's an option possibly...

Yeah I like to mix it up. Sometimes I add bacon to it or Ham instead of Turkey. It takes all of 5 mintues to make.

The question about sleep is a really good one. I find I'm MUCH more inclined to snack when I'm low on sleep, as it's a natural way to try to keep yourself aware (probably also related to boredom eating).

I agree about not taking a bunch of food to work - just take enough for dinner and a snack or two, or skip the bigger 'meal' & just take a bunch of smaller snacks to keep you satisfied through your shift. If you have access to hot water, I would also take tea bags & sip on that all night. I have to similarly limit myself when I have a full day on campus. It'd be easy for me to load my bag with food, but if I only take what I really need then I force myself to stay on track. Actually, I think you probably have it easier than I do since I have access to restaurants, coffee shops, & convenience stores on campus that I have to avoid!

I keep lean cuisines and lean pockets on hand for situations like this. Sandwiches also make a good, low cal on-the-go meal depending on the bread & toppings. Some of my favorite snacks are pretzels, fruit, veggies and hummus, and string cheese.

I think once you start limiting what you take to work you'll actually find that you're thankful for the job keeping you busy and on track! I enjoy when I have full days on campus because it structures my day & I'm stuck eating what I brought, rather than being tempted to munch all day if I'm home! Good luck!

Almonds. Just a handful - full of good fats and proteins. Hard boiled eggs, chopped up into a spinach salad. Tablespoon of peanut butter. Another vote here for hummus, or using salsa with your celery and carrots.

And add me as another voice to the knitting/crocheting group. I knit. It keeps my hands busy and quiets my brain to focus on other things (when I'm knitting something particularly easy, or have done several times - like socks)

You've lost 109lbs so you obviously know something about leading a healthier lifestyle. If you're bored, find something to do... read, do lunges, squats, stay active. I'm assuming there's lots of walking involved in your job, maybe less when the inmates are asleep, so take that time to do some body weight exercises.

Healthy snacks (for when you're hungry, not bored): bananas, hummus and veggies, apple with peanut butter, berries and yogurt, turkey pepperettes

I eat when I'm bored, and I love sweets. I understand the urge to eat when you're bored. If I were in your place and I didn't take a bag, I'd give into the vending machine.

It's not nutritious, but I've been eating pickles as a snack. It helps. I also find that a spoonful of Peter Pan whipped PB helps a lot. It's lower cal/sugar and tastes better than regular PB. I always see recommendations for PB2, but I wouldn't buy it because it takes out all of the good fats and oils that make PB filling and a diet food. It also helps me to constantly have water or tea around me. I love my sweet tea, but since I can't have it I have to use Splenda. I know there's a lot of controversy around artificial sweeteners, but I can't drink unsweet tea so that's my only option.

Read all of the labels on everything you buy taking careful notice of the serving size. It might help to prepare your nightly bag with a calorie limit. That way you don't stress too much when you eat everything in it.

Knitting is also a good idea, but you probably don't want to do that in front of inmates, right?. Maybe knit some skull blankets? Definitely find something to do with your hands as Katiebear_81suggested.