Healthy work lunch

Tuna on a whole wheat flatbread with veggies and sriracha sauce - yum!

I had leftovers; a beef and vegetable stir-fry and some blueberries. Weird combo, I know.

I also prepare meals for the week when I am on top of it. I get lazy (or maybe Im just tired) too @yasminosma but try finding fast meal preps like using the oven for all three of the following: veggies (carrots, zucchini, squash, cabbage, anything you like), protein (chicken or fish), and a sweet potato. separate them on foil and set the timer. It may take the chicken and potato a bit longer to cook. on average 375 degrees for 40 or so minutes - depending on how you like your veggies. Be sure to check the protein is done.

This week I am having a salad for lunch everyday. Boiled egg, tuna or chicken, cucumbers, lettuce. easy peasy

I keep a stash of Lean Cuisine, SmartOnes and Healthy Choice meals in the freezer at home to take when I don't have leftovers. I know that many of them are "processed" and there are better choices, but they keep my calorie intake in check and prevent me from going out to lunch. I usually have fruit or raw veggies, too.

This is pretty much the only salad I'll eat - baby spinach, strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, shredded chicken, feta cheese, roasted almond slices, and lemon juice instead of dressing. So many delicious flavors and they all blend nicely. It's pretty filling and, of course, you can use as much or as little as your calorie/macro goals allow. I typically do 2 oz spinach and chicken, 50g of each fruit, 1 oz feta, and 10g almonds, which ends up being under 300 calories.

Another good one while I'm cutting is an English muffin with a slice of Canadian bacon, cheese, an egg or egg whites, and some spinach. Add butter to the muffin if you have the fats and have fruit or something on the side. The sandwich itself with no butter and egg whites only is about 225 calories. And soooo good.

I don't do soup or boring salads. I don't do frozen meals because I'd need 5 of them in order to feel like I ate anything at all. I'll occasionally do sandwiches with pita or regular bread, tuna patties, oatmeal, toast with fun toppings, anything involving peanut butter, etc.

Whatever you want! I prep on Sundays (chicken or hamburger, and veggies) for my lunch and a side salad, freeze what I won't eat within the next few days, then just throw it in my lunch bag and go. If I'd actually cook food for dinner, I'd also take leftovers. Please be kind to your coworkers and avoid seafood, we continually have people heating it up, and it's so gross.

I prep on Sunday. I'll usually roast/bake a 5 pieces of chicken (one for each day). Bake enough starch/carb for the week (halved sweet potatoes or acorn/butternut squash). And (I am lazy) portion frozen veggies into 5 small containers and grab one for each day. You can bake the starch/carb in the oven with the chicken so that kills two cooking birds with one stone.
- So lunch is a piece of chicken (or protein of your choice)
- Carb/starch - sweet potato/squash
- Big portion of frozen veggies.

That keeps me very satisfied. Then I always bring some of mandarin oranges AND string cheese for snacks.

I usually like to have a sandwich and fruit for lunch at work. I cut chicken breasts in half and pound them, marinate them, grill them so they're ready to go. i also make turkey burgers in my grill pan. Mix ground turkey with half ground turkey breast, make 4 oz patties, grill, heat for lunch with a .5 oz slice of low fat cheese. Either of those on a sandwich thin with mustard, lettuce tomato. Then strawberries or clementines or whatever with it.

Here's a fantastic marinade for chicken. Cheap because I make it at home and it makes great grilled chicken. I marinate it on Friday and grill it on Sunday. Great for sandwiches, or over salad, rice or pasta.

Greek dressing

1/2 cup olive oil
1-1/2 teaspoons garlic powder
1-1/2 teaspoons dried oregano
1-1/2 teaspoons dried basil
1-1/4 teaspoons pepper
1-1/4 teaspoons salt
1-1/4 teaspoons onion powder
1-1/4 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3/4 cup red wine vinegar

The vinegar I put 1/4 cup and then adjust to taste. 3/4 is too much for me. Sometimes I mix in some balsamic too.



If I don't feel like a sandwich, I do brown rice or pasta with vegetables and a protein. I do it all at the beginning of the week and put it into containers to grab in the morning. It makes things so much easier and easier to stay on track.

One of my favorites used to be to cook a whole bunch of zucchini, mushrooms onions and peppers with ground turkey in a red sauce then split it up onto a serving of pasta. That was very satisfying and keeps well in fridge.

My slow cooker is my kitchen best friend. I make a huge batch of something (this week was chicken curry) and portion it out for the week. That way meals are planned and it seriously only takes a couple of minutes to throw everything in the slow cooker and let it do it's magic.