Daily Eating Guide: Lunch
Halfway through the work day is a good time to get a recharge and replenish our bodies with enough energy to carry us the rest of the way. Recall in my first daily eating guide post that I recommend snacks, even before lunch is a good time to munch on some other goodies that you may have brought along (I will touch more on this in a later post).
So for simplicity sake I want to offer suggestions that will cater to busy individuals and people that are new to healthy eating. Lunch is a great time to stop and have a balanced meal, this means having portions of different types of food. I usually like to have a main dish along with some sides. Here are some options that come to mind and are always good to put in the lunch bag or grab while you are out for lunch.
Sandwich: Use the types of breads I suggested from the breakfast post. If you eat meat stick to chicken, turkey, salmon (1-2x a week) and TUNA (I like flaked in water). Deli cold cuts aren’t usually the best types of meat because they are loaded with salt and preservatives. If you can get real chicken breast of turkey breast pieces for a sandwich, that would be ideal. If you can’t deli meat isn’t super bad! you can still buy good slices of lean turkey and chicken. Smoked salmon is a nice treat on a sandwich sometimes, I usually don’t make this myself but get it made at a deli. Tuna is a super food, hell you don’t even need a sandwich just eat it out of the can if you are hardcore. If you are not so hardcore mix it up in a bowl with some low fat mayo, celery, maybe a dash of ranch and put it in the sandwich with the regular toppings. Excellent toppings for sandwiches are the mixed baby greens, tomato, bell peppers, cucumber, pickles, olives, hot peppers, lettuce, cheese (not processed), onions and more. Don’t go so heavy with the condiments! Condiments are the killer of all healthy meals, they are loaded with sugar and other fatty ingredients, use them but just don’t go crazy with them (especially at stores like Subway or delis, ask them to go light on the condiments, it will still taste great! don’t worry).
Salads – Garden, Caesar, mixed greens, bean salad, spinach, couscous, Mediterranean, fruit bowl. Get creative! with the mixed green salads or garden salads I throw in some sliced almonds, sunflower seeds and granola. For dressings try mixing up some olive oil and balsamic vinegar, toss in a tablespoon of flax seed oil while you are at it too.
More healthy Options: Stuffed pitas (load them up with chicken, souvlaki or turkey and add some veggies), wraps (same deal), soup (vegetable, lentil, cauliflower, tomato, chicken, so many good choices), stir fry (use the olive oil), broiled chicken burgers, sushi, vegetarian Indian food, Pho (Thai soup – so good!), yogurt (you can buy granola and oats in a cereal box to mix with your yogurt!), cottage cheese, any fruits and vegetables, Booster Juice (my faves are Matcha Monsoon, Bananas a whey, Ripped Berry and Acai, find your own faves or make your own shakes), pita bread with hummus or pepper dip, granola bars.
This is a good start and hopefully enough options to pick from. I am sure I will get feedback from others and I will surely add any great lunch options to the list! Hopefully eating healthy is getting easier, there is tons of good stuff to eat!
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