Little help for a busy woman
 

Hi everyone-
I was wondering if I could get some help from all of you out there. I am currently in the process of trying to lose 140 pounds- I am 70 pounds down with 70 pounds to go. I haven't really concentrated on food until now. I have been working on exercise- walking 4-5 miles a day and training for my next half marathon. I work a demanding job and go to the gym after work so eating has now become a struggle. I need some ideas on things to take to work or eat when I get home that are quick and easy. I have a fridge in my office but have been bad about eating out because I can't balance that part of my life. Any ideas on things I can carry with me? Lunch at work? Dinner at 9pm when I get home?
Any help is appreciated.

Do you have a crock pot / slow cooker? You can throw the ingredients of a meal into the cooker in the morning and have it done by dinner time. I recently made a tasty lasagna in mine. :)

I second the crockpot idea! I put a coupel boneless skinless chicken breasts, a small jar of salsa, and a can of black beans in the crockpot for 5 hours and then drain it and shred the chicken - it's good for wraps/buritos or on top of salads. I can eat it hot or cold. Keeps well in the fridge.

I'm also a huge fan of just opening a can of good quality tuna (drained) on top of a big salad. Quick, easy, healthy.

I make a carbonara which would be a single meal if I didn't add a HUGE pile of veggies to it. Then it turns into a dinner and a cold pasta salad for lunch the next day. It is perhaps my favorite food (it has bacon in it so right there it moves up the list!) and it really sticks with you - you aren't hungry for a loooong time after that. (it's very fast and easy to make, too - 10 minutes from start to sitting down to eat)

I make a crustless quiche that's fast to make but it does have to cook for 20 minutes in the oven. But it's another one of thos things that is good cold or reheated the next day.

Mostly I cook on one day and live on leftovers the rest of the week....

I bake or grill lots of chicken breasts and freeze them so they are at the ready. I took a couple out of the freezer last night and put them in the fridge. This morning, I made one into 2 sammiches for Robert and kept the other one w/o bread for me. Put them in our cooler and by the time we were ready fro lunch, they were completely thawed.

Also, chunks of cantaloupe, watermelon, any melon is a really refreshing summer treat with a lot of liquid...maybe that would be nice for you if yu need something on the way home to tide you over so you feel like cooking.

Shred veg for stir fry ahead and you can whip up a great meal really fast by adding pre-cooked meat, or leftover meat. Same for salad. If the veggies are ready, it's a cinch to add some lf cheese and some meat. You can also cook grains like quinoa, couscous and bulgur ahead, pre-portin them and then just grab some veg and salsa or dressing and the grain for a cold salad.

I think the key is planning ahead and doing the prep work once to eat for the week, or at least 2-3 days at a time.

Congrats on 70 lost! I'm jealous!

Barb