Blues - these are some of my lunches that I pack, but I'm assuming you have access to a refrigerator/freezer & microwave for many of these:
1.) Starkist tuna lunch to go
2.) Starkist tuna creations. You can eat this by itself (be mindful the package has 2.5 servings). I put them in a tortilla. (I don't skimp here because I have a hard time finding flour tortillas that remain soft.) I either eat it like that, or I add a slice of 2% kraft singles to it and microwave for 20 seconds.
3.) Omaha Steaks stuffed sole. These can go from frozen to perfect in approximately 5 minutes in the microwave.
4.) lean deli turkey/ham meat on whole wheat Healthy Life bread with mustard, tomato & lettuce
5.) Boca burger patty (keep frozen until you need to microwave it) and whole wheat Healthy Life bun
6.) Last night's dinner. Because I'm watching my calories I always watch my portions. Well, most recipes are for far more than two servings, so if my boyfriend doesn't eat the remainder, I'll pack it for my next day's lunch.
7.) baked potato w/ salsa. I pre-bake all of my potatoes just after I get home from grocery shopping. I keep them in the refrigerator and just microwave them warm prior to eating.
Snacks:
Obviously these lunch ideas are pretty low in calories. Therefore, I always pack snacks/sides to bring with me as well and to eat throughout the say.
- yogurt
- nuts (1/4 cup of nuts such as walnuts, almonds, soy nuts, etc.)
- a light string cheese stick
- a whole fruit [banana, orange, apple (w/ a tablespoon of peanut butter packed in a snack bag), snack bag of grapes, peach, pear, snack bag of blueberries]
- a health bar. You have to be REALLY careful here. Some of these are really high in calories. Also, where they may be super high in protein, they're also super high in fat. Just keep an eye on things. I pack a luna smores bar, but I try to not eat one of these more than once a week and my lunch and snacks are super low calories in exchange.
- instant oatmeal. Okay, so the instant isn't as good as the real thing, but it's my super back up back up snack when I've run out of everything else.
- chopped veggies. Once I'm done grocery shopping I come home and pre-chop my veggies. One of my favorite take-to-work snacks is chopped jicama. I buy snack ziplock bags and just filler 'er up.
- bag of whole wheat crackers, triscuits, etc. I don't do this often, maybe once a month. These crackers aren't the healthiest for you and I'm getting my whole grains elsewhere, but it's an idea.
- whole wheat english muffin. I toast it up here at work and add some blackberry jam that I brought in a snack bag. Cut the corner of the baggie and squeeze it on.
The snacking options are endless.
I hope this helps!
For the record, I have a blood clot in my brain and have been on blood thinners for a while now. So, I never bring salads because the vitamin K found in greens can cause my blood to thicken. I'm sure there are lots of salads and greens ideas that I'm not throwing out there but could be good options.
But at least i'm doing some form of exercise each day.
