Lunch is a big dilemma for me. If i don't eat enough protien I'm craving sweet and feeling woozy If i eat too much of anything I'm sluggish and icky much like now!
What do you all do? Also how many meals do you have during the day?
Thanks,
Kier
I stick to a standard three meals a day, but I often add 100-calorie snacks.
My lunch, today, is a WW Smart Ones and a salad with some dressing. I don't typically buy microwave meals, but I was feeling a little burnt out on kitchen stuff this week.
I usually bring 2 servings of vegetables, ~4 oz protein (either sliced deli meat, hummus, cheese, or cottage cheese), and about 30g of a healthy carb (crackers, bread), and maybe a fat (dressing on a salad, usually).
My daytime snacks are usually a piece of fruit or a 100-calorie micro-popcorn bag.
Lunch for me is typically a fajita size tortilla...some whipped cream cheese, a slice of deli meat (I'm on a roast beef kick now), a slice of cheese (usually provolone), a leaf of lettuce & a vlasic stacker pickle...rolled up and sliced. Sometimes though at work I'll do that but use the lettuce as the wrap.
I've had popcorn...but don't eat it often becuase it's all carbs and I can eat quite a bit of it since it melts down to pretty much nothing...
Kier, I take my lunch to work everyday & some of the things I bring (not all on the same day) are: 1/2 c. LF cottage cheese w/ SF canned fruit, shaved deli ham or turkey (3 oz), fresh fruit (apples mostly), 2 c. tossed veggie salad with 2 oz. diced ham or chicken & 1/4 c shredded cheese & Low Carb salad dressing. I also take my breakfast to work to eat & that is usually 6 oz. Low Carb yogurt (Kroger brand has 12 g. protein), mini bagel with cream cheese.
I have no problems eating popcorn unless it has butter/oil on it. That is where my problem with it is.
well, let's see. always ALWAYS veggies. sometimes cooked, sometimes raw, sometimes both! ALWAYS protein - can be anything from leftovers to sliced deli chicken or roast beef. generally a wee bit of cheese in there. sometimes a low-carb wrap, sometimes rye krisp.
today was the 3rd day of a leftover takeout. i had a half-order of linguine with sausage and broccoli rabe on sunday, and i finally finished it today. i added about an ounce of mozzarella and some romano to up the protein. i'm full.
tomorrow, it'll probably be a nice salad with greens, radishes, red peppers, cucumbers, deli roast beef, and a little blue cheese. and balsamic dressing.
If i cut up veggies ahead of time how do i keep them fresh? I was actually thinking of buying one of those precut veggie platters too
I was doing just a veggie burger but that leaves me unsatisfied and foraging
Do you all have any good egg or tuna salad I did a 3-5 bean salad I just want a quick and satisfying low work lunch ARG!
Hi, Kier. What do I do for lunch? Lately, sleep...... Oh, wait, not a food by any means. Um, pretty much whatever I want as long as it involves protein, very little or no sugar, low on carbs, low fat, and MUST taste good. And it can't hurt when it goes down. Leaves a lot of options, I know, lol. Yesterday, I had 3 reheated (did-everything-but-hunt for-the-meat-myself kind) meatballs that were each about 1/4 cup by volume and some sauce. But, I kinda eat constantly, it seems, lol.
kier - there are two basic strategies for low-maintenance lunches and they apply to everyone, whether or not they've had surgery.
the first is to cook ahead/freeze
the second is to have ready-to-grab stash
SOOOO, i do a bit of both. i'll make meatloaf [mashing up a can of chickpeas and grating carrots, mushrooms, zucchini into the mix], and form them into meatball-size meatloaf-ettes, bake them, and freeze individually. or, lentil soup or chili. or whatever.
as for ready-to-grab stash - always ALWAYS have bagged salad on hand. grab a pepper or whatever other raw veggies you have, and a knife, and you can slice away when you're ready for lunch [of course, you can do this ahead, but sometimes who has time???!!!!!]. i keep salad dressing at my desk.
and at the deli, i get 1/4 pounds of buffalo chicken [shoprite!], or lean eye round, or salsa turkey. add some cheese, and i'm done. i take the deli wrapped packages with me in my insulated bag.
and there's stash at my desk: rye krisp and laughing cow lite. that's IT!!!!
And call me lazy, but i'll take a can of tuna and dump it on a bed of greens and call it a day! if i have some chick peas, they'll go in as well.
for BAD days, i have some protein powder at work. sometimes ya just gotta go with the basics.
SALSA TURKEY!!!!! I need to do a shoprite Run!
I'm definitely going to try mini meatloaves can I do them in a muffin tin?
I'll definitely stash some Laughing cow in my desk and maybe in my purse for road snackage. I'm going to Hit the A&P at lunch time get some Fiber 1 and some activia and bags to prepack some 1/2 cup servings.
Can you freeze 3 bean salad?
Yesterday I was bored at work and concocting a recipe in my head (see food obsessed) for a burrito to grill and Freeze reheating in the micro I'll let you know how they turn out.
the key for me, for lunch packaging, is PORTION CONTROL. i find when i set it up from the start, i can manage it. if i were faced with a large amount of meat to choose a serving from, i'd mess it up every time. that's why the mini meatloaves and tiny plastic containers are all over the kitchen!
i have 1 oz, 2 oz, 1/2 c, 1 c, and 2 c containers. 1 and 2 oz are for fats and grated cheeses, 1/2 c for starches [i don't fill them up all the way], 1 c for high-protein soups/chili/stew, and 2 c for veggies. and then lettuce/spinach for salad goes in larger containers.
and yes, you can make the meatloaves in muffin tins, but i'm not that organized. i cover a baking sheet with foil, and just blob them on!
geez louise, kier - i've never paid attention! i know i turn the oven on to somewhere around 350, probably a wee bit higher. and i leave them in for awhile. maybe 30 minutes? maybe a little less?