What do you eat for snack/lunch

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  • Hi - I searched and couldn't find a thread for snacks/lunch - I did find what did you have for dinner - that's a great thread.

    My new favorite snack that doubles as a lunch for me is:
    approx. 192 calories, 16g protein, 4g fat, 24g carb (3.22 ww points)

    1/2 cup non fat cottage cheese
    1 sml apple chopped
    6 chopped almonds
    sprinkle of cinnamon

    (I sometimes add a few raisins)
  • Yours sounds good..I will have to try that. I like cutting an apple in half, removing the seeds/core and putting some natural peanut butter on/in it. Wasa cracker with portioned out cheese (low fat cheddar, pepper jack usually), Wasa cracker with some natural peanut butter and half sliced banana.

    Recent favorite I learned from here is fat free ricotta cheese mixed with splenda and vanilla extract.. nice for a high protein dessert.
  • My favorite snacks are: fruit (especially oranges or berries, or watermelon in the summer), string cheese, turkey jerky, dried mango (measured, too easy to eat too much), veggies with hummus dip, wasa crackers with light Laughing Cow cheese, tall skinny lattes from Starbucks, sugar free cocoa, 100 calorie Kettle corn single serving packs, sliced apple with 1 tbs of cashew butter or almond butter

    For lunch, I love salads. I have access to a refrigerator and a microwave at work, which is awesome. I bring a salad nearly every day. I make all 5 salads on Sunday nights (a lot of people have asked me if the salad gets wilty or gross by Friday - nope not yet). It saves me time and money to make all my salads at once. For example, if I want Asian chicken salad, I can buy one can of mandarin oranges and split it among all 5 salads, so I don't tend to waste much. Here are my favorite salads (I would eat 5 Asian chicken salads one week, 5 BBQ chicken salads the next week, etc etc). I hate cold chicken, so I always nuke the chicken at the last minute and add it to my salad right before I eat it. I also like to add little crunchy bites (french fried onions, or candied walnuts or tortilla strips - I add those at the last minute too, so they stay crunchy).

    The Classic
    Spinach
    Grilled chicken breast
    ¼ cup dried cranberries
    ¼ cup nuts (pepitas or almonds, usually)
    Grape tomatoes
    Carrot shreddies
    Red pepper chunks
    Red onion
    Gingerly Vinaigrette dressing

    Asian (this also makes an amazing wrap)
    Crisp romaine
    Grilled chicken breast (shrimp is also good, leftover grilled salmon is good)
    Mandarin oranges
    Sliced, water chestnuts
    Edamame
    Grape tomatoes
    Broccoli slaw
    Small handful of cashew bits/pieces
    Trader Joe’s Spicy Asian Vinaigrette
    Crunchy salad wonton toppers (just a few, for crunch)

    BBQ Chicken
    Spinach
    Roasted corn
    A few black beans
    Chopped roma tomato
    Red onion
    Carrot shreddies
    Chopped avocado (how much – if any – depending on calories for the day)
    Grilled chicken (heated in the oven with Amy’s organic bbq sauce as the dressing)
    Sprinkle of low fat cheddar
    Black olives

    Mediterranean
    Crisp romaine
    Broccoli slaw
    Red onion
    Sliced kalamata olive
    Pepperocini
    Carrot shreddies
    Chopped roma tomato
    Heated, crumbled spicy veggie burger
    Trader Joe’s tzaziki (1/4 of container) for dressing
  • Hi all,

    I'm new to the site...all the recipes sound sooo good!!! I will be using a couple of those...I'm 6 weeks pre WLS and still trying to drop pounds. It's been a struggle for me but I've made some good changes in the last 6 six months. I have a great recipe for a cold side dish for lunch or a chicken strip dinner.

    Southwestern Black bean salad:

    1 can of Black beans (drained/rinsed)
    1 can of corn (drained/rinsed)
    1/2 large or 1 small tomato finely diced (hollwed or juices squeazed out)
    1-2 tablespoons finely minced onion (purple, white or yellow)
    2-3 finely minced garlic cloves
    1/4cup chopped cilantro
    juice from one lime
    salt and pepper to taste

    This is very yummy... high in protein and dietary fiber also low in fat.
  • Your salads sound yummy Glory! I also love nice big salads for lunch. Though recently my favorite lunch has been a whole wheat pita stuffed with chicken, lettuce, spinach & carrots. So yummy.
  • Quote:
    For lunch, I love salads. I have access to a refrigerator and a microwave at work, which is awesome. I bring a salad nearly every day. I make all 5 salads on Sunday nights (a lot of people have asked me if the salad gets wilty or gross by Friday - nope not yet).
    What are you storing the salads in so they stay fresh?
  • Everything sounds great - I love getting some new ideas...

    Glory - what is the flavor of tzaziki? I have never heard of this before.
  • Quote: What are you storing the salads in so they stay fresh?
    I buy the produce on Sunday. I make the salads and store them in individual tupperware in the crisper drawer. I would say the salad on Friday isn't AS crisp as the salad on Monday, but it's perfectly edible and just fine for me (I really notice very little difference).
  • Quote: Everything sounds great - I love getting some new ideas...

    Glory - what is the flavor of tzaziki? I have never heard of this before.
    It's cucumber/yogurt dressing, it comes on gyro sandwiches a lot!
  • A little high in fat but my current favorite is 1/4 cup of almonds. I buy raw, unsalted almonds and toast them myself with my favorite seasonings (I don't like surprises in my food). I do 2 cups on the weekend, then portion them out into snack baggies so I can just throw a baggy into my purse and have an easy snack.

    Veggies with hummus is another favorite. I just started to make my own hummus, too. This also serves as a side for lunch or dinner quite often.
    Carrots with almond butter

    Lunches:

    Chili (power food. low fat/calories (if made with chicken or lean turkey), veggies, fiber, protein. great way to get you through the day)
    Salad with tuna
    Can of beans (when i'm running late, a can of black beans can be a diet saver!)
    leftovers from dinner the night before.

    Glory, your salads sound great! I might have to try some of them.

    ~Onyx
  • I eat all kinds of different things for snacks and lunch. The past few days, though, I've been having cottage cheese with canned no sugar added peaches or a zone perfect protein bar. For lunch, I've been having tuna salad sandwiches with tomato and cucumber, a side salad topped with green goddess dressing, and a small piece of fruit (like a kiwi or plum). Yum.
  • I gotta say I LOVE the idea of halving and hollowing an apple and filling it with peanut butter...I'll have to try that!

    Lately I usually pack a bento box (Japanese lunchbox) or a Fit'n'Fresh box (from Target). Today I had a work thing to go to, and I packed the F'n'F box with salad (bottom layer) with dressing and crunchies in little cups to add at the last minute; pulled pork; rice; strawberries; lowfat berry flavored cream cheese; and two Ryvita crispbreads. The boxes are the right size so the calories work out nicely.

    Usually I pack leftovers from the night before, plus veggies/fruit. I just make a bit extra so I have lunch the next day!
  • I live in southern california, so of course I love mexican food. It gets a bad rap for high calorie and fat, but if prepared with some thought - it can be a dieters dream.

    Another favorite snack for me is:

    Oven baked corn tortilla chips. (throw two right onto the rack in the oven at 400 - bake them on both sides til crisp, but not burned) - cut them into triangles.
    salsa - (I make my own with canned tomatoes and a variety of chilies, lime, onions, and cilantro), but the jar stuff works too. and low in fat and calories.

    Another thing I like to do with the tortillas - is to put a couple in the microwave for 30 seconds or so - just til they are pliable. Tear apart a low fat string cheese stick - roll the softened tortilla around it - now bake the tortilla tubes in the oven

    1/2 cup of homemade beans. (I buy the Sun brand of pinto beans - just cook them in the pot with a little salt, mashed garlic, and chili power- no fat involved - slow cook for about 1/2 hour or so - and mash and serve. I like to add some enchilada sauce for a little extra zing - if it's in the cupboard.

    Edit: Oh - check the labels on the tortillas you buy - the fat content varies with the brand. I like Romero's in my local market. 58 calories and <1 gram fat.
  • Ah, one of my favorite topics. I am on a seemingly neverending search for new lunch/snack ideas. Lunch and snack during the week can either make my day, or totally undo my nutrition plan (if I am not careful).

    The past two weeks for lunches at work, I had a homemade mini pizza, a serving of baby carrots, and a blood orange (with water to drink), for 354 calories total. The homemade mini pizzas were topped with tomatoes, yellow squash, broccoli, and fresh mozzarella. (a side note, I portioned out everything on each mini pizza, and they came to 238 calories each! Not bad at all, and taste sooo much better to me than the frozen type from the store.) The mini pizzas were easy to make....I bought one 16-oz ball of fresh dough from my grocery's bakery, divided it into 8 pieces, stretched each piece into about a 5-6 inch diameter, topped with toppings, and baked. I usually do that on a Sunday afternoon, and the whole process takes considerably less than an hour....and then my week's lunches are all done!

    This week for lunch I made a tomato-rice soup that has garlic and navy beans in it. I found the recipe in Veganomicon....I'm not a vegan (or vegetarian, for that matter), but I bought the cookbook to help me find interesting new ways to try more veggies. Anyway, this soup recipe had no nutrition info listed, but I went with it anyway, hopeful that it would not be too high in calories or fat....Just looked up the nutrition info for the recipe with Sparkpeople's recipe builder, and OMG, 167 calories for TWO CUPS! Happy day for me. So for this week's lunch, I will have a serving of the soup, 1 oz of cheddar cheese, 1 serving of Kashi original crackers, and a piece of fruit (apple or orange).

    For snacks at work, I usually have one No Pudge brownie and 1% milk or a cup of hot tea, around 3pm. I find that by that time, my day has usually been so stressful that I need a little pampering snack, like something chocolate. I have also done 1 tbs of peanut butter and 1 square of Hershey's special dark, with a mug of tea. This week my snack will be some cubed canteloupe, 2 Wild Harvest organic chocolate sandwich cookies, and a cup of tea.

    I try to vary my snacks week to week, and I am always looking for ways to get in more servings of veggies and whole grains. I usually try to avoid simple carbs, but to be perfectly honest, sometimes when I am having a rough day at work, one No Pudge brownie and some blueberry rooibos tea does the trick.
  • Today I made a crab salad by mixing together a can (slightly larger than a can of tuna) of crab meat, 1/2 carrot chopped up, 1/4 onion chopped up, and 1 stalk of celery chopped up. I mixed it with 1/2 tbs. mayo.

    I had half for lunch today with a big rice cake, and will have half for lunch tomorrow. I also ate a juicy d'anjou pear and a slice of low-fat Jarlsburg cheese.

    Total calories for lunch: 260