I Need Help with Lunch!!

http://www.laptoplunches.com/

I love the photos (I'm a visual learner) on that website for ideas. You'll never run out now.

Hi J. ~ Like everyone else, I love leftovers for lunch. Also like sandwhiches. I'll take yogurt and fruit and make a parfait. Take a drink with you too. Also, Trader Joes has good and affordable things like 100 calorie cookie packs so you have a side. I think they're $1.99 or $2.19 something like that. They have good soups too that come in a box so you can reuse. Trader Joe's Tomato and roasted red pepper soup is my favorite!. It's great with a 1/2 sandwhich. My husband and I both take our lunches and we also like the 60 calorie pudding cups. Typically we make a sandwhich, take a pudding cup, yogurt, 100 calorie pack and a diet coke or a water bottle with a propel power addition. If you want something crunchy like a baked chip or pita chips, you can buy a bag and put them in small sandwhich bags in serving sizes. this helps with not overeating. Also ad a piece of fruit and you're set!

This is going to sound a little wacky, but when I went back to work recently after a long absence from a traditional office setting, I decided that I didn't want to think too much about food. I realized that way too many conversations go on in my head about what I feel like eating or what I deserve to eat or what I "should" or "shouldn't" eat.

I somehow accidentally decided on one sandwich that was basically yogurt cheese on ezekial bread, and that is what I took everyday for months. I never got tired of it because I decided I wasn't going to even think about it. I just ate.

I've since gone on to a couple of cleansing type diets that took cheese out as an option and I'm back to all the same discussions in my head about lunch. I miss the yogurt cheese on plain bread days. It was kind of rustic and picnic-like. =-)

I made a tahini free hummus today:
1 can garbonzo beans
1/4 cup olive oil
1 lemon (juice about 1/4 cup)
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup roasted red peppers
(but you can substitute anything like: green onion, olives, cilantro etc.)
pinch crushed red pepper (adds a little kick)

Add all the ingredients to a food processor(or blender)and mix.

You can take celery, carrots, cucumber, bell peppers to dip. You can make a great sandwich Multigrain Bread with a layer of hummus, cucumbers, yellow bell peppers and maybe some mixed greens. YUMMY!!!!
Good source of fiber and protien!

I'm always a fan of sweet potatoes. Bake them at home and reheat at work. Inexpensive, filling and so good for you!-www.weelicious.com

I always put dinner leftovers in lunch sized tupperware, then reheat in microwave at work for lunch the next day. This works well for meat, pasta, rice, veggies.

If you don't like eating out of tupperware, you can keep some paper plates, forks, etc in the cabinet in the kitchen or in your desk drawer/file cab.

Think of easy things to bring: Soup, salads, sandwiches, fruit, nuts, yogurt, etc.
The market has 100 cal. bags of chips, cookies, pretzles, that way you can splurge and be good at the same time.
You can bring left overs or a microwaveable frozen lunch. It's just lunch, think practical.

I too find that leftovers make the best lunch at work. I also like to keep a few frozen diet meals in the freezer for the days I forget my lunch. Lean Cuisine and and Healthy Choice make some really tasty meals. Other things I like to bring are sandwhiches and salads (with the dressing on the side). I also like to keep nuts or trail mix in my desk for days when I don't have time to eat.

Sometimes what I do for my whole family is make a bunch of sandwiches at the beginning of the week, then freeze them. Take one out in the morning, and by lunch time it's completely thawed (in case you may not have time to put things in the fridge). So far it's worked for PBJs & Turkey and cheese type sandwiches.
Hope this helps.