Sometimes I'm jealous of Europeans. Historically, they take a
long break in the middle of the day to have a big meal with friends and
family, and often take a nap as well! In America, our culture dictates
that we must hit the ground running when we first wake up and not let up
all day long.
Unfortunately, this leads us to put less emphasis on the healthfulness of our food. Since most of us are in the middle of our workday, we can't make a big healthy lunch like we could at home. And most people just opt for fast food or highly-processed food from a box or can.
Eating like this day in and day out can have some serious health consequences, ranging from obesity to heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Here are some healthy lunch ideas that will help you stay in great shape while eating tasty food every day.
Idea #1: Leftovers
Leftovers have somewhat of a bad reputation, but this need not be so! When you cook at home, you are much more able to use whole, fresh, unprocessed ingredients and therefore eat in a way that keeps you from gaining weight. So from now on, why don't you cook up double the amount you usually make for dinner, throw some in the fridge, and bring it to work the next day!
Idea #2: Cook In Bulk
This is closely related to idea #1. One thing you could try is once a week, on your day off, cooking up a massive amount of food. It takes the same amount of time to make a huge pot of chili as it does a small pot, so you might as well take advantage of this. You can put enough in the fridge for the next couple days, while storing the rest in the freezer for later in the week. I really like to do this with soups, stews, and chili, since they always taste better with time.
Idea #3: Throw Something Together the Night Before
You can always quickly throw together a big salad the night before with very little time investment. I make my salads with raw ingredients and leftover meat and eggs, so it only requires me to throw stuff in a bowl the night before. Keep a wide variety of raw vegetables on hand and you'll be set. Use your leftover meat, maybe hard boil eggs in bulk once a week, and you'll have the healthiest, most satisfying lunch you've ever eaten.
With these healthy lunch ideas, you'll never be making a positive investment in your health that will pay off in being leaner and having more energy than ever before.
Article Source:
http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Darrin_Carlson
Unfortunately, this leads us to put less emphasis on the healthfulness of our food. Since most of us are in the middle of our workday, we can't make a big healthy lunch like we could at home. And most people just opt for fast food or highly-processed food from a box or can.
Eating like this day in and day out can have some serious health consequences, ranging from obesity to heart disease, diabetes, and cancer. Here are some healthy lunch ideas that will help you stay in great shape while eating tasty food every day.
Idea #1: Leftovers
Leftovers have somewhat of a bad reputation, but this need not be so! When you cook at home, you are much more able to use whole, fresh, unprocessed ingredients and therefore eat in a way that keeps you from gaining weight. So from now on, why don't you cook up double the amount you usually make for dinner, throw some in the fridge, and bring it to work the next day!
Idea #2: Cook In Bulk
This is closely related to idea #1. One thing you could try is once a week, on your day off, cooking up a massive amount of food. It takes the same amount of time to make a huge pot of chili as it does a small pot, so you might as well take advantage of this. You can put enough in the fridge for the next couple days, while storing the rest in the freezer for later in the week. I really like to do this with soups, stews, and chili, since they always taste better with time.
Idea #3: Throw Something Together the Night Before
You can always quickly throw together a big salad the night before with very little time investment. I make my salads with raw ingredients and leftover meat and eggs, so it only requires me to throw stuff in a bowl the night before. Keep a wide variety of raw vegetables on hand and you'll be set. Use your leftover meat, maybe hard boil eggs in bulk once a week, and you'll have the healthiest, most satisfying lunch you've ever eaten.
With these healthy lunch ideas, you'll never be making a positive investment in your health that will pay off in being leaner and having more energy than ever before.