Lunches

Sometimes the issue of what to take for lunch really stresses me out. For me, if I don't bring a lunch, I'm not eating lunch. My office is surrounded by Tim Hortons, Wendys, Dairy Queen and Arby's. The only thing gluten free at any of these fast food joints is probably a pop.

Jason has it easier when he doesn't have the time to make a lunch. However, for the sake of trying to eat cleaner and also save some money, packing a lunch is the best plan for both of us. I've seen lots of blogs where people have a "cooking day" and cook all their meals for the week or even the month on one day and simply freeze them.

Most recently I was inspired by a podcast I've been listenening to lately - Fat 2 Fit Radio. They talk about ways to be healthy - not just lose weight. They also talk about crazy fad diets and weight loss products which keeps me entertained during the work day. One of the hosts mentioned he makes all his lunches in advance and directed listeners to a photo on their website. Here it is. Impressive hey? Also, just for fun, check out these transformation photos.

So after seeing those photos and reading lots about meal planning, I had my own cooking day today! I made lunches for both Jason and I for the next 2 weeks. Nothing too creative - some brown rice, chicken & vegetables mostly. We got a large bag of mixed vegetables from Costco for $6.99 and I still have some left over after this.  I also made quinoa with tuna and peas just to mix it up. As Jason is more into the meat and I more into the alternatives, he's got lots of chicken and I've got 4 days where I replaced my chicken with chickpeas. For part of the meals, I sauteed the vegetables and for the others I simply threw them in frozen. They are all gluten free and dairy free as well. To go with these meals, I've portioned some dried fruit with nuts and I've frozen some grapes as an option too. We both always have our usual orange, banana & yogurt a day and oatmeal for breakfast. The only wild card is now dinner! I don't mind taking my time and making a more creative meal - plus now I don't have to worry about making so much for leftovers.

These 2 weeks will be an experiment as to what works best. I will keep you posted on this lunch project!