Inside A Nutritionist’s Lunch
By Nutritional Weight & Wellness Staff
July 1, 2015
Packing a lunch…a sometimes dreaded, but necessary part of most days. If you’re like us, some days you’re just not into it or nothing in the fridge strikes your fancy. So, let’s get some inspiration and peek into our nutritionists’ lunches for some ideas.
What's for lunch?
You’ve heard Nutritional Weight & Wellness advocating for the importance of eating real food in balance. What are we talking about? We mean every snack you have, every meal you plan, should have a real fat, real protein and real carbs. Let’s dig into Jamie’s lunch to see what that looks like. Today she’s having a delicious taco salad comprised of:
- Fat: one small avocado
- Carbs: sweet potato cubes (about ½ cup) and salad greens (about 2 cups) plus strawberries (½ cup) on the side
- Protein: grass-fed beef (about ¾–1 cup) seasoned with Texas Original Taco Skillet Sauce
Jamie sometimes has a La Croix sparkling water with lunch, to mix it up from regular water all day, and always takes her midday Bifido Balance probiotic supplement (taken about 15-20 minutes before eating). Jamie always keeps salad basics on hand. For her family that means a big container of greens, some form of protein (perhaps leftover from the night before like this lunch was), and fats like an avocado or olive oil for dressing.
Mix it up
Jamie stresses that lunch doesn’t have to be traditional. For instance, skip the standard sandwich and throw together a whole cucumber (carb), an avocado (fat) and some leftover lunch meats (protein). Less time in the kitchen and you still end up with a balanced meal.
Out to lunch
Forgot your lunch or are your coworkers headed out? Jamie suggests Chipotle as a great option. They have great build-it-yourself options, with a couple caveats to keep it balanced. First, make it a salad bowl and choose a meat for your protein. Next up choose between rice or beans, both are high-starch carbs and two will spike your blood sugar too high. Are you a fan of the fajita veggies? Those are non-starchy so those can be added without limits. Last, choose either guacamole or sour cream for your fat, not both.
Would you trade lunches with Jamie? What would you like to ask a nutritionist about her lunch picks?
Still hung up on that balanced meal lingo above? Join us for the next round of our Weight & Wellness Class Series to learn the ins and outs of how to eat real food to feel better.
