Eating a low-calorie lunch doesn’t always mean eating plain, bland foods. It is possible to eat delicious and nutritious meals throughout the day. Although a healthy lunch may seem impossible due to your work schedule, there are always ways to find nutritious, low-calorie, easy-to-prepare meals that will fit and work for any office situation. Here are 3 lunch ideas that can provide delicious, quick, low-calorie meals:
- sandwiches and wraps
It is advisable to prepare a healthy sandwich or wrap at home instead of going out for junk food and consuming extra calories. Just like salads, sandwiches and wraps are also available in many low-calorie varieties. All you have to do is carefully select the ingredients. Whole wheat bread, pita bread, English muffin, whole wheat muffin, or a tortilla can be selected to contain nutritious slices such as turkey breast, tuna, or fat-free cheese. Don’t forget to include lettuce, onion or tomato. Skim mozzarella can be added for a delicious flavor. - salad
When it comes to salads, there are literally endless variations you can have. In fact, salads are usually not expensive. They can be assembled from various types of fresh ingredients from your refrigerator. For example, you can include nutritious green leafy vegetables like spinach, mustard, and lettuce leaves, as well as raw vegetables like broccoli, carrots, cucumbers, and bell peppers. It’s okay to add some high-calorie but nutritious additions, like chopped nuts. Be careful when choosing salad dressing, though, as it can add the bulk of the calories to your mix. For that reason, you should use your salad dressing wisely. - varied plate
It is possible to create a healthy and delicious lunch by beautifully arranging meats, nuts, cheese and fruit on your plate. For example, you can slice turkey, canned tuna, lean beef, or chicken breast and serve it alongside blueberry clusters or apple-pear cubes. Fat-free cheeses, such as low-fat cottage cheese, can be used, but try to avoid cream cheese and whole-milk cheese. For your energy needs, you can include pieces of pita bread or some wheat crackers.
In addition to these three lunch entrees, it’s nice to have a snack that will give you a little more fuel to keep you going. For example, you can have a cup of cherries, a large peach, a small banana, a square of dark chocolate, a granola bar, a small apple, or a cup of nonfat Greek yogurt. After all, with these options no one should go hungry or lose health.