Back-to-School: Snaz-up Your Breakfast and Bagged Lunch

One of our pictures from vacation..early morning surfing at milepost 14.5.

Summer is coming to a close, and with it my freedom to grocery shop early in the morning, spend hours cooking over the stove, and more importantly the freedom to decide what lunch will be five minutes before I eat it. Now I have to plan out meals well in advance. I normally prepare breakfast and lunch for the next day the night before so I can sleep as late as possible. I have to admit I really resent having to spend about 35 to 45 minutes each night taking care of this routine, but it definitely saves money and is a much healthier option than grabbing breakfast or lunch on the go.
Here are a few things I do to help save money and time when it comes to my homemade lunches.
1. a bag of fruit like gala or fuji apples, or enough nectarines or oranges to have one piece of fruit as a mid afternoon or mid morning snack each day
2. Trader Joe's pre-packed almonds and/or Omega 3 Trail Mix (10 pre-packaged baggies per pack)
3. a variety of yogurt flavors (I tend to buy light and fit...80 calories, 0% fat), but greek yogurt is awesome too
4. tupperware and plastic baggies in a variety of shapes and sizes
5. baby carrots
6. laughing cow light cheese (creamy swiss) or string cheese (low-fat part skim)
7. napkins
8. a few sets of old silverware
9. a few ice packs (rotate them so that you always have one that is well frozen and will stay cold all day)
10. a snazzy lunch box

The other morning I woke up around 4:30am and couldn't go back to sleep. After forcing myself to stay in bed until 5am I woke up and spent some time calculating the calories for a typical school day breakfast, mid-morning snack. lunch and mid-afternoon snack. Below are the results that I found. I used calories as a basis to see just how many I generally consume on a daily basis, but as always you should read everything on the package: fat, saturated fat, trans fats, sodium, sugars, protein, fiber, etc. Know your foods in and out so that you can make good decisions about what you put in your body. Realize that a lot of companies put labels on products like Natural, Healthy, Low Fat, Sugar Free, etc. Read the fine print because that is just a marketing technique. Don't be fooled, do your research and make good decisions based on your particular needs.

Breakfast Omelet

1 Mushroom, sliced: 8
2 egg whites: 32
4 grape tomatoes, sliced: 7
1 tbsp chopped onions: 4
EVOO 1 tbsp: 120

Total: 171 calories

Breakfast Toast

1 slice Cinnamon & Raison Ezekial Bread: 80

1/2 tbsp Natural Peanut Butter: 47.5

1 tbsp Organic Sugar Free Blackberry Preserves: 35

Toast: 165 calories

Coffee

1 8 oz mug: 5 calories

1/2 tsp agave sweetener: ~10

2 tbsp Almond Milk: ~10

Total: ~25

Breakfast total: ~435 calories

Mid-Morning Snack

10 carrots: 40

1 laughing cow light cheese (swiss): 35

Total: 75 calories

Lunch

Salad:

1 cup spring mix: 7

4 grape tomatoes, sliced: 7

1/4 cup sliced cucumber: 7

2 slices of Boars Head Classic Chicken breast (deli meat), chopped up: 100 calories

1 tbsp feta cheese (basil and tomato): ~20 calories

French Dressing 1 tbsp: 45

Total: 186 calories

Yogurt: 140

Lunch Total: 326

Afternoon Snack

1 nectarine: 60

1 pkg Trader Joe's Omega 3 Trail Mix: 170 calories

Total: 230 calories

There are so many options to change this daily routine around. You can substitute grape tomatoes or cucumber slices for the carrots or you can try a different flavor of light cheese.

At lunch you can ditch the deli meat and add tuna one day a week or a hard boiled egg. It is important to make sure you get some protein at lunch, so don't cut it out all together. You can change the veggies or type of greens in your salad as well as the dressing. Just make sure to use light or fat free dressings. I actually love Kraft's Balsamic Vinaigrette, but I am trying to get rid of the Fat Free French in my fridge.

For the afternoon snack you can switch out the trail mix for a bag of almonds or a kashi granola bar (the Dark Chocolate Cherry one is awesome) and you can use seasonal fruits. In the fall apples are great, during the winter I go with oranges, tangerines or nectarines, in the early spring I take a cup of mixed berries, and all summer I eat a cup of watermelon, cantaloupe or honeydew.

Most importantly be creative so you don't get bored with your routine. If you get bored, you will be tempted to grab something from the vending machine or toss out your bagged lunch and grab lunch out with friends. Save your money and most importantly eat healthy by planning ahead and eating meals you prepare yourself!