ideas for lunch at work

hello everyone,

i was just wondering if anybody has any ideas for interesting and healthy lunches to take to work? i often fall down at work by either eating from the canteen (chips mostly) or not eating at all then pigging out when i get home!! So i'm taking my lunches in now, but i usually just make a cottage cheese salad or a sandwich, any varied ideas out there? i cant take anything that needs cooking as i only get 20mins and the microwave/toaster are usually broken! lol!

dawn

xx

I had a struggle thinking of things for lunch at work. I've settled on a basic salad of romaine lettuce, cucumber, red pepper, tomatoes, carrot and then add different things each day like sweetcorn, sala, tinned mixed beans or chick peas or tinned tuna. You could add boiled eggs or some kind of sandwich meat. I also take a container of cut up fruit like melon or apple, it seems more appealing when it's all cut and ready to eat :). I cover it in lime juice to stop it going bad, and also because I love limes! hehe. I some times take tinned fruit.

Other good ones are rye bread or cracker bread and take laughing cow low fat mini cheese triangles to spread on them. Cereal bars are also good! And wraps instead of a sandwich. In the UK you can also buy mini individual lots of hummus which are good with cut carrot and cucumber!

Hope I've helped! x

Well, the microwave being busted makes life a little more difficult.  You're stuck eating things either cold or room temperature.  Do you have another microwave in a different department at work maybe? 

Think of any meals you'd eat at home at room temperature.  Tacos, salads, cold pizza?  Anything you can fix at home and are able to eat at room temperature you can sure as hell find a way to pack it up and take it to work.

Whole Wheat Pita Pocket with grilled chicken, tomato, lettuce (or spinach), a little mozzarella with some lite Honey Dijon salad dressing drizzled over top....yummy!

Sara Lee 45 calorie bread (2 slices) spread with 1 laughing cow cheese wedge (the light garlic is good), and some deli turkey or ham is another good one.

Add a dannon lite and fit yogurt, a salad (or fresh veggies) and a piece of fruit.

Those are my 2 lunches I eat the most.

Do you like gazpacho (sp?) - cold tomato veggie soup? That's good with a sandwich and helps fill you up and get your veggies in for the day. I'm also a big fan of salads in the summer with just mixing up the ingredients. I love tuna with a bit of feta, garbanzo beans, cherry tomatoes and hot peppers with a balsamic dressing. Or a classic chef with turkey, hard boiled eggs, light cheese, avocado and low fat ranch. Someone else mentioned wraps - those are great since they seem different than a sandwich but are just as easy.

Do you have access to a refrigerator?  If not, an insulated lunchbox with an ice pack or two will usually be sufficient.  Below is a listing what I take with me to work, some for lunch and some for snacks.  It's a lot of food, but I generally eat a lighter dinner and prefer to eat more of my food earlier in the day.

Tuna salad sandwich on low-cal bread (tuna salad made with low-sodium tuna, low-fat mayo, and mustard.)  Single-serving carton of non-fat yogurt.  Piece of fruit or single-serving size canned peaches or pineapple.  Sandwich bag containing green pepper strips, cucumber slices, broccoli, and baby carrots.  Serving of hommus to dip veggies in.  One serving of raw almonds.  I also keep single-serving boxes of raisins in my desk in case I still feel hungry after eating all that (which I rarely do!)

Today it was a can of tuna with a little miracle whip, dumped out on a piece of frozen low cal bread and eaten open faced.  Time to prepare was about a minute, and I counted it as 210 calories.  I ate while I went for a walk. 

Yesterday and today I ate a baked sweet potato, plain. Tuna drained and rinsed in a whole grain pita with jalapeños, peppers and lettuce.