To busy to eat a healthy lunch?

Work is busy, you don't have enough time to cook or sit down and have a proper meal at lunchtime so you opt for the easiest quickest thing you can find

Unfortunately when the words easy and quick are involved it usually means unhealthy and if you are looking to lose body fat, feel better and have more energy then this isn't going to end well

It's time to stop with the meal deal and start making your lunch the real deal!!!

The Problem

The problem or problems I should say are usually one of a few things and here at BLS I've heard all of the excuses

Problem #1 - "I just don't have time to have lunch." I'm call B.S on this one, you should never be too busy to eat. If you think about it if you don't eat properly you don't fuel your body and brain properly so energy drops and this isn't productive. So stop pretending you don't have time to eat and make sure you take time throughout the day to do so. People who take regular breaks are proven to be more productive anyway so take a second a fuel up

Problem #2 - "I don't know what to eat." It's unlikely you're going to start cooking a slap up meal at lunch time and not knowing what to eat or what will be convenient to eat stops people eating healthily at lunch. So what ends up happening is you prepare nothing and going to the local shop for a sandwich, bag of crisps and a chocolate bar. Hardly a lunch that will promote a healthy, lean body. So the key is preparing food that is quick and easy to eat so that you don't left with no other option than what's left on the shelves at Sainsburys local

Problem #3 - "I'm on the road a lot." Being on the road shouldn't be an excuse to let your health go to pot. Even if you don't prepare food or don't have the means to even the shops will have healthier options and foods that are more likely to serve you health and fitness needs. That said if you are properly prepared lunch on the road should be child's play.

The Solution

Enter the busy mans guide to lunch

The solution is easy and it's all in the preparation, as the saying goes 'fail to prepare, prepare to fail'

Firstly you'll need a lunch box anywhere between 2 - 3 litres and this depends on your size and your goals. A bigger guy would have a bigger box and smaller guy a smaller box and when it comes to goals if it's fat loss you're looking for don't go to big. Ultimately you'll have to try the lunch box solution first and adjust along the way based on results

Once you have the box you now need to fill it and we are going to break it down into 4 groups

Group 1 - Vegetables

These account for 40% of the lunch box and it's best to be as varied as possible. You may use salad, you may use pre-chopped veg but get lots of different colours and varieties in there

Group 2 - Proteins

These account for 30% of the lunch box. Pre cooked meats batch cooked or even bough pre-cooked to save time, eggs again pre-cooked and kept in the fridge, tinned fish are all good choices that don't take masses of time to prepare and can be easily thrown in

Group 3 - Carbs

These account for 20% of the box and tis might even be lower on a non exercise day or if your primary goal is to lose body fat. You can use rice, potatoes, bread, pasta, couscous, legumes. Mix it up so it doesn't get boring and pre-cook as much as possible as and when you need to.

Group 4 - Fats

These make up the final 10% of the lunch box but this might be slightly higher if carbs are reduced. Think dressings, olives, nuts, avocados, cheese, hummus pesto. Don't be lured into thinking fats make you fat because they don't. They will actually help you with your fat loss pursuits if eaten in balance.

Once you have your lunch box made up you just need to eat it throughout the day, this can be broken down over a number of smaller meals and breaks or in one sitting. Really thats personal preference and we are just trying to make sure you fuel your body and make better choices throughout the day.

The Wrap Up

So the key to lunch time success is making sure you stay prepared and don't leave it to chance because I'll tell you now once you are in the local shop and the choices are wide you will be a lot more likely to make bad decisions when it comes to what your having for lunch. 

This isn't about being perfect and being one size fits all but making sure that most of the time you are making better choices and staying healthy in order to boost energy, burn fat and look great. 

If you are left hungry choose a bigger lunch box and split mess up, if you aren't losing the weight you would like opt for a smaller lunch box and adjust portion sizes.

If you'd like more support and more solutions to your health and fitness problems we are always happy to help. Application to our next program is open and you can apply right now by clicking the link -------> APPLY TODAY