I Love Lunch

Over the weekend, in the midst of my feeling rather puny, I posted a video of Improv Everywhere's "I Love Lunch." If you missed it (and a fantastic t-shirt stop motion video), check it out here. I do, in fact, love lunch. And I especially love lunch during the work week. And while my lunch hour used to mean eating out or running errands, I love that I am getting back into the habit of my lunch hour being used at the gym and then I eat something quick and easy at my desk after my workout. I'm getting hooked on frozen meals. I used to think they were crap- and I think there's a good chance of still finding crap out there. But I've had some rather tasty meals lately. And when I go to read the labels- expecting the bad news, the down side- I end up pleasantly surprised! Here's my normal workday eating routine: Get to work and get a cup of coffee with creamer (the sweetened bad for you kind). About an hour later, make oatmeal. Most days, I admit to making 2 packets. Most days, that holds me just fine until after my workout. I am working on cutting back to one packet. I sweeten my oatmeal with Trader Joe's Maple Agave Syrup (awesome great stuff). I'll get to lunch in a sec. Dinner is whatever gets thrown together at home. This past weekend, I did pretty well in the dinner department. Saturday, even though I was sick, I made meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Sunday, still sick but feeling better, I made meatballs (they were a chicken teriyaki meatball with pineapple in them- Teagan and I sampled them at the grocery store and she lvoed them so I immediately bought them for dinner and her love affair remained in tact- she and Zach both ate them up) and oven baked potato chips (potatoes sliced on the mandolin slicer, cookie sheet schmeared with olive oil, layer potato slices, grind on some salt- I've been using a lower sodium pink crystal salt from Trader Joe's- and back at 400 for 10-12 minutes; turn and then bake 10 minutes at 500). But lunch... I don't bring leftovers. I don't pack a lunch like a sandwich and an apple and yogurt. Instead, I've gotten hooked on Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice meals. They go on sale regularly so I eat for about $2 or less each meal. And both of these companies have been working to make meals that are healthier. The big issue with frozen food, generally, is the sodium. But both of these companies seem to be making efforts and strides to improve on that front. Monday, I had the Healthy Choice Lemon Pepper Fish Complete Meal. Breaded white fish on a bed of rice pilaf, broccoli florets, and caramel apple crisp give this high-fiber meal a distinct taste. 310 calories. 4.5 g fat. 440 mg sodium (which is 18% of the RDV). 13 g of protein. 50% Vit C. 5 g fiber.And it was good. The broccoli was perfect. The apples were crisp. The fish wasn't overly fishy. The rice pilaf had some wild rice in it. The only thing I added was some Sriracha Sauce... yum!

The best thing about that Healthy Choice meal? I felt full and satiated after eating it. I wasn't craving something more. I didn't eat 3 bites and then it was gone and I was left wanting more. It was a good size portion with plenty of savory and sweet.

Over the weekend, I ate a couple of Lean Cuisines at home. Their Spa line is pretty tasty. Christy and I both had the Lemongrass Chicken last week- it was better than expected and really quite good. Again- the sodium, at 550 mg, is the thing to watch. But 260 calories, 6 g of fat, 5 g fiber, and 19 g of protein? Not bad. Add in a yogurt (Stoneyfield Farms) so I satisfy my sweet tooth and I'm a happy camper!

It's hard to eat fresh, healthy meals at work. It's hard to balance working through lunch, hitting the gym, running errands and find the energy and motivation to have a healthy and satisfying meal that doesn't leave me craving chocolate or chips within a couple of hours.

And I have to admit that I am very tempted by knowing that the calorie intake on these meals is so much less than a meal I would normally eat if I grabbed a bite out. For the sake of comparison- let's say I order in my favorite Jimmy John's sandwich. The #4- Turkey Tom. Turkey, sprouts, tomato, lettuce, mayo. On that yummy JJ's bread. For just that sandwich- no pickle, no chips, no fruit, no sides- that's 515 calories!! 1,094 mg of sodium! Yikes! Take off the mayo (gulp) and calories drop to 322 and sodium drops to 920 mg (still a big ouch). I'm scared to go and look at the fast food meals I like to enjoy from time to time.

So here's my inspiration... I don't have a set goal to lose weight. I want to be healthier and make healthier eating choices. If I pay attention and stay smart about my meals and my snacks... just making this change to my lunch time routine could seriously have a major impact on my calorie intake and, hence, that whole "calories in, calories out" thing seems to be a lot more important.

I'm doing it! I'm exercising more regularly. I'm making better food choices. I still have a lot of weaknesses and I still have a lot of bad habits (let's not talk about ice cream or french onion dip, ok?). But I am making changes and I feel really, really good about it!

Ironically, I learned a lot a couple of weeks ago from the Fit City Twitter chat about staying motivated to exercise during the winter months- or even just in general. Tonight, there is another Fit City Indy Twitter chat. And this time- the focus is on food! I will definitely be tuning in and I hope you'll come and check it out and even participate, too!

Participate in the next Indy Fit Chat on Feb. 23. Starting at 6:30 p.m. EST, FitCity’s guest Annessa Chumbley (@Flourish_Girl) will give her Grocery Survival Strategies. Find out how you can get the healthiest trip through your local grocery and ask questions about portion control, food labels and more. Search #indyfitchat on Twitter or follow @fitcityindy to be a part of the conversation on Tuesday, Feb. 23.