Brown Bagging Done Right! By Erica Timmermann Dietetic Intern 2009

With all the great benefits of packing your lunch such as saving money, saving time and most importantly saving calories, you want to make sure that it does not become a hassle to pack your lunch to work each and every day! Therefore, this module is designed to help you plan ahead and find ways to save you time while still giving you plenty of variety in your healthy diet.

After the completion of the module, you will be able to identify two out four ways to make packing your lunch easy. After the completion of the module, you will be able to identify one healthy lunch choice when forced to go out to eat through each case scenario.

Planning Ahead! Packing a lunch to work does require a little more effort than it would to just hit your favorite drive-thru. However the benefits in the end far out weigh the extra effort, especially when it comes to maintaining your weight!

Tips to Encourage! Here are some great tips to help you plan ahead when trying to prepare your lunch for the week: – Plan a weekly lunch menu in advance. It will take 5 to 10 minutes and will help make packing your lunch a breeze. – Pack your lunch the night before. It will save you time in the morning. – Be sure to keep the cold foods cold. Get yourself a nice lunch cooler to keep your food cold if you do not have a refrigerator at work.

– Remind yourself to take your lunch. If your are one to forget, write a sticky note and place it on the door that you walk out of in the morning. – Use frozen bread/pitas/etc when packing your lunch. This can help keep you lunch cool and at a safe temperature. – Read food labels If you have a food label full of ingredients your don’t even know, then it most likely it is not a healthy choice to pack.

– Pack healthy leftovers When making your healthy evening meal, make enough to give yourself lunch the next day. This will really help save you time. Make several chicken or turkey breast a week and then make meals from the leftovers. Some ideas include a grilled chicken sandwich, homemade chicken salad with crackers, a chicken wrap, or add the rest of the chicken to a soup and make chicken noodle soup! Try making a big batch of soup. You can get several meals out this both for lunch and dinner. Leftovers are here to help you out so take advantage of them!

By following these tips, it will help make the most out a packing your lunch because it will help save you time and be less of a hassle.

Luncheon Ideas To help you to successfully pack your lunch, a week worth of luncheon ideas is available to you! Feel free to write these down or click on the Handout link below to print out for yourself! (Click on the link once) Nutrition Education Handout 2.docx

Day One Homemade Soup of your choice A small banana 5-10 saltine crackers Small side salad with 1 ounce of light cheese and 1-2 tablespoons of light Ranch 1 bottle of water with a crystal light package

Day Two 3 ounces of roast beef on a whole-wheat wrap – 3 ounces of meat with light mayo, mustard, tomatoes, onions, lettuce, pickles, and one ounce of light cheese. Low fat granola bar 1 small apple Celery sticks with 1 tablespoon of peanut butter 1 Diet Soda

Day Three Large Salad with carrots, onions, cucumbers, broccoli, and olives, 3 ounce of diced turkey or chicken, with 2-3 tablespoons of Light Honey Mustard Dressing 1 cup of pineapple chunks 12 small almonds 1 glass of apple juice

Day Four ½ cup of homemade chicken or tuna salad on 2 pieces of whole grain bread with lettuce, tomato, onion, and light mayo. 1 small bag of baked chips 5 light cheese cubes 1 medium orange 1 bottle of water

Day Five A small plate of leftover whole- wheat penne pasta with ½ cup of marinara sauce 1 whole wheat dinner roll 2 small kiwi 1 eight ounce glass of milk

Extra Ideas Day Six One 5 ounce chicken breast grilled ½ cup of rice pilaf Small salad with 1-2 tbsp of light dressing Medium Peach 1 bottle of water Day Seven 2 slices of leftover whole wheat pizza with your favorite toppings – Stay away from fatty meats 1 container of yogurt 1 cup of grapes 1 cup of light cranberry juice

Remember these are just a few ideas! Feel free to experiment with making your own weeks schedule of foods, or mix and match the options that were provided to fit your preference Making a week worth of luncheon ideas is simply and it can be used for any one else in your family as well such as your children, spouse, or significant other.

What if I forget my lunch one day? I will have to go out lunch then? – Forgetting your lunch can occur but you can still eat healthy in order to maintain you weight. – We will discuss this soon. What about going out to lunch with co- workers? – Going out to lunch with co-workers does occur but once again, you can still make healthy eating choices.

Over the next few slides, there will be two case scenario options. Try thinking about what you will do in order to still eat healthy while enjoying your lunch and your time with your co-workers without worrying about calories.

Case Scenario One Lets say you want to go out to lunch with your co- workers and they are going to Olive Garden. You think you are doomed for trying to find something healthy on the menu. However, there is good news! You are still in luck! Click on the link below to review the menu if you are not sure what they offer. Then decide what you would get to make it a healthy lunch.

Healthy Options at Olive Garden Healthy Options: The ‘Pasta e Fagiolo’ soup with a side salad, one breadstick and a cup of ice water with lemon. – Or try the Minestrone Soup that is offered! – Both are a broth based soup that are lower in calories compared to the cream based soups. Not feeling the soup and salad. Then go for the Linguine alla Marinara’. – The tomato based sauces are also less in calories compared to the cream based sauce pastas. Most menus will indicate their healthier food options on the menu so look for these when ordering.

Case Scenario Two So you forgot to grab your lunch out of the refrigerator and need to grab something quick. The closest thing is Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) You still want to eat healthy so what on the menu can you get that is healthy and will help you maintain your weight? Click on the link below to check out their menu to come up with your healthy lunch.

Healthy Options at Kentucky Fried Chicken Try the Roasted Chicken Caesar Salad with no croutons and dressing on the side. Or the ‘Oven Roasted Twister’ with a side of green beans and a side salad These are some of KFC healthier food options since they are lower in calories and fat.

Even if you forget your lunch and have no other choice but to go out to eat, you can still make healthy choices! For more information on eating out, visit the ‘Eating Out’ module.

Lets recap: Remember the tips that were given in the beginning of this module on how to pack healthy lunches successfully? Can you think of 2 of those tips that were given to help you pack lunches with ease?

And the answer is….. Pack your lunch the night before. Plan a weekly lunch schedule. Keep cold foods cold. Remind yourself to take your lunch by placing a sticky note on the door that you walk out of everyday. Take leftovers from the night before. Read the food labels on the items you pack- watch the calories and fat content of each item. Use frozen bread/pitas/etc to keep you cool and at a safe temperature.

Congratulations! You have successfully completed this module and are on your way to packing healthy lunches in order to help you: 1)Save Money! 2)Save Time! 3)And Save calories in order to help you maintain your weight! For a review of everything covered within the three modules, click on the link for a printable handout! (Click on the link once) Nutrition Education Module Handout.docx

Great Job and Happy Packing