By RMHP
Never Eat Fast Food at Work Again, Thanks to These Healthy Snacks
Have you ever been working away at your office job, and before you know it, lunch hour is a distant memory? Working at an office can easily eat up all of your time (pun intended), to the point where grabbing some fast food sounds like the best option. But it doesn’t need to be that way! Here are some snacks and meal ideas that will help you break that fast food habit. You don’t need to be wasting money eating unhealthy fast food. It’s a win for your wallet, your waistline, and your well-being.
Desk snacks to curb hunger
You’ve probably been in this situation before: you’re working away on a project with a quickly approaching deadline, and you don’t have a ton of time to prepare a meal in the office kitchen, let alone go to a sit-down restaurant that would take ages. These scenarios are common in working life, which is why you need a carefully cultivated arsenal of desk snacks within easy grabbing distance.
Opt for non-perishable foods or foods that don’t spoil easily, and try to stock up on a variety of different snacks.
Here are some of our favorites:
- Fruits like apples, bananas, and oranges
- Nuts Trail mix Protein bars (be sure look for brands that use less sugar—you’d be surprised at how much can be packed into these “healthy” snacks)
- Jerky (coconut jerky is even an option)
- Air-popped popcorn
- Rice cakes “Energy Bites”
- Nut butters, and not just peanut butter. Macadamia butter, almond butter, pistachio butter… the options are limitless. Smear some on your apples or bananas for a quick, sustaining and delicious pick-me-up.
Don’t forget to stock the office kitchen
If your office has a kitchen with a refrigerator, you have even more snacking options. At the beginning of each week bring some of your fresh food favorites. If you plan ahead, you’ll have no excuse for not eating healthily with limited time.
The following foods are no-fuss to prepare, tasty, and healthy:
- Veggies and hummus
- Fruit and yogurt
- Berries
- Overnight oats
- Hardboiled eggs
- Deli meat and cheese for easy roll-ups.
Don’t forget the pantry, either (you don’t need to store all of your food in your desk.
) For example, keep sandwich fixings on hand, including bread. A quickie PB&J is better than a Big Mac. You can even keep canned goods at the office, just make sure you have a can opener available. Mix up some tuna, chickpeas, greek yogurt, and spices and you’ll have a healthy and protein-packed meal that takes mere minutes to throw together. Spoon the mixture onto lettuce wraps for even more nutrition.
Consider eating the tuna in the kitchen to avoid making the whole office smell like fish, though. A good rule of thumb for any food that has a strong smell is to enjoy it in the common eating spaces. No one wants to be “that person”.
Easy office-friendly meals to keep on hand
Taking your full lunch hour is a wonderful thing to do to keep your mind and body functioning fully. But if you truly can’t take a full lunch break all hope isn’t lost, and you don’t need to go hungry! Keep these essentials available so that you always have the option of throwing together a quick meal: Frozen veggies
Healthy frozen meals Ramen noodles (yes, you can make this sodium-filled staple
semi-healthy, with the help of your frozen veggies, and other wholesome ingredients.) Canned soups (just be sure to read the labels, and look out for these
healthier canned soups.)
The best way to stay healthy at work: preparation
If you’re trying to stay healthy at work during a time crunch, preparation is your most helpful tool. Prepare for your busier times before they creep up on you, and you’ll be able to stick to a healthy, nutritious lifestyle full of wholesome foods… no matter how many deadlines you have.
