Make Lunch Work for You: Simple Preparation (This is one of the lunches I prepared for myself recently.)

Since you know lunch will come every day, no matter whether you’re working outside the home (like I do now) or in your home (like I did the past 8 years), you can take action and be prepared.

1. Get a grocery plan that works. Try one of the 2 solutions listed in this post if you need inspiration.
2. On Sunday evening or a weeknight, block out 30 minutes of prep time to slice vegetables, rinse berries, boil eggs, and grill meat.
3. Set up an assembly line to prep your lunches. (I reuse take-out containers from restaurants and Ziploc containers.)
4. Prepare 3-5 lunches for the week, depending on how many days you’ll not be purchasing lunch out.

Here are some lunch tips that keep me going week after week:

*I keep a bottle of gluten-free salad dressing in the office cafe fridge.
* It’s a good idea to add lettuce to your meals in the morning on the day you plan to use it so it doesn’t wilt with the other items in the container.
* If you get bored of preparing a smorgasbord of items, consider making a simple crock pot soup you can take with you to add variety. Saving money on lunch doesn’t have to mean being frugal on taste. There are some simple recipes I use that you can try under the Gluten Free heading on this blog or my Gluten Free Pinterest page to get you started.
* Don’t forget that leftovers aren’t a bad thing. If you’re already cooking dinner, you might as well cook an extra chicken breast or some additional pasta to set aside for the next day’s lunch.

That settles it, friends! Now you’re all set to make lunch work for you. If you didn’t read all 3 posts in this series, here are the other 2 to fill you in:

Make Lunch Work for You: Determine Why

Make Lunch Work for You: Choose Your Type

Make Lunch Work for You: Determine Why

Lunch happens every day, and it’s wise to make lunch work for you. If lunchtime is something that creeps up on you daily and you’re left spending $10 on an unhealthy meal, consider taking control to keep money in your pocket and have better energy and focus throughout the day.

First, size up your circumstances. In my case, it’s easily a 5-10 minute drive from my office to meet someone for lunch. I might do it once or twice a week, but it eats into my break time (sorry for that pun just now), uses up gas in my car, and usually costs more than bringing lunch.

Next, admit the truth. A few months ago when I took a serious look at my lunch circumstances, I came up with two realizations: 1) My favorite lunch place is about $8 a meal and a 10 minute drive from the office. 2) I would gladly save the money and time spent driving (you know how I long to return to my car-free life of years past in England) if I could make lunches to bring into work that are as tasty as the restaurant fare.

Let’s just say that looking at things from that perspective meant it was an easy challenge for me to accept and helps me stick to my weekday lunch plan.

Ask yourself these three questions to start your lunch plan wheels a-turnin’!

1. What does my typical lunch cost?
2. Do I have to drive to eat lunch?
3. Can I prepare something just as tasty (and healthier) at home?

Now all you need to do is determine what motivates you to make a lunch plan. Maybe you’d like to save money? Perhaps avoiding the drive or having a quieter lunch experience is the payoff. Personally, I risk consuming gluten every time I eat out, and that can be difficult to manage. No matter what your WHY is, I challenge you to give it a try. Take control of lunch so it doesn’t ruin your health, time, or financial plans.

In the next 2 posts, we’ll discuss the use of your time during lunch and how to develop a plan to make your weekday lunch preparation simple. Enter your email address in the sidebar to get all my blog posts via email so you don’t miss out!