A friend of Optimum Health posted this question this morning. “Hey Buddy, what are you packing away for lunches. Getting bored and need some fairly quick meals. Any ideas for me?” Here is a detailed (sorry I talk/type way too much when I’m passionate about something….it’s the only way I know) guide of what to make, how to make it, and why it’s a good choice. I eat this all the time. I’m going to guide you through preparing complete meal in bulk on the weekends. This saves time and ensures that you are eating high quality meals throughout the week. Vegetables, ground meat, rice, beans and/or potatoes are your new best friends. Our Protein Source: Lean ground, beef, turkey, chicken, or pork - I normally cook the meat in a glass cooking pan separately from vegetables (this allows you to drain the fat - What kind of meat you choose is entirely up to you (switch it up every week) Our High Fiber Low Carbohydrate Vegetable Source: Any vegetable under the sun goes well here (broccoli, carrot, mushroom, peppers, kale, spinach, onions etc) - Fiber is essential for digestive health - For an even balance of micronutrients (vitamins & minerals) try and add as much variety in regard to colour as possible (eat a rainbow each day) - These carbohydrate sources don’t provide a lot of energy, but play a huge role in overall health by supplying vitamins and minerals - Chop or dice the desired vegetables and place them on a baking sheet with tin foil. Put them in the oven at the same time you put the meat in - Our High Energy Carbohydrate source: Potatoes, rice, beans (starchy carbs) - The three suggestions for sources above give you a lot of variety (switch it up every week) - Since you are getting so much fiber from the above I would go with white rice (don’t be concerned about eating whole grain) - Energy demands and metabolic health dictate how much of these you should consume - If you regularly do high intensity activity or weight lifting then you need more of these for energy demands - If you are very inactive you can skip these starchy carbs or just one a very small amount of them (your body doesn’t require the high amount of energy given by a lot of starch) - If you use rice = Cook it as you normally would and add in at the end - If you use potatoes = you can cook them with the rest of your vegetables - If you use beans = save money by purchasing dry beans at bulk barn. Soak them for 72 hours and then cook them in a pot. Bring the beans and water to a boil. Turn heat down and let simmer until the beans are soft (depends on bean/length of soaking but normally around 40 minutes) Our Fat Source: From cooked ground meat, added olive oil, avocado - Let’s get one thing clear right away…Fat is not the enemy. Too much fat in the presence of too many overall calories is - Fat provides the structure of our plasma membranes, regulates hormone function, helps transport certain vitamins and minerals in the body, and acts as the largest fuel depot for the body - How much fat to eat daily and whether or not to include additional fat in this lunch depends on how you are spending your energy (what type of exercise) and how much of the above starchy carbs you are eating (more carbs equals less fat to a certain extend) - If you spend your day at a desk or perform a lot of low intensity activity without any high intensity than your fat intake should be higher and starchy carb lower - If you do a lot of high intensity activity and eat a lot of carbs then your daily fat intake should be somewhere between 50-90g of fat a day (make sure to get equal parts saturated, polyunsaturated, and monounsaturated) - ….Sorry I digress. What I was trying to get at here is adding additional fat by not raining the ground meat after cooking or by adding some olive oil or avocado to this dish is optional Putting it all together - When the meat is cooked (drain it or not your choice) you combine the vegetables, add the desired spices and put it back in the oven for another 10 minutes - Pull it out of the oven and let it cool down - Divide it into portions in Ziploc containers this is where you can add in the starchy carbs or additional fat - Feel free to throw in some hot sauce or mustard for taste What you have left is a delicious and satisfying meal that is complete in protein, fiber, fat, carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals (if you added a variety of vegetables). As a single guy who is normally in a rush to pack a lunch or make dinner this system works great for me. Hope this helps Matt!
Posted on: Tue, 04 Mar 2014 23:31:21 +0000
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