Are you bored of your lunches? Find your energy, focus and willpower tank after 2pm? I’ve got you! A balanced lunch with 20+g of protein is the fix to help you stay energized, and in control of cravings so you can lose weight without dieting or endless willpower.
The key ingredient – Work with your hunger hormones and metabolism, not against them.
(pssst….if you don’t have the bandwidth for even easy meal prep, don’t sweat it. Life is FULL right now. See my Instagram post on 5 healthy high protein lunches you can buy instead!)
Here’s how:
Eating high-protein meals will make you feel fuller for longer by increasing your fullness hormone, Leptin, and stabilizing blood sugar so you don’t crash a couple hours after eating and trigger munchy cravings.
In my decade coaching as a Registered Dietitian, I’ve seen how dialling the protein up at lunch gives my clients back their willpower around evening temptations (is that popcorn calling you?) and prevents that 3pm energy and motivation slump that leads you to the office snack stash.
So here are 5 high-protein, easy to prep, lunch recipes to help you reach your health goals and feel good in those summer family and vacation photos!
5 High Protein Easy Lunch Prep Recipes:
BLT Egg Salad Lettuce Wraps: Double up the recipe – you’ll want 2 servings of this to make it a really filling meal, but I love how different this is from my usual and how much flavour it packs into every bite!
Berry Protein Salad Bowl: This beauty is packed with almost 30 g of protein and has all the makings of one of those super satisfying restaurant salads, but for half the calories (and a fraction of the price). Super seasonal with berries starting to get especially yummy this time of year!
Greek Chicken Meatball Salad Bowl: SO MUCH FLAVOUR. It’s like your favourite takeout but health-ified and fat loss friendly. I like to do 2 batches of meatballs and freeze half so I’m doing less prep another week. Sub in cauli rice or 1⁄2 the regular rice to help the carbs fit a blood sugar and fat loss friendly meal balance.
Paleo Chinese Chicken Salad: A fresh take and a ton of crunch, plus the anti-inflammatory cabbage and kale amp up the metabolism boosting nutrients needed to make fat loss easier and energy steadier over time. Cut down on time by subbing in a bag of pre-cut slaw – it’s one of my favourite meal prep hacks.
Simple Steak, Tomato and Arugula Salad: I love that you can throw the dressing together with what’s in your pantry and how few ingredients are here. Great for when you want something filling and yummy for the week without a lot of mental energy to prep it. And the iron in steak is essential for so many of my clients who run low (I like ferritin to be 50+ at least), it’s a big barrier to a healthy metabolism, endurance and burning fat effectively.
What meals do you need ideas for? When are your cravings or willpower the worst? I really love hearing from you- it helps me come up with ideas and make sure these posts are truly helpful. Send me an email and share where you’re at!
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