When it comes to fitness and weight loss, carbohydrates are a complicated subject. On one hand, they’re necessary to build and maintain muscle mass. On the other hand, reducing your carbohydrate intake can be part of a successful weight loss program. If you are trying to reduce your carb intake as part of a balanced nutrition program, don’t cut them out completely. You might find that eating carbs before and after your workouts maximizes your energy during training and helps with recovery.Lunch is a common place where extra carbohydrates can sneak into your diet. If you frequently dine out, those fast sandwiches, wraps, pasta and rice-based dishes can cause your weekly carb intake to skyrocket. This is why we’ve pulled together healthy subsitutes and a few best practices for packing easy-to-prepare, low-carb lunches.Whether you like to make your lunches for work in the morning, or do meal prep for the week, follow the basics rules on the following slides and your lunches will be the envy of all your co-workers.This article is courtesy of our friends at PrettyFit. Check out their site for more recipes, nutrition tips, and to learn about their products.
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Corbis Images
Swap Tortillas for Rice Paper
Turkey Spring Rolls
Wraps make an awesome lunch. They’re easy to prepare, packed with vegetables and taste delicious. However, most tortillas contain about 15 to 30 grams of carbs. This means if you make two smaller wraps for lunch, you’re taking in about 30 to 60 grams of carbs just from the tortillas.The solution? Use rice paper and make spring rolls! Rice paper is a light, easy substitute for tortillas and most brands contain only 3 to 5 grams of carbohydrates per paper.
Wash all vegetables.Cut the cucumber and carrots into strips about 2.5 to 3 inches long.Dip rice paper in warm water. Make sure to remove the paper from the water quickly so you don’t over soak it. The rice paper should come out of the water slightly firm. It will still absorb the water on its surface and become pliable after a short time.Lay the rice paper down on your rolling surface. We recommend a ceramic plate or cutting board. After 20-60 seconds the paper will become pliable and slightly gelatinous. (Note: Wood counter tops can cause the paper to stick.)Simply take your vegetables and turkey and roll them into the paper like you would a classic tortilla wrap.To keep the rolls fresh, we recommend making the rolls in the morning before work. It should only take about 10 minutes to prepare the rice paper and wash and chop your vegetables.If you want to make the Turkey Spring Rolls the night before, store them in clear wrap or Tupperware in the fridge. Don’t let the rolls touch each other when storing them.Enjoy them with a little oil and vinegar, or a low-carb sesame dipping sauce.
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Corbis Images
Swap Sandwich Bread for Lettuce Wraps
Grilled Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Sandwiches are a staple for easy, go-to lunches. But, like tortillas, the average slice of sandwich bread can have over 15 grams of carbs per slice.Instead of a classic sandwich, make lettuce wraps!Here’s an easy recipe for grilled chicken lettuce wraps:
Wash and dice the tomatoes and onions.Wash and dry large leaves of romaine lettuce.Slice your chicken into strips.Place all ingredients in the large lettuce leaves.Drizzle peanut sauce over the ingredients.Wrap the lettuce leaves around the ingredients and enjoy!If you’re not able to eat the wraps immediately, hold them together with a toothpick and toss them in a plastic container for easy transport.
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Corbis images
Make Zucchini Pasta Instead of Rice or Pasta
Zucchini Pasta
We know, we know, pasta and rice are delicious, filling and easy to make. But have you tried zucchini pasta? This delicious rice and pasta substitute is easy to make and can be flavored with any seasoning or protein of your choice. Did we mention it only takes 10 minutes?
What You’ll Need
2 ZucchinisOlive oil
Directions
Wash and peel your zucchinis.Using a vegetable peeler, peel around the core of the zucchini lengthwise, creating long strips. Stop peeling when you reach the seeds.Take the strips of zucchini and slice them into even thinner strips. You want them about the diameter of spaghetti pasta.Heat a little olive oil in a pan and sauté the zucchini until it softens. This should only take 5 minutes or so.Season with any seasoning of your choice and add your favorite protein!As zucchini isn’t the most flavorful food on its own, we recommend using some seasonings or additions to spice things up. Our favorites are garlic, pesto and sun dried tomatoes. Toss some meat bolognese sauce on top, or chicken, shrimp and enjoy!This article is courtesy of our friends at PrettyFit. Check out their blog for more health and fitness tips, and learn about their products.
When it comes to fitness and weight loss, carbohydrates are a complicated subject. On one hand, they’re necessary to build and maintain muscle mass. On the other hand, reducing your carbohydrate intake can be part of a successful weight loss program. If you are trying to reduce your carb intake as part of a balanced nutrition program, don’t cut them out completely. You might find that eating carbs before and after your workouts maximizes your energy during training and helps with recovery.
Lunch is a common place where extra carbohydrates can sneak into your diet. If you frequently dine out, those fast sandwiches, wraps, pasta and rice-based dishes can cause your weekly carb intake to skyrocket. This is why we’ve pulled together healthy subsitutes and a few best practices for packing easy-to-prepare, low-carb lunches.
Whether you like to make your lunches for work in the morning, or do meal prep for the week, follow the basics rules on the following slides and your lunches will be the envy of all your co-workers.
This article is courtesy of our friends at PrettyFit. Check out their site for more recipes, nutrition tips, and to learn about their products.
Swap Tortillas for Rice Paper
Turkey Spring Rolls
Wraps make an awesome lunch. They’re easy to prepare, packed with vegetables and taste delicious. However, most tortillas contain about 15 to 30 grams of carbs. This means if you make two smaller wraps for lunch, you’re taking in about 30 to 60 grams of carbs just from the tortillas.
The solution? Use rice paper and make spring rolls! Rice paper is a light, easy substitute for tortillas and most brands contain only 3 to 5 grams of carbohydrates per paper.
What You’ll Need
Turkey
Rice paper
Carrots
Diced cucumber
Romaine lettuce
Sesame dipping sauce
Directions
Wash all vegetables.
Cut the cucumber and carrots into strips about 2.5 to 3 inches long.
Dip rice paper in warm water. Make sure to remove the paper from the water quickly so you don’t over soak it. The rice paper should come out of the water slightly firm. It will still absorb the water on its surface and become pliable after a short time.
Lay the rice paper down on your rolling surface. We recommend a ceramic plate or cutting board. After 20-60 seconds the paper will become pliable and slightly gelatinous. (Note: Wood counter tops can cause the paper to stick.)
Simply take your vegetables and turkey and roll them into the paper like you would a classic tortilla wrap.
To keep the rolls fresh, we recommend making the rolls in the morning before work. It should only take about 10 minutes to prepare the rice paper and wash and chop your vegetables.
If you want to make the Turkey Spring Rolls the night before, store them in clear wrap or Tupperware in the fridge. Don’t let the rolls touch each other when storing them.
Enjoy them with a little oil and vinegar, or a low-carb sesame dipping sauce.
Swap Sandwich Bread for Lettuce Wraps
Grilled Chicken Lettuce Wraps
Sandwiches are a staple for easy, go-to lunches. But, like tortillas, the average slice of sandwich bread can have over 15 grams of carbs per slice.
Instead of a classic sandwich, make lettuce wraps!
Place all ingredients in the large lettuce leaves.
Drizzle peanut sauce over the ingredients.
Wrap the lettuce leaves around the ingredients and enjoy!
If you’re not able to eat the wraps immediately, hold them together with a toothpick and toss them in a plastic container for easy transport.
Make Zucchini Pasta Instead of Rice or Pasta
Zucchini Pasta
We know, we know, pasta and rice are delicious, filling and easy to make. But have you tried zucchini pasta? This delicious rice and pasta substitute is easy to make and can be flavored with any seasoning or protein of your choice. Did we mention it only takes 10 minutes?
What You’ll Need
2 Zucchinis
Olive oil
Directions
Wash and peel your zucchinis.
Using a vegetable peeler, peel around the core of the zucchini lengthwise, creating long strips. Stop peeling when you reach the seeds.
Take the strips of zucchini and slice them into even thinner strips. You want them about the diameter of spaghetti pasta.
Heat a little olive oil in a pan and sauté the zucchini until it softens. This should only take 5 minutes or so.
Season with any seasoning of your choice and add your favorite protein!
As zucchini isn’t the most flavorful food on its own, we recommend using some seasonings or additions to spice things up. Our favorites are garlic, pesto and sun dried tomatoes. Toss some meat bolognese sauce on top, or chicken, shrimp and enjoy!
This article is courtesy of our friends at PrettyFit. Check out their blog for more health and fitness tips, and learn about their products.
