How to Automate Breakfast and Lunch

Years ago I read Dr. Oz’s book “You: On a Diet.” It’s a great book, check it out on Amazon here.  One of the things I remember from that book was to automate at least one meal per day.  My husband has automated his breakfast by making oatmeal with almond butter and maple syrup.  I generally have a bowl of cereal (Heritage Flakes are my favorite) with 30-calorie almond milk and a half a banana, followed by a hard boiled egg.  By automating this one meal, we don’t even have to think about it.

Breakfast Ideas

Check this page for other breakfast ideas.  If having the same thing every day bores you, simply cycle through a handful of faves.  But whatever you do, DON’T SKIP breakfast.  Ever.

Lunch Ideas

Lunch can be super easy, it just takes a little planning — especially if you work outside of the home and bring your lunch to work. Try these quick options:

• When you are making dinner, make an extra serving or two and package it separately, then take it for lunch the next day.
• Buy pre-cooked protein (chicken, salmon, etc) and package it in 3-4 oz portions.  Take it along with a salad and some dressing and add it to the salad. You can get pre-cooked protein in the freezer section or deli. If you buy it frozen make sure to take it out the night before or it may still be frozen when you open up your lunch box!
• Roast a chicken or a big salmon filet on Sunday afternoon.  Steam up some veggies and package them up together with 3-4 oz portions of the meat.  Fill a small container with vinaigrette or other pre-made sauce to jazz it up a little.  Here’s a wonderful roast chicken recipe from Williams-Sonoma.  This roasted salmon recipe from epicurious is so easy you can hardly believe how good it tastes.
• Buy a pound or two of nitrate-free lunch meat (here’s why). Roll 2-3 slices up in corn tortillas with some shredded cabbage, or make lettuce wraps with some olives, lemon juice, and shredded cheese.