Well, actually I have 3 meals that I cycle through for lunch. I tend to eat one of these 3 options every day until I’m sick of it and then I move onto one of the other 2 and repeat.

The 3 meals that I cycle through are:

1. PB Toast – Whole wheat or multi-grain toast, topped with peanut butter, flaxseed meal, sliced banana, chopped walnuts and a drizzle of maple syrup.
2. Loaded Oats – oatmeal cooked with chia seeds and topped with a sliced banana, blueberries, flaxseed meal, chopped walnuts and a drizzle of maple syrup.
3. Supergreen Smoothie – smoothie made with water, oats, banana, chocolate protein powder (I like Tera’s Whey), superfood green powder and ice. I also switch up my smoothie recipe if I need to use up fruit that’s starting to go bad. You can find one example here.

Just a little disclaimer: I am not a physician or dietician. These recipes are for informational purposes only to illustrate some of the things I enjoy eating.

Breakfast foods are some of my favorite foods but I don’t eat breakfast. I work from home and typically don’t eat my first meal until around lunchtime. I like to practice intermittent fasting on the weekdays which means that try to eat all of my meals in a certain window of time. For me, I follow an 16:8 plan where I fast for 16 hours and eat for 8. I have my first meal around 11am, a second one around 2-3pm and then dinner with my family around 630-7pm. If I want a snack or treat, I eat that within the 8 hours. While this works for me most days, I also listen to my body and adjust as needed.

Since I work from home, I don’t need to worry about access to a stovetop, toaster or blender. If you work in an office and don’t have access to these things but want to eat something similar for lunch, you can prepare your oatmeal in advance, warm it up at the office and then add your toppings. You could also prepare a smoothie in advance, store it in the office fridge, give it a good shake and enjoy. As for the toast, you can just prepare the bread without toasting it.

Or, obviously, you can use any of these recipes for breakfast 🙂

Why do I eat the same thing for lunch everyday?

1. Fast

I save a lot of time not wondering what I’m going to eat for lunch. And all of these meals take 5-10 mins to prepare, which includes cooking time for the oatmeal and toast. I don’t particularly enjoy preparing food. And I don’t want to waste much time thinking about it.

An added bonus is that these ingredients are usually on hand in our house which means I’m rarely scrambling to find something.

2. Healthy

Each of these meals keeps me full for a long time which means that I eat fewer snacks. Not that there’s anything wrong with snacking, except that I prefer to eat processed snacks like goldfish crackers or potato chips, which aren’t so good.

Each meal contains heart healthy ingredients such as whole grains (wheat bread and oatmeal), fruit and heart healthy fats (nuts and seeds). As I get older, I feel like I look at food more in terms of the nutritional value they provide. I have had a couple of uncles who have had heart attacks so I think it’s important to be proactive about my heart health.

3. Cheap

All of these meals are budget-friendly.

Let’s break each one down. I will use the prices listed in the Target app as of Jan. 7, 2022 since this is how I pick up most of my groceries at the moment (I really enjoy their curbside pickup since it means I don’t have to be around people).

PB Toast

• 100% whole wheat bread = $1.19 for 20 slices – 2 slices = $0.12
• 40 oz Skippy Natural Creamy PB = $5.79 for 35 servings (2 Tbsp) = $0.17
• Bob’s Red Mill Flaxseed Meal = $3.89 for 35 servings (2 Tbsp) – I use 1 Tbsp which makes it 70 servings = $0.06
• Banana = $0.19
• Chopped walnuts = $3.79 for 12 servings (1/4 cup) – I use 1/8 cup which makes it 24 servings = $0.16
• Maple syrup = $10.99 for 12 servings (2 Tbsp) – I use 1 Tbsp which makes it 24 servings = $0.46
• Total cost of toast = $1.16

Loaded Oats

• Oatmeal = $3.79 for 30 servings (1/2 cup) = $0.13
• Chia seeds = $7.99 for 19 servings (1 Tbsp) = $0.42
• Banana = $0.19
• Blueberries = $3.69 for 1 pt (2 cups) – I use about 1/2 cups which makes it 4 servings = $0.92
• Bob’s Red Mill Flaxseed Meal = $3.89 for 35 servings (2 Tbsp) – I use 1 Tbsp which makes it 70 servings = $0.06
• Chopped walnuts = $3.79 for 12 servings (1/4 cup) – I use 1/8 cup which makes it 24 servings = $0.16
• Maple syrup = $10.99 for 12 servings (2 Tbsp) – I use 1 Tbsp which makes it 24 servings = $0.46
• Total cost of oatmeal = $2.34

Supergreen Smoothie

• Oatmeal = $3.79 for 30 servings (1/2 cup) = $0.13
• Banana = $0.19
• Protein powder = $27.13 for 24 servings (2 scoops) = $1.13 (I order this from Amazon and this is what I paid for my most recent tub)
• Greens Superfood powder = $23.99 for 30 servings (1 scoop) = $0.80

Total cost of smoothie = $2.25

So, for less than a cup of takeout coffee, I can feed myself a quick and healthy meal.

Do you eat the same thing every day for either of your meals? If you have similar meal ideas that are fast, healthy and cheap, please share them in the comments so we can all get some new ideas! Thanks.