 WEB
EXTRA
Packing a healthy lunch for
your child
Q & A with Cara Zaller
Learn how to mix and match food groups for a complete and
balanced lunchbox!
Q: I am too busy to prepare lunch for my child. Are there
healthy pre-packaged lunches?
If you are even considering buying
one of the many pre-packaged (unhealthy) lunches from your
local supermarket, please read on to learn how to quickly and
easily prepare a well-balanced lunch for your child.
Simply
choose one item from each column in the chart below. Mix and
match as much as you would like to create variety throughout
the week. The more variety you create, the better chance your
child will reap the benefits from the many vitamins, minerals
and antioxidants that each food below has to offer.
To pack a healthy lunch, choose one item from each column.
| Proteins/Fats |
Fruits |
Vegetables |
Whole Grains |
| String cheese/ individual cheese slices/shredded cheese |
Unsweetened applesauce |
Baby carrots |
Whole-grain crackers |
| Deli slices |
Fruit cup |
Snap peas |
Whole-grain bread |
| Pulled chicken |
Banana |
Salsa |
Whole-grain cereal |
| Tuna or chicken salad |
Apple |
Gazpacho soup |
Whole-grain pretzels |
| Yogurt |
Plum |
Bell pepper slices |
Whole-grain bagels |
| Low-fat milk |
Nectarine |
Broccoli |
Low-sugar granola |
| Cottage cheese |
100 percent fruit juice |
Green beans |
Brown rice |
| Peanut butter (or even better: almond, cashew
or sunflower butter) |
Dried fruit, such as raisins, apricots,
cherries and cranberries |
Cucumber |
Cous cous |
Almost all of these food items below require very little,
if any, preparation. A sample lunch would include: a yogurt,
a banana, a package of celery sticks with peanut butter dip,
a few whole-grain crackers and 100 percent fruit juice. Preparing
the sample lunch should take no more than a couple minutes
of your time.
To assist in making lunches quickly during your
work week, take some time on the weekends to prepare individual
servings of the foods with which you are going to nourish your
child in the week ahead, such as vegetables, whole-grain crackers,
whole-grain pretzels or whole-grain cereal.
You can even freeze
sandwiches in separate containers (for example, bagels with
light cream cheese, bagels with butter, peanut butter and/or
jelly sandwiches), which can then be used for lunches at any
time during the school year.
Below are examples
of healthy products that can also be part of your child's
lunch. All of the food items listed below aside from the eggs
come in pre-packed individual servings for your convenience.
- PB Jammers — Frozen peanut butter and jelly sandwiches
on whole-grain bread (comes in either strawberry or grape
jelly)
- Pre-made hard-boiled eggs (come in a bag of 10)
- Freeze-dried fruit
- Celery sticks with peanut butter dip
- Carrots with dip
- Apple slices
- Crackers with hummus
- Trail mix
Always check with your physician before starting any exercise
regimen or change in diet.
 About Cara L. Zaller
Cara L. Zaller is a CA team member, certified nutrition consultant,
group fitness instructor and personal trainer. For the past
seven years, she has been coaching clients to improve their
health through exercise, diet and lifestyle modifications.
She has also worked with private schools to help them improve
their choices of food for snack time, enhancing children's
ability to learn and behave better during the school day, as
well as eat nutritional snacks.
Cara earned an MBA from The
George Washington University and a BA from Emory University.
She is certified through the American Fitness Professionals & Associates,
as well as through the Aerobics and Fitness Association of America. Additionally,
she has been in the fitness industry for more than 20 years and has competed
in both aerobics and figure competitions. During the past two years, she has
competed in many triathlons.
Have a question for a fitness professional?
E-mail your fitness questions to CAmonthly@ColumbiaAssociation.com.
Please include your full name, village of residence, phone
number and e-mail.
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