A Westlake Wellness article.

Now that we are well into the term, students can get bored with their usual lunches. As we move into cooler weather, it is a good time to reevaluate food options.

Here are some ideas for lunchtime foods, all of which are high-energy and nutritious. Students who are participating in training or sports will need to plan for extra nutrition to help them perform at their best.

• Wraps with salad and protein such as chicken, tuna, chilli beans, and hummus.
• Vegetable Salads: Try to mix it up and use colourful root vegetables (kumara, beetroot, carrot). Add seeds or nuts for extra texture and protein.
• Pasta salads: e.g., spiral pasta with shredded cooked chicken, pesto and almonds, shell pasta with a curried dressing, nuts, and sultanas.
• Sushi wraps – avocado, cucumber and chicken, beef, fish.
• Breakfast for lunch – cereal and yogurt, waffles, bacon and egg slice, Weetbix sandwich.
• Alternative sandwich – replace sliced bread with bagels, waffles, wraps, rolls, bao buns.

Try to swap treat foods for healthy snacks as often as you can:

Always remember to hydrate during the lunch break. We have plenty of water fountains and chilled water stations around the school.

Sweetpea and Saffron have an excellent website for ideas: https://sweetpeasandsaffron.com/healthy-lunch-ideas/  

Main image photo credit: Anthony Espinosa, Unsplash.