Does this sound like you? You had a delicious lunch around noon. You were laughing with your friends, discussing your studies or work, and felt all “fueled up” to take on the second half of the day.
Now it’s about 2:00 pm. You can barely keep your eyes open. You’re slouching way down in your chair because you don’t even have enough energy to sit up straight. You just have no idea how to stay awake at work!
One of the most common cycles with eating too much of a “heavy” lunch comes the mid-afternoon crash. Your alertness goes down the drain along with your productivity just because of what you had for lunch a couple hours earlier.
Well, understand this. The main reason you might feel tired after eating lunch is because you consume things that require quite a bit of energy to break down and use the nutrients. On top of that, you may have not got adequate sleep the night before. I’m guilty of that.
But there are definitely a few answers to the question, “What should I eat for lunch?” that should increase your alertness and productivity so your boss or professor doesn’t catch you sleepy after eating.
Sugar, Fat, And Too Many Carbs Are Typical Culprits Of Nodding Off
Processed items, more than not, will take a toll on your alertness due to their high sugar, high fat, or taxing emphasis on digestion afterwards. Fried foods or things containing creams are definitely inducers of droopy eyelids since they often have tons of sugar causing your blood sugar level to rise and crash later. This is why T.V. dinners and freezer goodies are not always the best thing to reach for.
Carbohydrates are a good answer to “What should I eat for lunch?”, but too many can do the same thing for your blood sugar. Consider saving your restaurant leftovers for dinner instead of lunch since they usually contain a lot of calories and carbs. You want more of a low carb lunch.
Where most people go wrong however, and they don’t usually realize it, has to do with what you drink. Sugary sodas and teas will take their toll, but a classic glass of water won’t beat you down.
The Trick Is Eating Light While Getting Enough Energy
Of course, when you’re planning your lunch, 400-600 calories is plenty for someone that’s watching their weight. Your goal is to consume foods that provide a steady continuous stream of energy that will allow you to stay alert all the way until your next meal.
Whole grain carbs break down slower than most carbs allowing you to receive a continuous stream of energy for a few hours. And because they take longer to digest, they’ll make you feel fuller for a longer period of time.
What Should I Eat For Lunch?
What I haven’t mentioned and what really determines whether you’re going to be focused and alert is the protein that you get from your meal. By rule of thumb, eating lean meat that totals the size of your palm, will give you the protein you’ll need to avoid the slump. A turkey or ham sandwich with lettuce and tomato on whole grain bread is a winning combination for a number of low carb lunches.
However, if you’re the type that wants to fast through your lunch, meal replacement shakes typically supply adequate amounts of both carbs and protein to keep your body properly fueled.
As long as you aim to eat light, you won’t need to catch 40 winks in a couple hours.
P.S. If you're interested in the diet that I use when I want to get particularly lean, it's Eat Stop Eat. It's very progressive, and probably not like anything you've tried before.
