Packing a healthy lunch can be daunting.  My solution is to create a salad bar in your refrigerator.  It just takes some time over the weekend to peel, chop and prep the ingredients but it saves time throughout the week.

First, prep the veggies: wash and dry lettuce (or use a mix right out of the bag), chop peppers, cucumbers, carrots, onions etc..  Then, rinse a can of beans, and hard-boil a few eggs. Open a can of tuna fish.  Grab and wash an assortment of berries. Finally, cook-up some whole grains (like barley or quinoa) and maybe even whip-up an easy salad dressing (I like olive oil, vinegar and Dijon mustard).  By storing everything in clear containers and stacking them in the fridge, you make everything easily visible.  That makes it easy to create fast, on-the-go salads in an instant. These ingredients will come in handy when making dinners as well.

Nutrition Note:  The more colorful the salad, the more nutrients you’ll consume.  Your salads should be a balance of healthy fat (from nuts, avocado or olive oil), lean protein (from tuna fish, beans, soy or grilled chicken) and high fiber carbohydrate (from all those colorful vegetables and whole grains).