Here’s a wellness/diet tip for today: pack your lunch.

It’s not a new approach to our daily diet but I think we are so often swept away by stress and deadlines that we fail to nourish ourselves in such a way so we can do more in our day and feel good. We need to be reminded that going back to basics can be good for us.

Forget crappy deli sandwiches and the huge store-bought portions we feel obligated to consume in the middle of day.

Banish sluggish sleep demons that threaten to steal the afternoon away from you.

Lose the weight that you’ve been wanting to lose for the past five years.

Preparing your own food means taking control of your diet, health, and well-being. A packed lunch is perfect for busy bees who only have 10 minutes to grab a bite. Instead of walking down to the nearest café, why not spend that time throwing together a good lunch for yourself in the morning or the night before?

Priorities, people!

This year, I started making bentos (home packed meal in Japanese) for myself because of my new diet, but you don’t have to be vegetarian or gluten-intolerant to pack a healthy lunch.

A good bento shouldn’t take up too much of your time — use leftovers or cook more when you prepare dinner. Once you get started, you will be amazed what you can find in your fridge to squirrel away into your bento for a nice lunch.

Here are a few ideas on how to put together a nutritious meal-to-go for yourself. You don’t need to cut out cute bunnies and hearts like some of these bento bloggers do but you can be inspired by their food combinations.

Adventures in Bentomaking – focuses on portion control
Just Bento – tons of Japanese-style bentos with an emphasis on whole grains and fresh ingredients
Lunch In A Box – a resource for bentos and accessories
Bento box group on Flickr – a visual snapshot of what everyday people are putting into their bentos
Cloud9Food – an inspiring adult bento blog with occasional cute kyaraben (character) posts
Raw Bento – my latest pet project which features raw vegan fare

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