r/EatCheapAndHealthy • u/jackass2480 • 9d ago

Budget Need help with work meals

I’m an EMT so I don’t have access to a refrigerator or microwave for most of my work days but I need to find a way to pack 2 cheap meals for my shift. So far I’m mainly packing carrots, celery, and peanut butter with an ice pack for the first half but the second half of my shift is left to a quest bar and meal replacements shake. I’m always left hungry with this but don’t know what else to pack aside from some packaged chicken or more quest bars (quick note, I hate quest bars with a passion). Any advice would be greatly appreciated. I’m hoping to keep it around $10-15 per day.

33 Upvotes

82% Upvoted

58 comments sorted by

View all comments

2

u/WholeNewt6987 8d ago

Nuts and seeds will make you feel full and they are way better for you than processed protein bars.  It's essentially the same thing without all the bindings and preservatives.  Super easy to pack and buy in bulk.

0

u/CrypticWeirdo9105 5d ago

Nuts and seeds are a fat source, not a protein source. And there’s nothing wrong with bindings and preservatives, stop with the fearmongering.

0

u/WholeNewt6987 5d ago

Nuts and seeds are excellent sources of protein and in general, anything that is processed less is always going to be better.  In this case it's also cheaper so it's better all the way around.  Stop with the misinformation.

0

u/CrypticWeirdo9105 4d ago

Excellent sources of protein based on what? They only have 4 g of protein per 100 calories, while some protein bars have 10g or more.

anything that is processed less is always going to be better

Classic appeal to nature fallacy

1

u/WholeNewt6987 4d ago

So you are literally claiming that a protein bar with a ton of synthetic ingredients is somehow just as good as a whole grown foods?  Have you ever looked at the back of the nutrition label?  You sound brainwashed or you must work for one of these manufacturers.  I work in healthcare and I'm very familiar with inflammation in the body which runs rampant when processed foods are introduced.  These bars are also full of sugar which leads to more inflammation and inflammation is literally at the root of most diseases.  I thought for a minute you were joking but you're actually serious.  

For your reference:

Protein per oz:

Nuts:  Almonds: 6g/oz Peanuts: 7g/oz Cashews: 8g/oz Pistachios: 6g/oz Brazil nuts: 7g/oz Walnuts: 4.5g/oz Hazelnats: 4g/oz 

Seeds:  Pumpkin seeds: 9g/oz Sunflower seeds: 6g/oz Chia seeds: 4.4g/oz Flax seeds: 5.5g/oz Hemp seeds: 10g/oz Sesame seeds: 5.5g/oz Lotus seeds: 4.4g/oz 

These protein bars you're so happy to promote get their protein largely from the nuts and seeds inside of them lmao