It’s not very exciting, but packing your lunch each day of the week minimizes stress and helps eliminate the unhealthy decisions you often make during the workweek.

Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Leftovers

Put dinner leftovers into lunch-size ontainers for good grab-and-go lunches. Steve’s fiancée does this on a daily basis. Not only does she save money in the process, but she’s also never left wondering what she’ll have in the middle of the day.

• Salad in a Jar

Add all of the ingredients for a salad to a mason jar in the following order:

1.  Salad dressing on the bottom.
2. Then layers of “hard” vegetables such as carrots, radishes, broccoli, bell peppers, etc
3. Then a layer of protein, such as diced, cooked chicken or chopped, hard-boiled eggs.
4. Finally, salad greens such as spinach or lettuce on top.

When packed tightly, with the lid on tight, jar salads can easily stay fresh in the fridge for four or five days, so you can make enough on the weekend to last most of the workweek. The key is to keep the greens as far away from the dressing as possible so they don’t get soggy.

• Homemade Soups, Stews and Chili

Prepare your favorite soups, stews or chili ahead of time and freeze in serving-size containers (that are safe for microwave and oven use). Thaw out a serving and then heat it for a quick, healthy lunch. Rebecca likes to make a few different types on a weekend day, freeze them and have a variety available to use over the course of a month.

•   Wraps or Sandwiches

Sandwiches have been around for a long time and many of us grew up eating them— and for good reason. They are easy to prepare and make great additions to sack lunches.

The key is to have healthy ingredients on hand to make them. Buy a variety of vegetables and protein options such as low-sodium, nitrate-free lunch meat, eggs and natural peanut butter.

If you want to reduce the amount of carbs in your diet, wraps are a good option. There are even gluten-free options available for many types of wraps.

We often choose the “path of least resistance” when it comes to lunch. It might seem easier to buy a meal near work, but you can make a wiser choice with a little bit of planning. Not only does packing a lunch limit the number of decisions you have to make, it’ll also save you precious time and money.