Lunch Balancer is a premier subscription service that delivers a monthly box of healthy foods — enough for 5 meals — right to your door.
The meals are put together by Dr. Gabe Smolarz (an endocrinologist) and Sari Smolarz (a clinical nutritionist) and are centered around high protein, low carb foods. Everything comes in convenient, single-serve packages to make it super easy to eat good on the go. Because the focus is on high protein/low carb, you’ll feel more full and satisfied, and therefore less likely to snack between meals. So if you’re looking to drop a few pounds, this box might help you get on the right track.
Lunch Balancer consists of roughly 20 or so food items, all of which are labeled with a colored dot. The inner lid has a chart that lists all of the items, broken into groups based on the dot colors. Each color equals a full meal. (This will probably make more sense further into the review. It’s a simple concept, I promise!)
Alright, let’s see what’s in the box!
When the box arrived it was big and heavy. — 2 very good signs!
This is the chart on the lid that I referred to before. You just match the colored dots on the chart up with the corresponding dots on the foods to make your entire meal. Easy-peasy! If a dot happens to fall off an item in transit, no biggie — the descriptions alone should be enough to figure out which snack goes with which meal.
There was also a great nutrition card that listed the calories, protein, fat, fiber, and total/net carbs in each item, as well as the total amounts for each meal. Clearly, they don’t just toss a bunch of random assortment of snacks in the box and call it a day. Everything is chosen for a reason.
Meal #1: – 2 Shelton’s Turkey Sticks, Real Deal Baked Veggie Chips, Orchard Valley Harvest Almonds, and Matt’s Munchies Mango Fruit Snacks.
Obviously, as a vegan, I didn’t touch the turkey sticks. However, I was pleased that they were the only straight-up meat products in the box. (My dad was more than happy to take them off my hands.) I haven’t tried the veggie chips yet, but their main ingredient is green peas, so I’m thinking (hoping) they’ll taste like Snapea Crisps. Yum! The almonds were… almonds. 😉 No salt, sugar, or any added ingredients. Just almond-y goodness. Matt’s Munchies are a favorite of mine, as they remind me of all natural fruit-roll ups. Love ’em.
Meal #2: Kay’s Cinnamon Toast Protein Pretzel Sticks, The Good Bean Roasted Chickpeas, Crunchmaster Multi-seed Crackers, Hail Merry Macaroons, and Barney Butter Almond Butter.
I haven’t tried the pretzel sticks yet, but they sound pretty good. Can’t go wrong with “cinnamon crunch” anything. I’ve had the chickpeas before and I’m not really a fan. I love “regular” chickpeas, so I’m not sure why I don’t care for the roasted version… Then again, I don’t really like hummus either. Ah well. I’ve also had the Crunchmaster crackers before and they’re not bad. They have a really nice crunch and are full of healthy seeds. Hail Merry Macroons!! Heck yes! These are delicious! They’re made with raw coconut oil and have zero cholesterol. The little packet of almond butter is equivalent to a handful of almonds and has 50% less saturated fat than most peanut butters. This meal was totally vegan and gluten-free! Score! 🙂
Meal #3: Sensible Foods Roasted Edamame Snack, Bobbysue’s Nuts, and Tapaz 2 Go Lentil Crackers & Hummus.
The edamame snack was pretty good. The dried beans reminded me more of pumpkin seeds. I gave a few to the girls at lunch today and they ate a little handful between them (in toddler land, we call that a success). Bobbysue’s nuts have egg whites in them, which was a bummer for this vegan. Otherwise, they sounded great — almonds, cashews, pecans, sugar & spices. Plus, they donate a portion of their sales to help homeless animals. Aww. I really wish I liked hummus, cos the little cracker/hummus meal is so convenient and a nice source of protein to boot.
Meal #4: Simply 7 Quinoa Chips, Eden Pumpkin Seeds, Dr. McDougall’s Lentil Couscous, and Veggie-Go’s Sweet Potato Pie Fruit Strip.
Another all-vegan meal! The quinoa chips sounds great, though I haven’t gotten a chance to taste them just yet. I ate the pumpkin seeds the other day and shared some with the girls. We all enjoyed them. I LOVE Dr. McDougall’s soups and actually buy this lentil couscous quite often. All of his soups are vegan and many are low sodium as well. So good. The fruit strip was a little too sweet for me, but at least all of its sweetness comes from fruit and not any added sugar or other sweeteners.
Meal #5: Ak-Mak Sesame Crackers, Zing Almond Blueberry Bar, and Northwoods Wisconsin Swiss Cheese.
This one was my least favorite meal. Mainly because none of the items were vegan, therefore I couldn’t try ’em. No biggie though… My sister was happy to take the cheese and I think my husband will take care of the Zing bar. Not sure if anyone will want the sesame crackers… Maybe the girls’ll like ’em?
So that’s my Lunch Balancer box! I was pleasantly surprised by how many of the items were vegan. (Although I suppose it makes sense, as a lot of vegan food is healthy by default.) I love how they did all the work for you by grouping everything into healthy, balanced meals. Also it’s nice that they include a nutrition sheet with all of the calories/protein/etc listed so you can see exactly what you’re consuming all in one convenient place.
Lunch Balancer starts as low as $39.95 per month, but you can get 25% off any order (sample box or subscription) when you click here and use the code “LOWCARB25” at checkout!
Disclosure: I received this box for review purposes. I was not compensated in any way. All opinions are my own. Post may contain affiliate links.
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