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If you need to make high protein school lunches for teenage athletes, you’ve come to the right place; because as a mom to 3 kids, I know what it’s like when an active kid can eat you out of the house.
While school sports are a great way for kids to get involved, socialize, and learn new skills, they also work up an appetite. And we all know that this means that the first words out of their mouth when they get home are… “I’m starving!” Right?
These easy school lunch ideas will keep them energized and ready to score the winning point every day since they have a good balance of protein, carbs, and healthy fats.
Providing our kids with a healthy balance of nutrients in each meal will help them stay energized and their bodies growing properly, especially for student-athletes. All the extra activity in after-school practices and game days burn a lot of energy and calories.
In fact, the extra activity may require a higher calorie intake compared to a non-active child or teen.
However, you want to make sure these calories are coming from the right sources such as protein, carbohydrates, and healthy fats -not packaged foods.
These are easy to incorporate into any meal especially lunch if you have the right ingredients. Below are examples of each food group so you can get your ideas going.
This year, I created a book with more than 100 lunch ideas. Get your copy here so that your teen athlete is never running on empty!
101 Packed Lunches eBook
All my best kid-friendly lunches from over a decade of creating meal plans. Add some variety to your child’s lunchbox with these epic lunches, plus receive my Pack Meals Like a Pro ebook, free with purchase!
Nutritional Needs for Teen Athletes
Protein helps build and maintain healthy muscle, and that’s essential for athletic endurance. Great sources of protein that are also lunchbox building blocks! They come in the form of grilled or baked chicken, deli cuts, beans, hummus, peanut butter, yogurt, and cheese.
Need: More Carbohydrates:
These are essential for supplying energy which is vital for athletic performance. Keep in mind, there is a difference in obtaining carbs from fruit juice or sugared snack bars vs. brown rice.
The juice or granola bar will give a surge of energy, but this won’t last! The results are an energy crash later, which is not what we want for our kids.
Carbohydrates found in whole grains, sweet potatoes, and starchier veggies break down slower and provide long-lasting energy. Great options include brown rice, quinoa, whole wheat pitas, bread, and wraps, as well as sweet potatoes, corn, and beans.
More Healthy Fats:
Fat is good-for-you. The healthy fat kind that is.
Fat, healthy fats, provide us with energy, help our bodies absorb vitamins, helps our brains to function, and keeps you full, longer. All of which you want for your child.
Healthy fats that are perfect in a lunchbox include nuts, seeds, peanut butter ( or no-nut butter), avocado, guacamole, salad dressings made with olive oil or coconut oil, and full-fat dairy ingredients like yogurt and cheese are great sources.
Need: More Fiber:
Fiber isn’t just to “keep everything moving” but also has a lot of nutritional benefits as well as being essential for the digestion of foods.
What to Pack in a Teen Athlete’s Lunchbox
What to Pack for a Teenage Lunch:
Make sure to keep it simple- Wraps, bentos, and thermos lunches are all kid and teen favorites. However, that main item might not be enough so always add lunch sides with a variety of veggies, proteins, and healthy fats along with the main item.
Some of my favorites:
Lunch Containers:
With athletes and active kids, durability is key. Since, more than likely, the lunch bag will get tossed around the gym bag or thrown on the ground before practice. I’ve shared all my top lunch containers for teens here.
For my athletes, I like stainless steel containers but if they are “too old” to carry one, a reusable “brown paper bag” never goes out of style.
Thermos Containers:
Always great to have on hand to feed active kids leftovers from dinner; turning it into a filling meal.
If you are looking for a comparison of durable thermos containers, check out this post. You can pack hot lunches like Burritos Bowls, Teriyaki Chicken Bowls, or soup!
Protein Lunch Ideas for Teen Athletes
Here are some filling and healthy lunch ideas for teenage athletes and active kids:
And that’s it! Aren’t those great ideas? Of course, if you have ideas and just need to get it all organized when it comes to meal planning, check out our family meal plans. A week of dinners and comes with family-friendly recipes, a completed shopping list, and meal prep breakdown.
However, you pack em these tips and recipes are sure to be winners for both you and your athlete!
High Protein School Lunches for Teens
Ingredients
Healthy Teriyaki Chicken Lunch Bowls
- 1 ½ pounds chicken breasts or thighs, boneless skinless
- ¼ cup brown sugar or honey
- ½ cup soy sauce or coconut aminos
- ¼ cup water
- 1 small garlic clove, grated
- 1 teaspoon fresh ginger, grated
- 2 tablespoons oil
- 3 cups cooked rice
- Green onions, optional
Instructions
- Using a meat hammer, pound the chicken breasts or thighs to ¼ inch thin.
- In a medium bowl, whisk to combine brown sugar, soy sauce, water, grated garlic, and ginger.
- Combine the chicken and marinade inside a glass container or large gallon zip bag, seal, and refrigerate for 30 minutes to 2 hours (even overnight for a strong flavor).
- In a large skillet over medium heat, heat enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.
- Begin to cook chicken, about 3 minutes in each side, and remove from pan.
- Repeat process with remaining chicken if the pan is too small.
- Once the chicken is cooked, pour contents of zip bag into the pan.
- Bring sauce to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer for a couple of minutes.
- Bring chicken back into the pan, toss to combine into sauce, and turn off heat.
- Divide the rice between 4 bowls or 4 thermos containers, top with Teriyaki Chicken and green onions.
Jeff says
A great idea to keep the kids filled during a long day at school. I like that it’s not just carbs that burn off quickly leaving kids tired by late afternoon.
Vicky says
I just tried out some of these lunch ideas for my teenager, and they were a hit! It’s great to find healthy options that keep them energized throughout the day!
Irena says
So, my teen is not quite at the athlete stage but I am bookmarking this collection for myself as I am always struggling with protein lunches.
Irena says
Very handy for my high schooler just before school starts!
Sara Welch says
This is a great post for back to school! I will definitely be giving these a try; they all look too good to pass up, indeed!
Jane says
Good ideas.
Eliza Jane Graham says
delicious I Love this recipe!!!!!!!!!!!