​5 Low-Carb Lunches That'll Leave You Afternoon-Alert

A carb overload at lunchtime can leave you feeling sluggish and slow, foggy and flighty, tired and tense. That makes bread, pasta, and pretty much anything processed off-limits if you're looking to perk up your afternoons, but what on earth are you supposed to eat if not a sandwich, leftover pasta, or a sugar-laden frozen microwave meal?

Don't worry; we've got you covered with these delicious, low-carb lunch options.

Crisp Veggie Egg Salad & Whole-Grain Crackers

Protein feeds your brain, and the delicious, crunchy veggies in this yummy egg salad will wake up your taste buds and leave you satisfied.

Combine three tablespoons of nonfat plain yogurt, three tablespoons of mayo, ¼ teaspoon of pepper and ⅛ teaspoon of salt in a medium bowl. Mash eight hard-boiled eggs into the dressing mixture and add ½ cup each of finely chopped carrots and chopped, seeded cucumbers and ¼ cup each of chopped scallions and finely chopped celery. Serve with a handful of cherry tomatoes and a few whole-grain crackers.

Grilled Chicken Salad

Chicken is a light, protein-packed choice for lunch, and this salad is the perfect vehicle for it.

Slice a baked chicken breast into strips or chunks. Place an appropriate amount of the greens of your choice — we like spinach and Romaine together — in a bowl and add a chopped and seeded tomato, ¼ cup of chopped celery, two shredded carrots, half a sliced and halved cucumber, and a small handful of walnuts. Toss well, and lay the chicken strips or chunks on top. Slather the whole shebang with zero-carb, sugar-free Simple Girl Sweet Vinaigrette Organic Salad Dressing and enjoy.

Easy Peasy Crab Cakes

These melt-in-your-mouth baked crab cakes are a super-healthy choice for lunch, but don't worry — they won't leave you feeling crabby later on.

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees, and spray a 12-cup muffin pan with cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, combine one pound of crab meat, two cups of whole-grain breadcrumbs, ½ minced red bell pepper, three sliced scallions, ¼ cup of reduced-fat mayo, two large eggs plus one large egg white, ½ teaspoon of celery salt, ¼ teaspoon of pepper, and Tabasco sauce (or other hot sauce) to taste.

Evenly divide the mixture among the muffin cups and bake until crispy, about 25 minutes.

Barbecue Corn & Black Bean Pizza

This healthy, tangy pizza makes use of just half of a whole-grain pita and sugar-free Simple Girl Carolina Kick Organic Barbecue Sauce for a delicious, low-carb lunch.

Combine one diced plum tomato, one cup of drained and rinsed black beans, one cup fresh or frozen corn kernels, and ⅓ cup of Simple Girl Carolina Kick Organic Barbecue Sauce. Toast half of a whole-grain pita, slather it with the bean mixture, top it off with shredded mozzarella, and melt the cheese in the microwave or toaster oven.

Dippin' Veggies

Sometimes you just aren't up for a full-fledged, complicated lunch. If this is the case, slice up a mess of your favorite crunchy veggies — cauliflower, broccoli, snow peas, carrots, celery, radishes, etc. — and bring along a container of sugar-free Simple Girl Sweet Mustard Organic Salad Dressing for dipping. The crunch alone will wake you up and stimulate your senses to keep you alert and on-task all afternoon.