Pack fatty keto foods separately.

The trick to a keto lunch box is separating the fatty stuff and assembling it at work. You don’t want a thermos of greasy soup or cheese melted into your avocado.

Start with a bento-style box or any container with dividers. Keep cheese in one compartment, cooked bacon in another with a paper towel to absorb moisture, and avocado in its own little cup with the pit pressed in and a squeeze of lemon or lime. The citrus stops browning, and the pit keeps the flesh from mush.

Bacon goes soggy fast if it sits with anything warm or wet. Pack it crisp, let it cool completely, then wrap it in foil or keep it in a small container with a dry paper towel. Same for cheese — cubes or slices stay cleaner than shredded, which turns into one sad clump.

Avocado is the easy one to ruin. Don’t slice it at home. Cut it in half, leave the skin on, pack the half face-down on a plate or in a cup, and bring a fork. You slice it fresh at lunch and it’s perfect. No pit, no plastic wrap gymnastics.

Fats are flavor, not your enemy. You just have to treat them like the precious things they are.

Future You at 3pm will be grateful you didn’t make a sad, greasy mess.