MFP's thoughts on Soylent

IWantToFloat

I'm struggling to meet my nutritional requirements and with the rising cost of food, soylent is way cheaper to eat per day than cooking. Plus I'd be saving time. I'm mostly interested in the powder to save even more money.

Has anyone here had experience using soylent 24/7 and for weight loss?

Here's some nutritional information on soylent.

Nutrition Facts Serving Size 84.8g
Calories 400

Amount per Serving
Total Fat 20g
Saturated Fat 2g
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0 mg
Sodium 320 mg
Total Carbohydrate 37g
Dietary Fiber 5g
Sugars 15g
Protein 20g

% Daily Value of Vitamin's and Mineral's
Vitamin A 20%
Vitamin C 20%
Calcium 20%
Iron 20%
Potassium 20%
Vitamin D 20%
Vitamin E 20%
Vitamin K 20%
Thiamin 20%
Riboflavin 20%
Niacin(B3) 20%
Vitamin B6 20%
Folate 20%
Choline 20%
Vitamin B12 20%
Biotin 20%
Pantothenic Acid 20%
Iodine 20%
Magnesium 20%
Zinc 20%
Selenium 20%
Copper 20%
Manganese 20%
Chromium 20%
Molybdenum 20%

It sounds too good to be true but my doctor is behind it.

EricaCraigie

I don't know anything about it..
I'm assuming it's soy? I'm against soy.
But those numbers are impressive.. nice that it has decent potassium

IWantToFloat

EricaCraigie wrote: »

I don't know anything about it..
I'm assuming it's soy? I'm against soy.
But those numbers are impressive.. nice that it has decent potassium

I'm not a huge fan of soy either but I'm willing to give this a go.
The potassium is insane!

Alatariel75

I figure it's what the whole world will be living on in about 30 years...

CafeRacer808

As long as it's not people, you should be fine...

IWantToFloat

Alatariel75 wrote: »

I figure it's what the whole world will be living on in about 30 years...

Absolutely, may as well try jumping on board and getting use to it before that happens. ;P

peanutbuttertuesday

It's people!!!!

IWantToFloat

CafeRacer808 wrote: »

As long as it's not people, you should be fine...

Unfortunately, people are not FDA approved. ;P

CafeRacer808

IWantToFloat wrote: »

CafeRacer808 wrote: »

As long as it's not people, you should be fine...

Unfortunately, people are not FDA approved. ;P

Unfortunately, or fortunately?

So, 100% of your caloric intake is going to come from Soylent? Or do you plan to have some solid foods here and there?

IWantToFloat

CafeRacer808 wrote: »

IWantToFloat wrote: »

CafeRacer808 wrote: »

As long as it's not people, you should be fine...

Unfortunately, people are not FDA approved. ;P

Unfortunately, or fortunately?

So, 100% of your caloric intake is going to come from Soylent? Or do you plan to have some solid foods here and there?

I'd like to make it as close to 100% as possible. I will probably drink soylent on days I work and on days off add things like fruit or veggies, or going out to eat once in a while. I may supplement with a vitamin as well if I'm not drinking the recommended 2000 cals a day as I am trying to lose weight.

CafeRacer808

That seems like a good idea. Adding fruit and veg brings extra nutrients to the party and will keep you from getting bored, I would think. One thing's for certain - it'll be very easy for you to figure out how many calories you're consuming in a day! I'm actually really fascinated by this. Have you considered blogging about your experience?

LazyNightOwl

I'd probably be too bored of as close to 100% as possible. I had strep last July and on the days I was able to force food in my mouth it was yogurts, soups, very liquid-y oatmeal and after a week I just could not take one more gram of it and I wanted something with crunch & a nice hunk of steak & a good crusty piece of bread to sop up the juices...and I got it too. Throat was still a little raw but I still remember the satisfaction. So I could never, ever forego real food in favor of meal replacement powder on a full time basis...plus the name has bad association. I mean c'mon...surely they knew people would look at the name (combined with the basic label) and not wonder

IWantToFloat

CafeRacer808 wrote: »

That seems like a good idea. Adding fruit and veg brings extra nutrients to the party and will keep you from getting bored, I would think. One thing's for certain - it'll be very easy for you to figure out how many calories you're consuming in a day! I'm actually really fascinated by this. Have you considered blogging about your experience?

I'm thinking about it actually. I need to save up the money to place an order as I was sick and missed some work but I'm thinking of starting sometime in April. I would like to have blood work done before starting the diet and blood work done a month in as well.

IWantToFloat

LazyNightOwl wrote: »

I'd probably be too bored of as close to 100% as possible. I had strep last July and on the days I was able to force food in my mouth it was yogurts, soups, very liquid-y oatmeal and after a week I just could not take one more gram of it and I wanted something with crunch & a nice hunk of steak & a good crusty piece of bread to sop up the juices...and I got it too. Throat was still a little raw but I still remember the satisfaction. So I could never, ever forego real food in favor of meal replacement powder on a full time basis...plus the name has bad association. I mean c'mon...surely they knew people would look at the name (combined with the basic label) and not wonder

I can see how this sort of thing would not work for everyone and have read reviews complaining of the same thing. The stuff would work in a pinch though if you didn't like eating breakfast or don't have time during lunch. There is a whole DIY community that tries to spice the drink up.
I can eat the same thing day in, day out and can eat pretty much anything regardless of flavor so it works very well for me just as is.
I thought of the same thing when I first heard the name. The creator of soylent was thinking of the book that movie was based on, the book was called Make Room! Make Room!and in the book there was soylent green but there wasn't any cannibalism.

comptonelizabeth

Does anyone else remember the film "Soylent Green"?

kommodevaran

My opinion: Nasty - even if it isn't people. Boring - even if it should happen to not be nasty. But I love food and like to cook.

More objectively: "Boring" is subjective. It can be fun to do something crazy/different for a while. If you are comfortable drinking this and don't miss solid food, it'll work for you. You'll still be paying for the powder (and additional fruit and vegs) though. Losing weight means eating less, and eating less means buying less food. Consider if your standards for "food" and "cooking" are unrealistic. Are you buying all organic, prepackaged, name brand, ultra high protein, low fat, gluten free, low carb, enriched etc? Are you preparing gourmet meals every night?

canadjineh

comptonelizabeth wrote: »

Does anyone else remember the film "Soylent Green"?

Yep.... I hope that's NOT what is being discussed here (?!) Actually the book was better. (see IWantToFloat's comment)

kristikitter

I always think these soylent threads are a joke (you know, "soylent is people") but it's a real thing? Gross. Sorry, unhelpful comment :P

lemurcat12

I keep some at work because skipping meals due to weird schedule stuff has been a basis for me to end up eating off plan at times or getting too hungry and then not wanting to workout or some such. Easier just to be able to grab one at 8 if I'm going to be stuck at work for a while and not buy something dumber on the way home or to be able to have a late lunch while on a conference call with no fuss. Doesn't happen a lot, but it's a nice convenience.

I have a weird liking (as an occasional thing, could never replace food for me) for that kind of basically bland taste, though. And I'm not anti soy.

On the few times I've grabbed it as a running out the door breakfast, it's NOT been as filling for me as a normal breakfast (when super busy that doesn't matter), even though it's higher cal than what I normally have for breakfast (only by a little), so I don't know how it would work for regular part of a meal plan. I don't think I could sustain it even if I wanted to, since I love and would miss food.

It's weird because normally I'm all into the local as possible, cook from scratch, blah, blah, but I was curious about it too and now find it kind of fun as an occasional thing.

ahamm002

It wouldn't be a terrible idea to use Soylent once in awhile as a meal replacement shake. But using it all the time is a very temporary fix. Most people would get bored with it pretty fast. It's more important to find a way to make a regular diet work. Think about what you can stick with long term.

Tacklewasher

I still can't believe someone came out with a product called Soylent. The movie was dull enough, but to sell it just boggles the mind. Having said that, I've never looked into what it is. Can't get past the name.

extra_medium

comptonelizabeth wrote: »

Does anyone else remember the film "Soylent Green"?

It's been referenced in the thread multiple times

psuLemon

The protein is rather low. It's ok as a meal supplement once in awhile, but for your average male, you would need like 5 of the suckers for ok protein. And soy protein is not the most effective.

And personally, drinking calories never keeps me full.

demorelli

Keep in mind that eating a liquid diet will make your stomach work less which is fine but if you are going 100% then be very careful when going back onto solid foods, too much too fast will shock your stomach

lemurcat12

Tacklewasher wrote: »

I still can't believe someone came out with a product called Soylent. The movie was dull enough, but to sell it just boggles the mind. Having said that, I've never looked into what it is. Can't get past the name.

That's the joke. I think it works with some as a marketing tool. I admit it's why I first looked at it, because I was curious due to the movie connection. Had it been called "CompleteMeal" or something, I probably wouldn't have checked it out.

I'm sure this is unintentionally revealing of something very bad about me! ;-)

IWantToFloat

kommodevaran wrote: »

My opinion: Nasty - even if it isn't people. Boring - even if it should happen to not be nasty. But I love food and like to cook.

More objectively: "Boring" is subjective. It can be fun to do something crazy/different for a while. If you are comfortable drinking this and don't miss solid food, it'll work for you. You'll still be paying for the powder (and additional fruit and vegs) though. Losing weight means eating less, and eating less means buying less food. Consider if your standards for "food" and "cooking" are unrealistic. Are you buying all organic, prepackaged, name brand, ultra high protein, low fat, gluten free, low carb, enriched etc? Are you preparing gourmet meals every night?

Oh, heavens, I couldn't afford to eat like that. The biggest thing I cannot afford is meat and fruits and veggies (other than turnip, carrots, and potatoes for most meals). Soylent works out to be cheaper than buying food where I live.

IWantToFloat

ahamm002 wrote: »

It wouldn't be a terrible idea to use Soylent once in awhile as a meal replacement shake. But using it all the time is a very temporary fix. Most people would get bored with it pretty fast. It's more important to find a way to make a regular diet work. Think about what you can stick with long term.

I can eat the same things, day in, day out without much hassle.

psuLemon

IWantToFloat wrote: »

kommodevaran wrote: »

My opinion: Nasty - even if it isn't people. Boring - even if it should happen to not be nasty. But I love food and like to cook.

More objectively: "Boring" is subjective. It can be fun to do something crazy/different for a while. If you are comfortable drinking this and don't miss solid food, it'll work for you. You'll still be paying for the powder (and additional fruit and vegs) though. Losing weight means eating less, and eating less means buying less food. Consider if your standards for "food" and "cooking" are unrealistic. Are you buying all organic, prepackaged, name brand, ultra high protein, low fat, gluten free, low carb, enriched etc? Are you preparing gourmet meals every night?

Oh, heavens, I couldn't afford to eat like that. The biggest thing I cannot afford is meat and fruits and veggies (other than turnip, carrots, and potatoes for most meals). Soylent works out to be cheaper than buying food where I live.

There are plenty of cheap alternatives; eggs, chicken/pork/ground beef (especially in bulk), rice, frozen veggies/fruits or in season veggies/fruits, pasta, etc...

CafeRacer808

psuLemon wrote: »

There are plenty of cheap alternatives; eggs, chicken/pork/ground beef (especially in bulk), rice, frozen veggies/fruits or in season veggies/fruits, pasta, etc...

Don't forget about beans!

IWantToFloat wrote: »

I'm thinking about it actually. I need to save up the money to place an order as I was sick and missed some work but I'm thinking of starting sometime in April. I would like to have blood work done before starting the diet and blood work done a month in as well.

Please update this thread once you start blogging, as I'd love to read it. Doing an all Soylent diet, or even a diet that's includes it regularly, isn't my thing because I love food. But I'm always fascinated by those who are capable of eating the same thing day in and day out. Would love to hear your thoughts, for example, on what fruits and veg taste like after a week on just Soylent. After watching shows like Survivorman on Discovery Channel, I imagine that first bite of a fruit or vegetable would be a pretty unique experience. Do things taste more vivid? Are you more aware of a food's texture after being on a liquid diet for a week? Fascinating stuff, IMO.

IWantToFloat

psuLemon wrote: »

IWantToFloat wrote: »

kommodevaran wrote: »

My opinion: Nasty - even if it isn't people. Boring - even if it should happen to not be nasty. But I love food and like to cook.

More objectively: "Boring" is subjective. It can be fun to do something crazy/different for a while. If you are comfortable drinking this and don't miss solid food, it'll work for you. You'll still be paying for the powder (and additional fruit and vegs) though. Losing weight means eating less, and eating less means buying less food. Consider if your standards for "food" and "cooking" are unrealistic. Are you buying all organic, prepackaged, name brand, ultra high protein, low fat, gluten free, low carb, enriched etc? Are you preparing gourmet meals every night?

Oh, heavens, I couldn't afford to eat like that. The biggest thing I cannot afford is meat and fruits and veggies (other than turnip, carrots, and potatoes for most meals). Soylent works out to be cheaper than buying food where I live.

There are plenty of cheap alternatives; eggs, chicken/pork/ground beef (especially in bulk), rice, frozen veggies/fruits or in season veggies/fruits, pasta, etc...

Eggs are $6.36/dozen, chicken on sale is typically $5.99/lb, ground beef is $4.99/lb, frozen veggies are typically $3/serving size, rice is cheap and so is bread and pasta but I don't get all the nutrition I need eating such a limited nutrition diet.
Eating like that costs me about $8-10 dollars a day to not quite make all my daily requirements requiring a multivitamin on top of it. Soylent is $5.16 a day.

My doctor knows this and is why he suggested Soylent or any other brand of full meal replacement, or making my own.

IWantToFloat

CafeRacer808 wrote: »

psuLemon wrote: »

There are plenty of cheap alternatives; eggs, chicken/pork/ground beef (especially in bulk), rice, frozen veggies/fruits or in season veggies/fruits, pasta, etc...

Don't forget about beans!

IWantToFloat wrote: »

I'm thinking about it actually. I need to save up the money to place an order as I was sick and missed some work but I'm thinking of starting sometime in April. I would like to have blood work done before starting the diet and blood work done a month in as well.

Please update this thread once you start blogging, as I'd love to read it. Doing an all Soylent diet, or even a diet that's includes it regularly, isn't my thing because I love food. But I'm always fascinated by those who are capable of eating the same thing day in and day out. Would love to hear your thoughts, for example, on what fruits and veg taste like after a week on just Soylent. After watching shows like Survivorman on Discovery Channel, I imagine that first bite of a fruit or vegetable would be a pretty unique experience. Do things taste more vivid? Are you more aware of a food's texture after being on a liquid diet for a week? Fascinating stuff, IMO.

For sure! I'll hopefully be getting some very soon after I get back from a business trip or maybe before than to see what it's like to take a break from Soylent for two weeks after a month of the stuff. I'd like to get it as quickly as possible to try this experiment! I think it's going to save me a lot of time and money too.