MFP's thoughts on Soylent
Options
Replies
-
comptonelizabeth wrote: »Does anyone else remember the film "Soylent Green"?
It's been referenced in the thread multiple times1 -
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.0 -
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 stomach1
-
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! ;-)3 -
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.0 -
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.0 -
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...0 -
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. 1 -
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.0 -
CafeRacer808 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.1 -
Thanks, I really appreciate it.1
-
My husband and I had a whole discussion about this a couple of weeks back. It's tempting, especially on the crazy days. I was about to pull the trigger and then read that they'd gotten a bad batch of something and lots of people were getting sick. No clue when that was, but it killed our momentum. I'll gladly read about your experiences though!1
-
I could understand not being interested in food and thus not making it a priority... but I can't wrap my head around not being able to afford sufficient foodIWantToFloat 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.
Where do you live?! Are you perhaps eligible for assistance? What amount is a serving of frozen vegetables?? 1 -
Wow, not sure where you live, but those prices do seem terribly high. I'd personally try to keep at least one meal a day solid, for the adjustment issues mentioned earlier.1
-
kommodevaran wrote: »
I could understand not being interested in food and thus not making it a priority... but I can't wrap my head around not being able to afford sufficient foodIWantToFloat 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. Where do you live?! Are you perhaps eligible for assistance? What amount is a serving of frozen vegetables??
A serving would be a cup. I could get the cheapest frozen veggies that are just carrots, and green beans to save money but then it's the issue of adequate nutrition. The price would be just under a dollar for a cup of that stuff.
I'm not eligible for assistance and with our regions food banks struggling to keep up with the depend of Syrian refugees it wouldn't be right for me to go to such a place.
I live in NS, Canada where the price of food has gone up over 20% in the last six years, but I'll be moving to a better province this year which will definitely help.
Here's an example of a cheap meal I just made. Meatloaf with reduced meat about to go bad so it costs roughly a dollar a serving, a small russet potato that cost $1.35, and some corn that cost a dollar for two servings worth, and a small bun for the meat loaf which was $.75. For $4.05 that's a wonderful meal but if I had a Soylent meal it would have been less than $2.50.
Edit: the cost of a Soylent serving is $1.72 (CAD)0 -
My husband and I had a whole discussion about this a couple of weeks back. It's tempting, especially on the crazy days. I was about to pull the trigger and then read that they'd gotten a bad batch of something and lots of people were getting sick. No clue when that was, but it killed our momentum. I'll gladly read about your experiences though!
I heard the same thing and was really unsure at first. I guess they had started using algal (spelling?) flour which caused a lot of poor reactions in many folks. They took it out and people have been fine since.1 -
I don't think it's reccomended to be the only thing you consume, 24/7. Read up on it first, I'm no expert, but I do believe from my boyfriend researching soylent (he doesn't enjoy cooking or remembering to eat in the slightest) that you are actually supposed to consume solid food, too.1
-
I don't think it's reccomended to be the only thing you consume, 24/7. Read up on it first, I'm no expert, but I do believe from my boyfriend researching soylent (he doesn't enjoy cooking or remembering to eat in the slightest) that you are actually supposed to consume solid food, too.
I've heard the same but I've also heard people say it's absolutely fine to make it a near 100% replacement as well. I guess the biggest concern is your stomach and other digestive muscles starting to atrophy if doing it long term. I'd still eat solids after trying it 24/7 for month to see what it's like.0 -
CafeRacer808 wrote: »Have you considered blogging about your experience?
This is from a while ago, but: http://www.theverge.com/2014/7/17/5893221/soylent-survivor-one-month-living-on-lab-made-liquid-nourishment
1 -
I have heard about food prices in Canada rising, but I didn't know there was a food crisis.IWantToFloat wrote: »kommodevaran wrote: »
I could understand not being interested in food and thus not making it a priority... but I can't wrap my head around not being able to afford sufficient foodIWantToFloat 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. Where do you live?! Are you perhaps eligible for assistance? What amount is a serving of frozen vegetables??
A serving would be a cup. I could get the cheapest frozen veggies that are just carrots, and green beans to save money but then it's the issue of adequate nutrition. The price would be just under a dollar for a cup of that stuff.
I'm not eligible for assistance and with our regions food banks struggling to keep up with the depend of Syrian refugees it wouldn't be right for me to go to such a place.
I live in NS, Canada where the price of food has gone up over 20% in the last six years, but I'll be moving to a better province this year which will definitely help.
Here's an example of a cheap meal I just made. Meatloaf with reduced meat about to go bad so it costs roughly a dollar a serving, a small russet potato that cost $1.35, and some corn that cost a dollar for two servings worth, and a small bun for the meat loaf which was $.75. For $4.05 that's a wonderful meal but if I had a Soylent meal it would have been less than $2.50.
Edit: the cost of a Soylent serving is $1.72 (CAD)
You have the same entitlement as refugees - I think so at least.
((I) don't do cups.) I use green beans or peas, 100 grams of either, as a side for a dinner. Other frozen vegetables I use is edamame, brussel sprouts and spinach. What's wrong with just carrots or green beans?
Meat can be replaced with beans and grains - look for vegetarian meals. That combination provides complete protein.
How long are you planning to use Soylent? Are you just using it until you are moving?0
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 391.6K Introduce Yourself
- 43.5K Getting Started
- 259.7K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.6K Food and Nutrition
- 47.3K Recipes
- 232.3K Fitness and Exercise
- 393 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.4K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 152.7K Motivation and Support
- 7.8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.3K MyFitnessPal Information
- 23 News and Announcements
- 937 Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.3K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions