Lean Cuisines

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  • dewsmom78
    dewsmom78 Posts: 498 Member
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    I used to eat them alot, but now only about once a week and I only eat the garlic chicken pizza. Alot of their meals are very high in sodium and cholesterol, so I try and make my own food for lunches.
  • climbamnt
    climbamnt Posts: 190 Member
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    Lean Cuisines now has Salad Additions which I am using for lunch. You just add the lettuce. I think there are four different types: cranberry, asian, southwest, and bistro. All of them have chicken. I've enjoyed all except the bistro. I'm having that tomorrow. Each is at 260 calories. My sodium intake is normally pretty low so I don't pay a lot of attention to that. Today I had the cranberry and an apple for lunch. I feel stuffed.

    I love the Cranberry and the Asian!
  • bethlaf
    bethlaf Posts: 954 Member
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    - but they are in the freezer at home for eatmergencies... You know, when you take out the salad and its gone black, or there's some sort of time pressure.

    i just loved the "eatmergencies"
    GREAT WORD!!! and we have all been there, stuck with wilted lettuce and slimy old spinach , ugh what do i do
  • Calliope610
    Calliope610 Posts: 3,775 Member
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    I used to rely on Lean Cuisines, Smart Ones, Healthy Choice lunches when I thought I had to restrict my calories in order to lose weight. But now, why would I only eat 250-320 calories of high sodium, processed "food" when I can eat 500-650 cals of really good tasting food per meal and still lose weight?
  • pastryari
    pastryari Posts: 8,646 Member
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    Chicken Carbonara @ 240 isn't so bad. It's not my favorite, but it's pretty good.

    Why settle for sub par food when you don't have to?
    Chicken Parmesan is good @ 300 calories. A decent portion of chicken and some noodles to go along with it. Now, it has nothing on Olive Garden, but we're talking about sheer convenience and portion control (at a slight high price, I know)

    LOLOLOL.

    I also love the Mushroom Mezzuluna Ravioli @ 290 calories. It's a smaller portion. I tend to always want a little more, but it is truly enough to satisfy you.

    So you want more but it's satisfying? Contradiction.



    All that being said, I ate lean cuisines and smart ones when I first started losing weight. You'll learn that you can cook meals with reasonable cal amounts that are much tastier and don't leave you feeling hungry, though.
  • girlfromOklahoma
    girlfromOklahoma Posts: 129 Member
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    Thanks for posting this thread. I never eat them because I'm afraid I'll hate the taste. I tried the Smart Ones Ravioli several years ago and it made me gag. So I haven't eaten any kind of diet frozen meal since. But with all your suggestions in hand, I might give it a try again. :)
  • nygrl4evr
    nygrl4evr Posts: 196 Member
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    My sodium and cholesterol is always low so I don't worry about that. The price and convenience cannot be beat. I load up when they are on sale 5 for $10- Fast and prevents me from having to go out and pick up something.
  • freckledrats
    freckledrats Posts: 251 Member
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    I keep them in my freezer for emergencies, as was mentioned by someone else. I don't get home til 8:30 often and if there are no leftovers, I need something quick and easy. Often I eat those organic boxed soups, which are about on par with Lean Cuisines for sodium. More often I try to just have leftovers from days when I have time to cook on hand. Lately my lunches have been too heavy and I'll eat an apple and peanut butter for dinner (which honestly is about the same calorie content as a Lean Cuisine anyway).

    But yeah, I don't consider them a healthy go-to food. They are just better portions than some other frozen/quick things you could get. Too many preservatives to be a regular thing, for me.
  • abikinibyjuly
    abikinibyjuly Posts: 330 Member
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    I like to have a few of them on hand just in case I'm too tired to cook. They save me from just grazing out of the fridge. When I graze, I tend to overeat. Often, one Lean Cuisine won't satisfy me. I'm a volume eater! So, I've been supplementing them with a small salad or veggies. In the time that it takes to cook in the microwave, I can saute two cups of raw spinach in a little bit of cooking spray and garlic or I can eat my salad. When I have the Santa Fe Beans and Rice I always put it over lettuce. Tastes like a taco salad and very filling.
  • missdabby
    missdabby Posts: 46 Member
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    Mac and Cheese is my favorite...add some black beans for fiber and you have a delicious dinner :)
  • CM9178
    CM9178 Posts: 1,265 Member
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    Some of them aren't bad.. but they aren't nearly filling enough for me. Maybe as a snack, but then they are way too many calories to be considered a snack for me either. I'd much rather choose something I can make myself that is more filling, than a tiny frozen meal. If I was in a bind and had absolutely no other option, I'd eat one.
  • nellyb2011
    nellyb2011 Posts: 168 Member
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    BUMP
  • Mainebikerchick
    Mainebikerchick Posts: 1,573 Member
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    Chicken Carbonara @ 240 isn't so bad. It's not my favorite, but it's pretty good.

    Why settle for sub par food when you don't have to?
    Chicken Parmesan is good @ 300 calories. A decent portion of chicken and some noodles to go along with it. Now, it has nothing on Olive Garden, but we're talking about sheer convenience and portion control (at a slight high price, I know)

    LOLOLOL.

    I also love the Mushroom Mezzuluna Ravioli @ 290 calories. It's a smaller portion. I tend to always want a little more, but it is truly enough to satisfy you.

    So you want more but it's satisfying? Contradiction.



    All that being said, I ate lean cuisines and smart ones when I first started losing weight. You'll learn that you can cook meals with reasonable cal amounts that are much tastier and don't leave you feeling hungry, though.

    ^^THIS!!! I had a Lean Cuisine for lunch today because I was running late and didn't have time to make a salad...well it's 3:35, I work until 5:30 and likely won't eat dinner until 6:30...and I AM STARVING RIGHT NOW!! :sad:

    Tasty? Yes it was. Filling? Definitely was NOT.
  • airen123
    airen123 Posts: 149
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    I used to eat these every day, but I found that how much I was exercising (work out twice a day, lifting heavy, etc) that it isn't enough food for me. I would often feel SO hungry after the 5 bites it would take to clean out a LC pasta. I do like the taste of some (Potstickers FTW!)
    But, I now have figured out that either giant salads or homemade soups are what works for me.
    I make the soups on Sundays and freeze portions. Two soups I keep in rotation are:
    http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Cha-Chas-White-Chicken-Chili/

    http://www.cookinglight.com/food/quick-healthy/healthy-soup-recipes-00412000070018/page93.html

    OH, often Michelina's light and lean line is 99 cents a meal-just fyi if you're on a tight budget.
  • toaster6
    toaster6 Posts: 703 Member
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    I used to eat those but since I've started cooking, I just don't like the flavors anymore. I can get more food that I think tastes better if I just cook it myself. I'm the only one in my household that is trying to lose weight and I've found that I can cook low cal foods that everyone in the house enjoys. If I make prepare 4 ounces of grilled chicken breast with basil and rosemary, paired with half a cup of rice, and a side of stuffed eggplant, it'll run me about 300 calories or some cod and rogout runs me 174 calories a serving. Though I do get the convenience aspect of it-- especially if you don't enjoy cooking.
  • Tuffjourney
    Tuffjourney Posts: 971
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    Lean Cuisines now has Salad Additions which I am using for lunch. You just add the lettuce. I think there are four different types: cranberry, asian, southwest, and bistro. All of them have chicken. I've enjoyed all except the bistro. I'm having that tomorrow. Each is at 260 calories. My sodium intake is normally pretty low so I don't pay a lot of attention to that. Today I had the cranberry and an apple for lunch. I feel stuffed.

    I've been interested in trying these. Glad you gave a review.:flowerforyou:
  • jakki_brown
    jakki_brown Posts: 142 Member
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    To the critics: I do realize you can cook something better, but to be quite honest, I'm lazy sometimes. When you work a full time job, have a weekend gig, and go to school - all while planning a wedding.... things get a little hectic. I enjoy LC and they aren't for everyone, but the convenience trumps everything sometimes.

    This post wasn't for nay-sayers to explain to us that we can cook better, healthier options at home. This is for people that do eat them to talk about how they work them into their diets and which types they like.
  • chileheadmike
    chileheadmike Posts: 78 Member
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    My wife eats them and likes them. They don't smell like food to me. Especially anything that has garlic in it. I don't know what they use for garlic on those thing, but it ain't garlic.

    I pass.
  • jakki_brown
    jakki_brown Posts: 142 Member
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    Chicken Carbonara @ 240 isn't so bad. It's not my favorite, but it's pretty good.

    ***** "It's not my favorite" was a comparison to the rest of the LCs a like. As I said, it isn't my favorite lean cuisine (out of the LCs I like), but I like it and the calorie count "isn't so bad" @ 240 calories.

    Why settle for sub par food when you don't have to?

    **** It's not settling - it's what I WANT to eat.
    Chicken Parmesan is good @ 300 calories. A decent portion of chicken and some noodles to go along with it. Now, it has nothing on Olive Garden, but we're talking about sheer convenience and portion control (at a slight high price, I know)

    LOLOLOL.

    I also love the Mushroom Mezzuluna Ravioli @ 290 calories. It's a smaller portion. I tend to always want a little more, but it is truly enough to satisfy you.

    So you want more but it's satisfying? Contradiction.

    **** I struggle with eating past being full when I'm eating something I really like, which is partly how I became overweight. It's a decent portion that doesn't leave me hunger, but it does leave me craving more because I like it that much.



    All that being said, I ate lean cuisines and smart ones when I first started losing weight. You'll learn that you can cook meals with reasonable cal amounts that are much tastier and don't leave you feeling hungry, though.

    ***** I never said I was left feeling hungry. I do cook when I have the time or feel like it. And when I cook, I probably do enjoy what I eat more, but when I don't feel like cooking or don't have the time to cook.. I eat LCs and I enjoy them.
  • jakki_brown
    jakki_brown Posts: 142 Member
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    Thanks for posting this thread. I never eat them because I'm afraid I'll hate the taste. I tried the Smart Ones Ravioli several years ago and it made me gag. So I haven't eaten any kind of diet frozen meal since. But with all your suggestions in hand, I might give it a try again. :)

    Another posted said that Marie Callendars had some entrees that weren't too horrible in calories and I have since ate some. There are quite a few that are under 400! Maybe that would help? :)

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