Meal replacements?

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sissiluv
sissiluv Posts: 2,205 Member
in Food and Nutrition
So I'm concerned that I'm not eating enough some days and am considering meal replacements to augment this, shakes in particular as they go down easier.
My BMR is 1700 or thereabouts, TDR more around the 2200 mark but I'm regularly netting around 800 instead, barely over 1200 total, with around 40 minutes of exercise on top of that.
There are multiple reasons why this could be. Not enough time in the day left, laziness, depression stifling my apatite and motivation etc and I'll work on those, they aren't up for discussion.

But I WAS wondering if you guys had any suggestions on meal replacements, be they bars of some sort or the shakes, and recommendations in general.

Thanks!

Replies

  • Its_Nat
    Its_Nat Posts: 184 Member
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    I'll be interested to see the replies too, there are days that I struggle to reach enough calories as well, even though I've eaten 3 decent meals. I've taken to eating some full fat ice-cream to try and get the cals up.. but some days that's still not enough!
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    buy target/wal-mart/trader joes protein powder. chocolate or vanilla.

    i make a shake, two scoops of protein powder (either flavor), two table spoons of peanut butter, 1/4 cup of dry old fashioned oats, a banana, and 8 ounces of unsweetened almond milk (vanilla flavor if you like). comes out to about 550 calories. you'd think with the oats it might be lumpy, but honestly i don't even taste them.

    another one i do is with 10 ounce of OJ, a handful of frozen fruit like straberries or berry medly, and a banana, and 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder. about 400 calories.
  • sissiluv
    sissiluv Posts: 2,205 Member
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    I'll be interested to see the replies too, there are days that I struggle to reach enough calories as well, even though I've eaten 3 decent meals. I've taken to eating some full fat ice-cream to try and get the cals up.. but some days that's still not enough!
    Lawl maybe I should put chips back into my diet. That'd get me back up REAL quick! xD
  • sissiluv
    sissiluv Posts: 2,205 Member
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    buy target/wal-mart/trader joes protein powder. chocolate or vanilla.

    i make a shake, two scoops of protein powder (either flavor), two table spoons of peanut butter, 1/4 cup of dry old fashioned oats, a banana, and 8 ounces of unsweetened almond milk (vanilla flavor if you like). comes out to about 550 calories. you'd think with the oats it might be lumpy, but honestly i don't even taste them.

    another one i do is with 10 ounce of OJ, a handful of frozen fruit like straberries or berry medly, and a banana, and 2 scoops of vanilla protein powder. about 400 calories.
    This sounds awesome! Thank you! :"D
  • Q4Rhority
    Q4Rhority Posts: 23
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    Sissiluv, hey I tried the replacement thing and I did well . I did a protein shake or a meal bar for breakfast, snack on veggies
    Fruits . For lunch protein shake or meal bar, snack fruits or veggie , For Dinner 4oz lean protein 1/4 vegetables 1/4 starch, snack fruit veggies low calories snacks and 2 quarts of water. Which = 3 snacks 2 replacement meals 1 balance meal , than exercise at least 30/60 minutes a day.
  • j4m8
    j4m8 Posts: 32
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    I just started with lean shakes from gnc. Not 550 cals but much less labor intensive. I'm looking to incorporate them 2-3 times a day
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
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    I use the slim fast line any of the ready made stuff no time to make shakes in blender or mix powder in a cup or anything like that. I like how they taste (see old posts of mine called "choosy my chocolate" for mini reviews & calorie/fat/fiber content).

    I'm doing the whole slim fast 321 plan though and they are meant to keep you full so have the fiber to achieve that. If you're already full, I don't know if you'd want to try something different. I tried to go cheaper once by trying the costco version called "kirklands meal replacement" that says "compare to slim fast" right on the box and they were around half the price, but they had double the sugar as slim fast all other things being equal. for me that increased my appetite and made it hard to stay on target without going over my cals.

    Hope this info helps you in some way these are the only ones I have experience with right now.
  • Q4Rhority
    Q4Rhority Posts: 23
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    :smile:
    Sissiluv, hey I tried the replacement thing and I did well . I did a protein shake or a meal bar for breakfast, snack on veggies
    Fruits . For lunch protein shake or meal bar, snack fruits or veggie , For Dinner 4oz lean protein 1/4 vegetables 1/4 starch, snack fruit veggies low calories snacks and 2 quarts of water. Which = 3 snacks 2 replacement meals 1 balance meal , than exercise at least 30/60 minutes a day.
  • Ready2Serve
    Ready2Serve Posts: 113 Member
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    Make sure you are using cold processed protein powder. The body can use more of it. Watch the amount of sugar, cheaper brands use more sugar.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    something else that helps me out, is that when i do cook, i make huge amounts of food. i'll buy the family pack 4 pounds of bonelss chicken breast and slice it up and grill it so i have healthy handy snacks. with a whole wheat wrap, some mayo, and a leaf or two of lettuce it makes a great snack or lunch.

    also pasta. i'll make a pound of pasta with a big jar of sauce and a pound of chop meat and have it in my fridge for days. it keeps well.

    yes, i don't mind eating the same thing for a few days in a row.

    also, buy a container of eggs and make them all hard boiled. 90 calories if i remember correctly.
  • SomeoneSomeplace
    SomeoneSomeplace Posts: 1,094 Member
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    I think meal replacements taste bad

    But I drank Ensure when I had Mono BC my throat was so swollen I couldn't swallow. Or I'd make a high calorie protein shake or smoothie.

    But I prefer to get my calories in by eating high calories foods, peanut butter is my go to but nuts, avacado, cheese...all higher calorie foods that can up your calories quickly without having to turn to shakes
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
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    Make sure you are using cold processed protein powder. The body can use more of it. Watch the amount of sugar, cheaper brands use more sugar.


    yeah, cold processed protein powder might have more bioavailability, but for must of us, it really doesn't make that much of a difference, in the cost to output ratio. if you're a professional athlete or body building is your thing, then go for it.

    i've been using the discount brands for a while. i find them suitable for my needs.

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