Pros and cons of eating prepackaged foods

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  • pavrg
    pavrg Posts: 277 Member
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    Cons:
    -Tastes bad.
    -Soggy texture
    -You don't get the joy of cooking
    -Loaded with preservatives and sodium
    -Small calorie dense portions leave you hungry
    -Expensive
    -Excessive packaging creates more waste

    Pros:
    None.
  • marciebrian
    marciebrian Posts: 853 Member
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    Pros: chef in a box.
    Cons: chef can't cook.
    made me LOL but seriously just lose the packaged meals if you can. you don't have to go cold turkey just cut back and see how much better you feel... you'll likely choose to give them up other than in desperation. Good luck!
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Pros: chef in a box.
    Cons: chef can't cook.

    Love this!

    My main issue with them is I'm just not full for the calories. I mean even for 290 calories I could have a 6oz grilled chicken breast and a ton of veggies... but instead you get maybe 3oz of meat, half a cup of veggies, and a bit of pasta or rice and it doesn't even taste good.
  • dorthymcconnel
    dorthymcconnel Posts: 237 Member
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    Pros: Convenient

    Cons: Generally higher in sodium and taste much worse than a homemade version.

    This. They are horrifically high in sodium, not to mention all the preservatives and other chemicals thrown in for fun. They are easy to fix and you know what you're getting calorie wise, but for me they are definitely not worth it.
  • TheSlorax
    TheSlorax Posts: 2,401 Member
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    I enjoy healthy choice steamers quite often. they're good. I am a really good cook but living on my own it gets expensive and wasteful. I like having things packaged into one serving.
  • SkinnyWannabeGal
    SkinnyWannabeGal Posts: 143 Member
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    Pros: I can get my protein, carbs, veggies and fruits on my table in under 10 mins with a Healthy Choice turkey dinner.

    Cons: feeling guilty knowing that I could've whipped up a homemade grilled chicken salad instead if I wasn't so freaking lazy

    I try to steer clear of prepackaged foods as much as possible, but I have my occasional slip ups. Fresh tastes better and it's so much better for me.
  • vnatural
    vnatural Posts: 48
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    I use to eat packaged food everyday and all day thinking it was healthy because of the brand and label plus I had very bad food allergies.
    Then I was introduced to organic food after going natural 100% best choice of my life.
    I cook just about all my food and if its not cooked then I probably eat fruit or a sandwich.
    Whenever I do eat prepacked I can always tell the difference in my body and mood.
    I basically feel crappy.
    Anywho, just try eating actual natural food even if its not organic and make it yourself.
    I guarantee you will notice a difference in how you feel and your weight.
  • 34blast
    34blast Posts: 166 Member
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    One big pro for me for pre-packaged food is the the calories and nutrition and serving sizes are easy. Meaning when I make my own food, its probably less accurate for calories, serving size, and nutrition. I think too many people underestimate calories and serving sizes when they cook themselves. I'm sure more hardcore people are measuring the details. e.g. when you eat a chicken breast, make your own sandwich, salad or lasagna or you weighing it first? Are you sure about the calories and serving sizes?

    I grew up on a farm and everything we ate was organic (no chemicals at all) for vegetables, beef, fruits, etc. Our beef was grass fed with no hormones, same for chicken and eggs. I miss those days, but am a convenience enthusiast now. Normal supermarket and Walmart produce is probably less healthy than all those prepackaged meals. The best solution for those willing to shell out the money who aren't farmers is organic stores, provided they are willing to spend the money. For me, prepackaged stuff is easier while dieting.
  • laylaness
    laylaness Posts: 262 Member
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    I eat pre-packaged all the time. I can cook, I'm just lazy.

    We shop exclusively at Trader Joe's, though, and they have a ton of stuff that is reasonably good. Just check the package for macros, that's what we do. We still get fresh fruit and veg, and stuff like Greek yogurt, cheese, natural peanut butter, etc.

    Just, you know, look at the box.
  • Cindyinpg
    Cindyinpg Posts: 3,902 Member
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    I don't bother. Why not bake up a good-sized batch of chicken breasts once a week and have it chopped up and ready to go in stir fries, salads and sandwiches?
  • SandyC04
    SandyC04 Posts: 32
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    I will give you the advice my nutritionist gave me... You can buy canned, packaged or frozen foods but make sure they have 7 or less ingredients and that you must be able to pronounce and recognize all the ingredients (e.g., no chemicals)... There is healthy package food out there if you look for it! Trader Joes and Whole Foods are the best places to score on this front but there are many markets that are starting to carry organic and healthier option frozen and prepared foods... I think when you start reading the labels and the nutritional content you will have your eyes opened... I sure did... Yeah, it may cost a few bucks more but the food tastes better, they are healthier for you and you will lose weight without even trying hard... the sodium and chemical content of the more popular packaged foods do a number on you...
  • bridgie101
    bridgie101 Posts: 817 Member
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    If you're not losing weight and you don't think you're retaining water (time of month,etc) then maybe start to re-measure. Not just the convenience meals, reviewing the info on the back, but everything else that slides in your mouth without you seeing.. :D Food does that you know. Jumps down your throat while you look the other way. Or at least, it does to me...
  • Cheeky_and_Geeky
    Cheeky_and_Geeky Posts: 984 Member
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    I just take leftovers from the night before or take some healthy snacks
  • IrishHarpy1
    IrishHarpy1 Posts: 399 Member
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    I'm an *AWESOME* cook... when I have the time to do it. Working 60+ hours a week sort of puts a damper on that, so I rely a lot on Lean Cuisine/Smart Ones/Healthy Choice/Trader Joe's meals for quick lunches when I run home in the middle of the day. Breakfast and dinner are usually homemade, but I like the convenience when I'm pressed for time. I still manage to keep well under my sodium goal every day, and eating an average of five pre-packaged lunches a week certainly never hurt either my weight loss or my maintenance over the past 18 months.

    Once the weather gets cooler and my weekends less busy, I'll most likely go back to making my own lunches to pop in the freezer, but I won't turn my nose up at something just because it came out of a box.
  • watfordjc
    watfordjc Posts: 304 Member
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    High in sodium? How many of these meals are people eating a day?

    Going back in my food diary to the latest days my sodium was sort of high...

    Thursday 12th, 2,263 calories consumed, 2,478 mg sodium (of which 900 mg from bread, 640 mg from Marmite, 450 mg from ready meals, 174 mg from peanut butter, 162 mg sodium from salted butter).

    Friday 6th: 2,904 calories consumed, 2,535 mg sodium (of which 800 mg from bread, 640 mg from Marmite, 450 mg from ready meals, 311 mg from peanut butter, 162 mg from salted butter, 160 mg from milk).

    Thursday 5th: 3,010 calories consumed, 2,836 mg sodium (of which 1,000 mg from bread, 640 mg from Marmite, 450 mg from ready meals, 232 mg from peanut butter, 162 mg from salted butter, 120 mg from milk).


    Stops you losing weight?

    weight-from-2009-to-2013-09-11-small.png

    The left hand side of that graph is me trying to forbid myself from eating processed food. The middle of the graph is me giving up, fasting for 36 hours before having a large take away, and walking around 0.4 miles per week. The right side of that graph is after analysis of previous data and incorporating changes that I thought would improve compliance including forbidding myself from any home-cooked food for a minimum of 6 months (theory being I would later habitually fall back to something other than take aways when I'm incapable of cooking).

    Blaming pre-packaged food is like blaming fruit. Speaking of, on two of those days I listed above I had a whole pineapple that was pre-packaged (peeled and cored) - they might cost twice as much as fresh pineapple, but if I had to slice off the skin and core it myself I wouldn't have bothered. Likewise slicing melon. Same goes with ready meals and my protein intake - it's not as high as it could be, but without those meals it would be significantly lower.

    Organic? Except for a few bananas, very few of the 660,753 calories I have consumed since November have been from organic foods. Hasn't stopped me losing weight.

    Health? My RHR is 42 bpm (down from 92 bpm), my HRmax is now up to 204 bpm (previously couldn't get it above 183 bpm, improved endurance?) and my 2-minute HRR is around 38 bpm. I can run for 30 minutes, and I can walk for 15 miles. I don't care if non-processed foods would improve my health, because a diet void of processed foods would, looking at the data, cause me to gain 100 pounds.

    If one has a personal preference or belief about processed foods, fine. But to call them bad, unhealthy, or that you can't lose weight eating them is like telling me I shouldn't have eaten all those Snickers bars in the last 11 months (I know it's at least 100 of them, perhaps more than 200).

    As for not losing weight, the first thing to always double-check is that your consumption tracking is accurate. Once that is verified the next thing to check is that the estimates used for day-to-day activity and exercise are accurate (i.e. you aren't over-estimating activity). Then it is either (a) not enough data to determine if there is a trend, so more time and/or a more regular diet/exercise routine to minimise fluctuations is needed, (b) see a doctor to see if you have a medical condition, or (c) something else. Unless your deficit is small, a trend should start to form within 4 weeks (e.g. if I switch routines/diet it takes 2 weeks for my water weight to adjust to a new level (up or down) and another 2 weeks for a weight trend to appear).

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