Meal delivery services

wellnessbiddy247
wellnessbiddy247 Posts: 14 Member
in Getting Started
Has anyone had any luck with meal delivery services? I have such a hard time cooking during the week. I'd like to know if a meal delivery service would be worth it. Or if there is another meal plan you guys follow that is easy to cook on weekends? I don't cook meat.

Replies

  • mungowungo
    mungowungo Posts: 327 Member
    I did have meal delivery services many years ago. I just picked the number of calories per day and they sent breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks. I remember eating a lot of raw carrots, celery etc. The meals did get a bit monotonous after a while - but this was an Australian company 20 years ago.

    It was handy at the time because I was working all day and going to University at night and it worked because I lost over 50 lb in six months - but this was well before I started having children and the weight has come back.
  • YouHadMyCuriosity
    YouHadMyCuriosity Posts: 218 Member
    I have mixed feelings on this. On the one hand, with a meal service, you aren't really changing your every day habits- what happens when you get off the program?I personally wouldn't do it, because it's not something that I can sustain (cooking dinner in the evening is one of my favorite stress reliefs!) On the other hand, for certain people, I know it can work as a start- my mom, for example, is working from home with a business that takes almost 14 hours a day of work to maintain. She has been using a local meal delivery service, and for her, it has definitely helped. She has lost almost 20lbs on it, which is great. She does plan on picking up on normal, every day, healthy lifestyle once she has a chance to breathe after the holidays.
  • lucan07
    lucan07 Posts: 509
    I have seen one a friend was having delivered and could honestly say that the meals looked and tasted no better than frozen ready meals easily available and calories about the same, but at six times the price. Perhaps the trick is you can't afford to get fat!

    That friend now purchases ready made frozen alternatives and is losing more weight for a fraction of the cost, and they are not the diet versions which gram for gram contain far more calories!
  • angelaofgreen
    angelaofgreen Posts: 4
    This is a fantastic question! I've been curious about them too. I'm not interested in something like Nutrisystem, but the actual chef made meals that are delivered weekly. I can't think of any brands off the top of my head.

    One benefit of these is it will allow me to try new foods. I was raised on hearty farm meals. It's difficult for me to find new, healthier foods that I enjoy. My cooking skills get in the way of this. I don't know the first thing about cooking salmon steaks, but make a mean beer battered cat fish :tongue:
  • TriShamelessly
    TriShamelessly Posts: 905 Member
    Much cheaper to prep your own meals on the weekend for re-heating/quick cook during the week. Some of the services are okay, but it's essentially just very small serving portions of okay/decent food. You can do that are your own at a fraction of the price with a little advance planning.
  • SonicDeathMonkey80
    SonicDeathMonkey80 Posts: 4,489 Member
    Save your money and just cook a bunch of stuff on Sunday and portion it out for the week.

    Make your starches/carbs in batches (sweet potatoes, rice, pasta) so you don't have to cook so much at once on weeknights.

    Do the same with your proteins - cook a batch in light oil, salt, pepper, and portion out. When you heat them up, just season/sauce to whatever you're craving.

    Get a veggie steamer. You can have on-demand fresh veggies in <4min.
  • wellnessbiddy247
    wellnessbiddy247 Posts: 14 Member
    Thanks :) this is good advice. I am kind of stuck in the middle. I know I can't sustain meal delivery forever, but I work 12-15 hours a day and don't know how to cook/too tired to learn. Ugh!
  • wellnessbiddy247
    wellnessbiddy247 Posts: 14 Member
    Veggie steamer is a great idea!
  • notworthstalking
    notworthstalking Posts: 531 Member
    My dad had cancer treatment last year and went right off cooking and eating. Not good as my mum isn't the best cook and he is normally the foodie. He used a delivery service as a means to get back to eating. I think they just order a few meals that looked good and different to what they normally ate. For example he always refused to eat youghurt , but decided to try it. He then started buying it himself. I remember he showed me the meals and said there's no reason you couldn't pack this type of thing yourself for lunch. He is now back to a normal diet. If you looked at it in a similar way it could help you. Like you try something new, and then learn to cook it yourself. Personally I like to do things like cook a bunch of meatballs , or chicken and freeze it. Then I can easy reheat it and have veggies, hot or salad types, and a carb such as rice or pasta ( whatever fits) . As far as learning to cook and batch cooking, keep it simple. Once you have a dish down, then mix it up a little.

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