Hit a rut- slim fast shakes for breakfast?

CStowell1654
CStowell1654 Posts: 10 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi,

I seem to have hit a bit of a rut after losing 15lbs- I don't want to reduce my calories much more because although I'm having 1600 a day I can just about stick to that now (56 days) and I am pretty active at work so if I don't eat enough I start feeling faint. I know this isn't my 'ideal weight' for my body because I looked and felt a lot more comfortable and energetic 2 years and another -30lbs ago and my goal is to get roughly around that weight- but more importantly that level of energy and fitness again.

I think my problem is I'm really bad at eating a good breakfast- I'm not a morning person and I often have a piece of toast or nothing at all. I'm considering getting some slim fast powder (to build into a shake) and having that for breakfast. I'm just wondering if anyone has ever tried this? I'm just thinking it's high in calcium and micronutrients, it's hydrating, quick, and I can drink it on the go. It's more calories but I bet I wouldn't eat as much later in the day if I'd had some 'get up and go' sustinance first thing. I'm abit apprehensive about using meal supplements because I like the fact that I know what's in my food- I cook most of my meals from scratch and I know it's good stuff going in. But I'm sort of thinking- if I'm not eating breakfast anyway- it's like a big milky multivitamin tablet in the morning.

Does anyone have any advice?
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Replies

  • AmyRhubarb
    AmyRhubarb Posts: 6,890 Member
    I'd much rather eat real food. Those shakes are full or artificial junk - save your money and if you want to eat breakfast, eat some real food instead.

    Do you just not like breakfast or are you just in a hurry in the morning? If you don't like it, skip it - nothing says you HAVE to eat breakfast. If you function well without it, just get your calories in later.

    If you're in a hurry, do some prep the night before for a grab & go breakfast - over night oats, fix up a breakfast burrito that you can pop in the microwave for a minute and take with you, hard boiled eggs, cheese sticks and cut up fruit.....

    But I'd skip the shakes - not worth it in my book.
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
    You could give it a try. Personally, I would do a mock log to see how it would affect everything, calorie consumption, macros, micros, etc. It might drastically increase your sugar consumption (if that's something that you pay attention to).

    I used to make a green smoothie and add a protein powder to it daily. I actually want to get back into doing that, as of now, I make myself a breakfast sandwich, but the smoothie made sure that I got some veggies in.
  • kmariet7
    kmariet7 Posts: 229 Member
    check out some of the different protein powders to make shakes. I believe slim fast doesn't have nearly as much protein. I use unjury (internet only).
  • Philp0718
    Philp0718 Posts: 136 Member
    check out some of the different protein powders to make shakes. I believe slim fast doesn't have nearly as much protein.

    I'm in a hurry in the morning and need to have something to eat otherwise I end up STARRRRVING! lol I just make my own shakes, protein powder, almond milk, ice, with fruit, peanut butter or agave for flavour. Just try making your own, its cheaper and healthier - no artificial junk. :smile:
  • ShellyBell999
    ShellyBell999 Posts: 1,482 Member
    check out some of the different protein powders to make shakes. I believe slim fast doesn't have nearly as much protein. I use unjury (internet only).

    This^^
  • jdhcm2006
    jdhcm2006 Posts: 2,254 Member
    If you want a suggestion for protein powder, I use Eidopro, online only. I got mine from amazon. It has no added sugar, and doesn't have a taste, so you don't get that nasty artificial after taste.
  • ValGogo
    ValGogo Posts: 2,168 Member
    Slim fast.....they still make that ish?
  • MKEgal
    MKEgal Posts: 3,250 Member
    I was never a breakfast person either, at least as an adult, until I read these studies.
    That's when I decided to find something easy, tasty, nutritious, and not too big & have a good breasfast every day.

    My breakfast pretty much every morning is:
    12 oz skim milk + serving of Carnation instant breakfast + 2T malted milk powder ('cause I love malteds!)
    1 slice whole wheat bread + 1.5 T peanut butter
    banana

    That's about 630 calories, which is slightly under half my daily allowance.

    Here are the studies I found, with links to the abstracts, and in some cases full text of the studies, so you can read them yourself.
    Don't take my word for it.

    "Breakfast is associated with lower body weight ...
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24898236

    This study compared eating a small breakfast, medium lunch, and large dinner, [200, 500, 700 cal]
    with eating a large breakfast, medium lunch, and small dinner [700, 500, 200 cal].
    "The [large breakfast] group showed greater weight loss and waist circumference reduction ... fasting glucose, insulin [&] triglycerides ... decreased significantly to a greater extent in the [large breakfast] group."
    In addition, hunger was less and satiety was greater.
    Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23512957
    Full text:
    http://genetics.doctorsonly.co.il/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/Jakubowicz-at-al-Obesity-2013-oby20460.pdf

    "subjects assigned to high caloric intake during breakfast lost significantly more weight than those assigned to high caloric intake during the dinner"
    Abstract: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24467926
    Full text: http://www.tradewindsports.net/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Nutrient-Timing-and-Obesity-2014.pdf

    "data suggest that a low-calorie Mediterranean diet with a higher amount of calories in the first part of the day could establish a greater reduction in fat mass and improved insulin sensitivity than a typical daily diet."
    http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24809437
  • Tomboly1
    Tomboly1 Posts: 42
    I generally drink a carnation instant breakfast shake every morning. That, slim fast, Ovaltine and Boost are all made by the same company (Nestle) and have relatively the same micronutrients, just different levels of macronutrients. I am generally not hungry in the morning so I use this as a good way to get some energy without having to fill up. I think its a quick easy idea for a meal that you otherwise wouldn't even eat!
  • MKEgal
    MKEgal Posts: 3,250 Member
    I don't want to reduce my calories much more because although I'm having 1600 a day I can just about stick to that now (56 days) and I am pretty active at work so if I don't eat enough I start feeling faint.
    Eating 1600 per day should bring you to 160 lb.
    If 160 lb is in the healthy weight range for your height (based on BMI) there's no reason to go under 1600 calories.
    As you get closer to the goal, weight loss will slow, but that's normal.

    I'm currently aiming for 165 lb, which is just under the top end of a healthy weight based on BMI for my height, so I'm eating no more than 1650 calories (for the vast majority of days... I'm only human).
    The calorie goal should be your total calories, not net. My doctor told me to ignore net. Most people overestimate their exercise (machines do too) and underestimate what they eat.
  • kelzz27
    kelzz27 Posts: 21 Member
    I also have slimfast for breakfast for the last 11 weeks as I can't stomach food at 6am :-) you do what you feel right for you. It's also packed with lots of vitamins and it keeps me going for 4 hours.
  • CStowell1654
    CStowell1654 Posts: 10 Member
    Hi, I see what you mean to be honest I barely log excercise- I'm on my feet for 8-14 hours a day at work but may nap/slob on days off so I just put myself as 'active' and leave it at that! By net here I mean for the week- like an average. Some days might be abit better than others but try to average out on my goal.
  • kittikatkitty
    kittikatkitty Posts: 12 Member
    I make my own shake in the evening for the morning. I use greek yogurt, protein powder and frozen cherries and water.
  • newdaydawning79
    newdaydawning79 Posts: 1,503 Member
    I have a GNC Total Lean protein shake every morning. 170 cals and 25g protein. It's grab and toss into my lunch bag with my other food for the day and it fills me up til lunchtime. I'm not a breakfast person whatsoever so this works well for me and fits easily into my daily cals. :D
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  • CStowell1654
    CStowell1654 Posts: 10 Member
    Thanks everyone for your replies- it's not that I don't like breakfast and when I do late shifts once I'm awake after about an hour I will have a bowl of wheatabix and a banana or something. There's been some great tips suggested here thank you. I just cannot stomach proper food on an early/long day when I'm up at 5am! I iron my uniform and prep lunch and have prepped breakfast before but I just don't feel up to it before I've been up a few hours.

    To whoever said about the sugar content- spot on! It's packed with sugar. I might give making fresh shakes a go... I like the fact it's high in iron and calcium- I'm constantly low on these.

    I've heard a lot of research too about eating a good breakfast and my nan always says breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and tea like a pauper. But I'm the total opposite. I don't know how much truth there is in that but I reckon if I had energy from food I wouldn't reach for the coffee and with my arrythmia kicking off- this is really something that needs to change!
  • bethanyrees4
    bethanyrees4 Posts: 39
    Eat a Quest Bar :) So delicious!
  • seltzermint555
    seltzermint555 Posts: 10,740 Member
    Slim fast.....they still make that ish?

    my thoughts exactly.

    I tried it long ago and it made me feel nauseous and hungry. No thanks.
  • atkinsshake
    atkinsshake Posts: 21 Member
    I think in a pinch they are ok, real food better. It is still better than nothing or a piece of toast. It has some protein which you need for appetite control. Try to see the amount of sugar in it, carbs ok from milk sugars but added sugar is what I am referring to. Good luck in your trek to lose the extra weight, we have all been there or are there.
  • Kimdbro
    Kimdbro Posts: 922 Member
    SlimFast.jpg

    or

    Muffin.jpg


    Seems easy decision to me.
  • CStowell1654
    CStowell1654 Posts: 10 Member
    I'm not referring to the bottle shakes, it's the build up powders I was looking at.
  • Kimdbro
    Kimdbro Posts: 922 Member
    I'm not referring to the bottle shakes, it's the build up powders I was looking at.

    My bad... lol

    Capture.jpg

    Better?

    The problem with using liquid as your food source is your brain doesn't register it as food, so despite near 300 calories, in a half an hour to hour you'll be hungry again and still looking for actual food. Have the shakes if you want, a lot of people use them as a post workout snack because of the protein and nutrients, but as a meal replacement, personally I'd take food over liquid everytime. Far more satisfying. If you're going to go with a shake concept however, there are far better products out there than the Slim Fast brand, research those. Slim Fast is virtually useless in the way of protein.
  • vmclach
    vmclach Posts: 670 Member
    Why slim fast? Thoze haz caloriez.. Try a sugar free monster 24oz. :-) vitamins plus that caffine boost you need ;-)
  • nicsflyingcircus
    nicsflyingcircus Posts: 2,899 Member
    You know you don't -have- to eat breakfast? Or if you do, it should be food. I tried doing protein drinks in the morning, and it did nothing to keep me full, in fact 2 hrs later I am starving, whereas if I just drink some coffee, I often don't feel the need to eat until 11 or later (and I get up at 6)
  • randomtai
    randomtai Posts: 9,003 Member
    I would rather spend liquid calories on booze. :drinker:
  • bionicmom77
    bionicmom77 Posts: 1 Member
    I did the slim fast for a while worked great from me but they get expensive.... I read am article once that said a tbs of peanut butter every morning helps you feel feel longer so there is nothing wrong with just having a piece of toast and peanut butter for breakfast also fyi the slim fast shakes are about the same amount of calories as toast and peanut butter so its all personal preference
  • cw106
    cw106 Posts: 952 Member
    i use the chocolate/ strawberry flavours from superdrug.
    its the only way i can take protein in the am too.
  • BradfordBear801
    BradfordBear801 Posts: 78
    I like to do 2 scoops of whey protein, blueberries, egg whites, coconut oil, and oatmeal as a shake in the morning vs something like that. Id encourage you to give it a try, goodluck!
  • rachelrb85
    rachelrb85 Posts: 579 Member
    I would recommend protein powder as opposed to slim fast shakes. Also, instead of toast you could do something a little more filling like english muffin with peanut butter or some oatmeal.
  • MinimalistShoeAddict
    MinimalistShoeAddict Posts: 1,946 Member
    Why slim fast? Thoze haz caloriez.. Try a sugar free monster 24oz. :-) vitamins plus that caffine boost you need ;-)

    I love this breakfast plan. I may try it tomorrow. Today my breakfast was a 5 hour energy shot (generic) plus creatine and water. I ate nothing all day but plan to have a 2,800 calorie supper soon.

    Tomorrow I will do the same thing but replace my 5 hour energy shot breakfast with a sugar free energy drink

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