Thoughts on Lean Cuisine, Weight watcher meals etc

I eat them on days I am running too late to make a lunch for work. I work at a grocery store, so temptations is high getting soup or chicken wings, that I head to the other side of the store and grab a Lean Cuisine, or if I'm feeling junk foody I'll grab a Smart Ones pizza or something.

I agree with the bulk here, not good for you. Bleck sodium! And the other icky fake things they add for no good reason...

But I want to point out something really simple here, you can make these things on your own. This is so much about being lazy - yes, we're all busy, but it's possible to still eat healthy on the go. All you are doing is grabbing a pre-cooked pre-packaged meal, which is exactly something you make yourself!

Next time you make dinner, make double or triple the recipe, portion it out into some ziploc/tupperware/glass containers and pop em in the freezer. Grab em the next time you are on the go.

I use a store bought meal, very occasionally, more out of curiosity. But the bulk of the lunches I bring to work are my homemade "lean cuisines". You can do it too! (And make it soooooooo much better for you!)

Sorry, but all I see is too much reliance, still, on fake things to get by. Which, really, isn't that part of what got (many) of us to this point?

A girl after my own heart.......... I love you!!!

I think they are OK...not the best thing you can eat...but certainly not the worst I lost 30 lbs and have been on maintennace for 5 weeks and have been staying at the same weight and I do eat these. I have one about 3 days a week for lunch...during the week. I get the WW ones and Lean Cuisine and some Healthy Choice...I have my favorites for each

They aren't filling IMO, the only one I've really tried and liked is the Lean Cuisine cheese ravioli. I eat that more as a craving food than anything...

I'm sooo sick of hearing people bash these. Really, the only downside that mostly anyone can come up with is "high sodium" - however, even on days where I eat a lean cuisine, I don't go over sodium. Its about balancing your food choices. There are SO many other foods with high sodium that people don't even think twice about stuffing down. All the lean cuisines are completely preservative free. They're sensible portions, with reasonable nutrients. To eat one once in a while isn't a huge deal. Without them, I probably wouldn't have lost much of the weight that I have.

I'm a single student at school full time, with part time work. I'm not gonna cook for myself every night - the food ends up going bad! I hate when others give such a strong (and incorrect) opinion that these means are terrible - they're not.

Thank you! I totally agree. I eat one each weekday for lunch with some fruit and veggies and my daily sodium intake is within limits. I don't eat them out of laziness. I tried making my own frozen meals and I just didn't like them as well. I work on a rural military base with limited options for purchasing lunch. Sandwiches get either dried out or soggy before lunch. My husband takes supper leftovers, if there are any, for his lunch. I find Lean Cuisines to be just perfect for me and I plan on them being part of my lifestyle as long as I'm working outside the the home.

i'm a fan -i eat them almost everyday. the sodium doesn't bother me. taste-wise, i prefer lean cuisine and healthy choice over WW/

I only eat them when I don't have enough calories for my mothers cooking or they are eating something I don't like.

I'm sooo sick of hearing people bash these. Really, the only downside that mostly anyone can come up with is "high sodium" - however, even on days where I eat a lean cuisine, I don't go over sodium. Its about balancing your food choices. There are SO many other foods with high sodium that people don't even think twice about stuffing down. All the lean cuisines are completely preservative free. They're sensible portions, with reasonable nutrients. To eat one once in a while isn't a huge deal. Without them, I probably wouldn't have lost much of the weight that I have.

I'm a single student at school full time, with part time work. I'm not gonna cook for myself every night - the food ends up going bad! I hate when others give such a strong (and incorrect) opinion that these means are terrible - they're not.

High sodium isn't the only thing. They're highly processed. Processed food looses much of the nutritional value it might have had otherwise and other things are added to make up for it (like more sodium to bring back flavor lost).

Sorry, I never bought the "I don't have time because of X" excuse. I'm a full time graduate student who also works part time and has my own small business in art and stained glass on the side. I never cook every night. Thats sheer tomfoolery for people who have the luxury of time and better cooking skills than I. (Enjoyable tomfoolery because I love to cook, but still...) BUT I do cook most of my own meals. I will plan out my time so that I have a few hours to make a bulk healthy meal that keeps well in the refrigerator or in the freezer. When Im hungry, I take some out and rewarm it. Most of what I make lasts for anywhere from a week to a month. I have yet to find ANYONE who doesnt have an hour or two every other week to be able to prepare a meal in bulk. Most people have time to fit in TV watching or hanging around on forums like this. Why not take that time and instead prep a healthy meal and cut the processed crud?

I really don't think it's for anyone to judge whether a person has adequate time or not. Our situations are all different, much like our bodies. People shouldn't be judged for a food choice that really isn't that bad in the first place!!

I know they're not great. The problem is in all the sodium. I lost weight eating them though. You're not supposed to lose weight when you drink diet soda either but I did. I get the prepackaged meals because they're fast and easy.

My complaint about them isn't nutritional, but financial. I can make a healthy meal for my family of four for less money than it would cost to buy the pre-made meals for us all. And there's usually leftovers for a later meal for either my hubby or myself. I am loathe to pay extra money for something that I can just as well myself (and actually flavourwise, sometimes better). I am also loathe to pump money into the quick-fix diet industry when I working on making changes for a lifetime.

I've used them on occasion in the past but now I'm trying to lose weight by using 'real' food.

The problem with all these ready meals and doctored foods is that they don't give you the true taste of anything. I used to eat a lot of Mullerlight yoghurts, for instance, but now I find they only taste of sweetener and I'd rather have natural bio yoghurt and stewed fruit. I find the Weightwatchers meals to be particularly nasty tasting: too much spicy something or other or far too much sweetener. Their dishes based on tomatoes taste too sharp and acidic for my liking and I'd rather make my own veggie pasta dishes.

Then there's the cost of these products. As someone else has pointed out you can often make dishes much cheaper than you can buy the ready meal and you may get more meal for less calories sometimes too. The other night I made butternut squash risotto and then a pan of butternut squash soup with chunky vegetables, all from one small squash and a few left over bits of veg. No added fat and I whizzed up two thirds for a nice thick soup. It was delicious and cheap! I took some to work for lunch and have two more tubs in the freezer for another day.

And don't get me started on the high sugar, cardboard texture of these so-called low fat biscuits and cereal bars etc. They are just horrible!

There is a rather large woman in my office who eats these WW microwave meals for lunch.

The portions are tiny, the food looks terrible and it's actually really expensive for what it is (like a tiny bit of chicken, half a carrot, 7 peas drowned in some weird salty sauce...).

I come in with a tuppaware pot of my beef stew which is twice the volume yet only 2/3 of the calories of her meal.

A couple of hours after she had lunch she is raiding the chocolate vending machine because she's starving.

Kind of defeating the object me thinks.

My complaint about them isn't nutritional, but financial. I can make a healthy meal for my family of four for less money than it would cost to buy the pre-made meals for us all. And there's usually leftovers for a later meal for either my hubby or myself. I am loathe to pay extra money for something that I can just as well myself (and actually flavourwise, sometimes better). I am also loathe to pump money into the quick-fix diet industry when I working on making changes for a lifetime.

I completely agree on the cost.....I enjoy Lean Cuisine....actually finding I like things they have which I never ate before...right now Stop n Shop has them 5 for $10. Not bad...if you do one a day for lunch.....I find now that I bought them....I dont over do what I prepare for lunch.....
I am trying to change my mindframe on eating first then gunna tackle the exercise stuff. The adjustment stinks but in the end it all will be worth it.

I will eat these frozen dinner/meals and burritos for lunch sometimes - though I will only buy Amy's or Kashi or Evol or some other more natural or organic brand. They are going to be more like real food than a lean cuisine or weight watchers. Read the ingredients and make a decision on if you are willing to put it into your body. It is not feasible for me to cut out processed foods totally, and neither do you, you just have to be smart and sometimes picky with your purchases.

Also Amy's has a light in sodium line of food that you should look into if you are concerned with sodium.

They do have a lot of calcium but I have eaten them for all three meals because I'm a lousy cook and can't stand my own cooking. I watch my sodium intake very carefully when it comes to a side dish and snacks and have managed to keep my sodium around 1750 every day.

For breakfast...I have the Smart Ones have french toast and I add a cup of fresh stawberries and blueberries or strawberries and banana. My diary is public, feel free to take a look.

Good luck.