Lean cuisine meals good or bad???

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angiebaby2058
angiebaby2058 Posts: 3 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
hello I recently started on my new healthy and fit journey!!! Yay! So excited for this change
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  • shrinkingletters
    shrinkingletters Posts: 1,008 Member
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    Good if they help you maintain your caloric deficit, bad if you don't.

    There's really no "good/bad". Just make sure you get plenty of water, those microwave meals have a good deal of sodium. Otherwise, they're pretty convenient work lunches.
  • diannethegeek
    diannethegeek Posts: 14,776 Member
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    Do you like them? Do they fit into your calorie and nutrition goals? Do you feel good after eating them? If yes, they're probably fine as part of your diet. If no, then consider something else.

    Personally, I ate a lot of them when I was starting out. But I don't find them very filling compared to homemade food so I don't eat them much anymore.
  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,488 Member
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    Good for having a low calorie quick meal. Bad for being filling in my opinion - and there's only a few I like the flavor of. Really depends what else you are eating in your day.
  • LunaInverse
    LunaInverse Posts: 109 Member
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    I say bad. Simply because they aren't filling. I can pack a snack/meal for the same amount of calories and be much more full.
  • soapsandropes
    soapsandropes Posts: 269 Member
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    I don't personally like them, they don't taste that great. I prefer to cook for myself though. They are good for keeping a stack of for lazy days. It is worth comparing labels you might find other brands that are similar nutritionally.
  • WBB55
    WBB55 Posts: 4,131 Member
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    High sodium, and it's cheaper in the long run to make yourself a big batch dinner at home and divide it into disposable/re-heatable plastic containers. But having one every day for lunch won't kill you. I like the higher protein ones as emergency work lunches (maybe one a month), but that's just me.
  • TeaBea
    TeaBea Posts: 14,517 Member
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    I typically add veggies to them. Most frozen meals don't have enough. I keep a couple in my freezer, when I'm pressed for time. But learning how to cook (if you don't know how) will be very helpful down the road.
  • Kalikel
    Kalikel Posts: 9,626 Member
    edited August 2015
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    They're great for potion control, but all the single serving sizes are. Lean Cuisine isn't usually a whole lot lower on calories than the regular Stouffer's stuff, so either way there. If you don't mind all the salt, they taste good, too. I used to be a big fan of Stouffer's food.

    The bad is that they're laden with sodium and often contain really high amounts of fat. You don't get much food for the calories and little on the way of nutrients. If you're looking for the healthiest foods in the freezer case, it's not the frozen dinners.

    If you like them, you should eat them. Especially if you're just starting to get a handle on changing your diet, they can be really helpful. :)
  • auddii
    auddii Posts: 15,357 Member
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    I personally don't find them that filling considering the calories. I prefer to cook in very large batches and then individually portion and freeze my own foods. And it's cheaper in the long run. I can even do large batches in the crockpot, so it's not that labor intensive.
  • sherbear702
    sherbear702 Posts: 649 Member
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    I like them. It's a easy go to when you don't have time to fix lunch before work.
  • ald783
    ald783 Posts: 688 Member
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    I'm not crazy about them because I feel like I can eat more of other things for the same calories, but they're good in a pinch since you can't beat the convenience. I keep one in the work freezer for a busy day but generally prefer to cook my own stuff.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    I personally don't know any really healthy and fit people who eat them on any kind of regular basis...here and there maybe, but just because they're low calorie doesn't mean they're necessarily all that "healthy".

    IMO, they pretty much taste like *kitten* (but I'm kind of a food snob), not to mention, I can make a very voluminous meal for about the same calories and actually be full...those things are a paltry amount of food for the calories. They are also sodium bombs.
  • DanniB423
    DanniB423 Posts: 777 Member
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    I find them easy on busy days. Paired with a side salad or fruit they work pretty well for me. They are packed with sodium which is their only downfall. I have no medical reason to watch sodium really but I still try to keep it in range. I average 1-2 per week out of per convenience.
  • generallyme2
    generallyme2 Posts: 403 Member
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    I don't like them. I used to eat them at work because they were easy and we didn't have a kitchen but I would always add a bag of frozen (steamed) broccoli or veggies to it because it never filled me up.
  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
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    I'd say more bad than good. They aren't horrible, but for the same calories and less money I can prepare a much more filling and balanced meal myself that will taste much better.
  • angiebaby2058
    angiebaby2058 Posts: 3 Member
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    Thank you so much everyone for all your time your room to write me comments it helped me so much you have no idea! Basically I need to get my behind to the store and get some good healthy food and start meal prepping and start my week off with success! And the frozen dinners can just be for an emergency... I need to learn how to cook healthier and make up some meals thanks again!!!
  • mbcieslak87
    mbcieslak87 Posts: 206 Member
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    I agree with many above me - I use them when I am pressed for time, such as days when I need to run errands on my lunch break and forgot to pack a lunch (I typically go home and cook on my lunch breaks though) or occasionally when my husband is out just because they're an easy single serving (although who are we kidding, I order take out sushi pretty much every time he's out).

    They're a decent way to start out and see what smaller portions feel like, but they get old after a while, at least in my opinion. So take them for what they are - a handy tool, sometimes, but definitely exploring new recipes for yourself is cheaper, probably "healthier", and in general you may find, it's just more rewarding to eat something you cooked for yourself.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
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    angiebaby2058 wrote: »
    hello I recently started on my new healthy and fit journey!!! Yay! So excited for this change

    Do you like them?

    If so, they're fine food. They're just food. The only thing is they have a lot of sodium and may cause water retention.
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,942 Member
    edited August 2015
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    Need2Exerc1se wrote: »
    I'd say more bad than good. They aren't horrible, but for the same calories and less money I can prepare a much more filling and balanced meal myself that will taste much better.

    They're just food. They're not good or bad, and I say this not even liking the taste of many TV/pre-packaged meals at all (I do like chicken pot pie, though! :D).

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