Meal replacement shakes

Hirang2015
Hirang2015 Posts: 13 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I'm doing a diet replacing 2 meals with raw foods meal replacement shakes. Of course I mix in more fiber, walnuts or almonds, and a cup and a half of almond milk. It kills my cravings and holds me off alright. I was wondering if I could add something to it to keep me fuller longer. I just started yesterday and I noticed I'm pretty hungry by the time I get off of work. My general schedule is wake up 2pm make first shake go to gym by 7 PM out by 9 PM eat a salad bowl from chipotle get home shower make another shake but dont drink it till 12am. Go to work by 10pm and leave at 8am. I know it's an odd eating schedule and u could probably add a few snacks here and there. But could use some ideas just to fight this overwhelming hunger I have.

Replies

  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    How many calories are you taking in per day (24 hours)?
  • livingleanlivingclean
    livingleanlivingclean Posts: 11,751 Member
    You could just eat proper meals - I find drinking my calories is not satiating at all!

    If you're determined to drink calories, how about adding protein powder? Protein would be low in the drinks you've described
  • tinkerbellang83
    tinkerbellang83 Posts: 9,129 Member
    Overwhelming hunger is probably cos you're not eating you're just drinking.

    Eat real food and you'll probably feel fuller. What's your exit strategy once you have lost the weight and go back to eating food again?
  • saragd012
    saragd012 Posts: 693 Member
    I get crazy hungry with meal replacement drinks, drinking meals is not satisfying at all for me. I know some people love it though. It would help if we could see your diary, what do your daily calories look like? How are your macros?
  • Hirang2015
    Hirang2015 Posts: 13 Member
    I would just stick with real food. I'm just not disciplined enough to not be a black hole with it. I'm a idiot when it comes to portions also. Im doing meal replacement shakes because my backwards schedule and working at fast food makes it a lot more convenient to eat healthier. The shakes squash my cravings which I love. Also after getting control over my appetite I plan on changing back to real food slowly and learn to portion as I go. I also opened up my diary. I just started so any advice will be greatly appreciated.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 28,052 Member
    I took a look at yesterday's diary. Your shakes certainly do have enough calories, carbs, fat, and protein. Would you please change Sodium or Sugar for Fiber? https://www.myfitnesspal.com/account/diary_settings

    Maybe you needed to eat that 400 calories you left on the table? Two protein bars would make that happen.
  • WickAndArtoo
    WickAndArtoo Posts: 773 Member
    I personally don’t think there is anything wrong with using meal replacement shakes as long as you are still getting one “real food” meal in each day. But eat all the calories MFP gives you for the day for your weight loss goal. If you have an extra 400 cals left in the day, eat them! You will still lose the weight as long as your are logging accurately and it’s important to get enough calories in order to feel satiated and be healthy/functioning. If that means 3 shakes and a regular meal, great! If it means a couple of protein bars mixed in, awesome! You could do a sliced apple with Pb, or a container of Greek yogurt etc. but those necessary cals will help make you feel fuller.
  • saragd012
    saragd012 Posts: 693 Member
    Hirang2015 wrote: »
    I would just stick with real food. I'm just not disciplined enough to not be a black hole with it. I'm a idiot when it comes to portions also. Im doing meal replacement shakes because my backwards schedule and working at fast food makes it a lot more convenient to eat healthier. The shakes squash my cravings which I love. Also after getting control over my appetite I plan on changing back to real food slowly and learn to portion as I go. I also opened up my diary. I just started so any advice will be greatly appreciated.

    I don't think you're eating as much as you think to be honest. I was shocked by the amount of protein listed next to your item "Garden of Life - Raw Fiber, 1 scoop" for example, so I googled it. Your diary suggests it's 240 calories and 48g protein. This is the actual food label:

    Supplement Facts:
    1 scoop (27g) contains:
    Calories 120
    Total Fat 4g
    Total Carbohydrate 16g
    ---Dietary Fiber 9g
    ---Sugars 1g
    Protein 7g

    So, say you real are doing 2 scoops instead of 1 (for the calorie count) that's 14g of protein not 48. You have this twice a day, that's a difference of 68g of protein. I just use this as an example of why it's so important to verify the items you're choosing in the library are accurate. I know I've picked super inaccurate items before too, and it can easily add up to over-eating or under-eating. Maybe go through your logging and clean it up a little, and see if it gives you more room for snacks that can help with satiation. I often get super hungry in the afternoon, so I'll eat two hard boiled eggs or cheese and fruit. Keeps me away from the candy jar at work!
  • Hirang2015
    Hirang2015 Posts: 13 Member
    Yeah I just logged the night before yesterday because that was before I downloaded the app. Saw I had enough calories for an entire meal left over. Last night was much more bearable than the night before. As for the sodium and sugar I need to find better real meals to eat and use unsweetened almond milk instead of lightly sweetened. Ohh I logged the wrong fiber thanks for catching that.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,011 Member
    edited August 2018
    Hirang2015 wrote: »
    I would just stick with real food. I'm just not disciplined enough to not be a black hole with it. I'm a idiot when it comes to portions also. Im doing meal replacement shakes because my backwards schedule and working at fast food makes it a lot more convenient to eat healthier. The shakes squash my cravings which I love. Also after getting control over my appetite I plan on changing back to real food slowly and learn to portion as I go. I also opened up my diary. I just started so any advice will be greatly appreciated.

    Here's the thing. What are you going to do once you get to goal weight? Are you going to drink two of your meals for the rest of your life? You have to learn how to "not be a black hole" or you will keep yo-yoing up and down.

    IMHO you are hungry for 2 reasons - Drinking shakes is not filling for many people, and you are not eating all your calories. In a pinch, I can substitute one shake PLUS a piece of fruit or something like that occasionally. Two a day would have me gnawing on my arm!

    Maybe pick the one meal that you are the worst at controlling and use the shake there for now. Add something on the side that you can eat but control yourself with. Just something small. Maybe eat the nuts rather than tossing them in the shake. Meanwhile, work on finding stuff to eat for the other meal you used to replace, foods that you like and will fit in your calorie goal.

    Work on not eating from the box or bag, measure out a portion and then put it away. Pre-log foods and portions before you eat them, so you are making a conscious choice. Make notes in your diary on how you felt throughout the day, so over time you can start to see patterns of what foods fill you up, what foods you have no control with, which foods leave you hungry, etc.

    And there is no reason you should be eating less than 2,000 cals. Your MFP goal without exercise is already more than that, and already includes your deficit.

    Good luck!
  • kommodevaran
    kommodevaran Posts: 17,890 Member
    Hirang2015 wrote: »
    I would just stick with real food. I'm just not disciplined enough to not be a black hole with it. I'm a idiot when it comes to portions also. Im doing meal replacement shakes because my backwards schedule and working at fast food makes it a lot more convenient to eat healthier. The shakes squash my cravings which I love. Also after getting control over my appetite I plan on changing back to real food slowly and learn to portion as I go. I also opened up my diary. I just started so any advice will be greatly appreciated.
    But that is backwards. Yes, your cravings have subsided, but that's because you're having an overwhelming hunger. If you're not disciplined with portion control, that's what you have to learn, not use tricks to avoid. After depriving yourself, you will lose control completely with food, so you will not learn to moderate, you will learn to crash and binge.

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