Buying Lean Cuisine's
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watch the sodium:sad:0
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I am a huge fan of the Lean Cuisine meals!!! I love ALL the pizza ones, especially the bbq chicken pizza! I also really like the lasagna w/meat sauce and as a snack the garlic chicken spring rolls....SO TASTY! You can collect the codes inside the boxes and redeem them online to win really cool stuff too. I've been able to get an entire year's subscription to Fitness magazine! Good luck!0
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Love the Lean Cuisines but aside from the sodium watch the carb content. Something with only 230 calories might have 51gs of carbs. Like all things, good in moderation.
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I still do lean cuisine or healthy choice meals with a salad for lunch almost day M-F. I know the sodium is bad but I try to get meals with the lowest sodium I can find. Healthy Choice has some that aren't so bad they are more natural and do not have any of the preservatives. I keep the rest of my day pretty clean (fresh fruits and veggies, dairy and whole grains) and get all my water for the day so I think I'm gonna live.
But, I know that I have to eventually find a convenient lunch alternative...one thing at a time.
Good luck0 -
I have been buying them for a few weeks now and like them. The soduim is not a problem for me. I drink plenty of water maybe that's why.. I'm still losing weight also. I just had the fltabread melt. Chicken philly..Really tasty and filling.0
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Check the ingredients on the box. A lot of them don't have any more sodium then a sandwich. 2 slices of bread have 200-300 mg of sodium before you put anything on it. So to say they are high in sodium, yea Compared to a plain salad, but a sandwich with 1 slice of cheese and a little luncheon meat, no.0
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I buy them once in awhile, but they can be high in sodium and preservatives. Plus, they aren't very filling.0
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I love them!
I have to eat 2 to get filled up, but they're tasty in a pinch.0 -
One word of warning, from experience....
If you've been making your own food at home, don't let the convenience of moving to these lead to worse options.
Lean cuisines might be just "a little" worse for you than home made, then the hot pockets might be just a little worse than the lean cuisines, then McDonalds is just a little worse than the hot pockets... you get the idea.
Don't "a little worse" back to bad habits.0 -
I like Lean Cuisine, and have no desire to spend my day off cooking for the week so they work well for me. As for the sodium, most are around 500. A can of soup is around 1400. And Lean Cuisine has 90 meals that have NO preservatives. I do add some veggies though, because it isn't a very big meal.
I guess my thought is you have to eat what you like, even if it means just eating less of it. If I had to eat a sandwich and carrot sticks every day to lose weight, it wouldn't last three days. Same with salad, or soup. The frozen meals usually taste good and there's tons of variety so I'm not eating the same thing every day.0 -
FYI: It is still considered a processed food, even though they are vegetables and protein. I haven't had one in over 4 years, and my weight flew off. It's not a considerable healthy choice.0
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Check the ingredients on the box. A lot of them don't have any more sodium then a sandwich. 2 slices of bread have 200-300 mg of sodium before you put anything on it. So to say they are high in sodium, yea Compared to a plain salad, but a sandwich with 1 slice of cheese and a little luncheon meat, no.
Agreed0 -
I prefer Healthy Choice frozen meals. They are generally between 250-350 calories each, fill me up, and are fairly low in sodium (some of my homemade meals have more sodium than they do). To me, they are reminiscent of something I would cook at home. The only complaint that I have are that the asian inspired ones are not very filling for the calories, probably due to the pasta and sauce that accompany them. In my experience, Lean Cuisines and Smart Ones have left me hungry.
Edited to add that they also include a dessert!0 -
One word of warning, from experience....
If you've been making your own food at home, don't let the convenience of moving to these lead to worse options.
Lean cuisines might be just "a little" worse for you than home made, then the hot pockets might be just a little worse than the lean cuisines, then McDonalds is just a little worse than the hot pockets... you get the idea.
Don't "a little worse" back to bad habits.
Absolutely!0 -
I'd just try one or two at first and see if you like them. Personally I can't stand them and usually can't eat the whole thing, so I end up needing to eat something else.0
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Fri 01/27/12 08:20 AM
FYI: It is still considered a processed food, even though they are vegetables and protein. I haven't had one in over 4 years, and my weight flew off. It's not a considerable healthy choice.
And I've done the 'processed packed meals' for six months and my weight has been flying off too. Both options will work for people.
If its going to keep you on track it's a great idea. I would add a couple of extra glasses of water for sodium though.0 -
I buy them (and am trying to get away from them for no other reason than to just find fresh things to eat for lunch). I like the spinach mushroom deep dish pizza and the spinach artichoke panini. I'm also a fan of their pita bread and dip snacks, though I will usually eat them with a yogurt or veggie or something for lunch. Never had any issue with them not filling me up.0
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I just had the Lean Cuisine Glazed Turkey tenderloin dish tonight. I added a cup of veggies to it to make it filling for dinner.0
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All those dinners are bad for you. Calorie count might be low, but high in sodium and preservatives.....buy a crock pot and 2x a week make something good and wrap them up and several meals better for you...supplement with fruit. Waaay better.crockpot.com
the lean cuisines are made with no preservatives.
and the sodium in a lot of them isn't bad at all... 500 - 600... which i don't consider bad for one of my 3 meals a day.
sure, some have high sodium... so don't get those... but there are plenty of options that aren't as high.0 -
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I have looked at lean cuisine, smart ones, and healthy choice.
I personally usually stick with healthy choice because it has less sodium than the other 2 and it seems to fill me up.
I like the steamers meals and the complete meals with desserts. My absolute favorite is the sweet and sour chicken complete meal. Only 380 sodium. So not bad for a frozen meal.0 -
Anything can be rationalized so.enjoy. it is cheaper, healthier, and more variety cooking yourself.....and it doesn't take all day....I can grill in two hours enough to eat all week. But whatever is easy and convenient works for most people with weight issues. Success to you.0
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Has anyone considered at all that a lean cuisine could possibly have less sodium and preservatives than she was used to eating?
Any one consider that she could be going FROM McDonalds, to hot pockets to Lean Cusines?
Any one consider if she had the motivation to make a sandwich, take fruit, veggies and a salad she would not be asking this question?
I read your profile dear, I say work with what you can do until you can do something else. If having a lean cuisine is a better choice than what you normaly would have, GREAT, then you can slowly work other things into your lifestyle.
We make small changes, a little at a time to do this, trying to do it all at once will ensure failure.
This is a life long process, there is no finish line. Do what you can do for today, then tomorrow is another day.
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Not all of them have a crazy amount of sodium. Heatlhy Choice has an all natural line, my favorite is the pumpkin squash ravioli, 310 calories 540 mg of sodium and nothing in the ingredient list I don't recogonize. A sandwich with low sodium lunch meat and cheese will have about the same amount of sodium. I don't eat them often but do have a few in the freezer incase I am running late for work and don't have time to pack something else. As long as you watch your sodium the rest of the day you should be fine.0
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In my option, they are not the BEST option out there. However, they are not a bad option. Having said that, I recently stocked up my freezer with Lean Cuisine's and Healthy Choices. While I don't think they are the best thing out there, I am using them to help me learn portion control. If I make something myself, I am likely to eat a ton of it. I simply haven't learned the self control yet. So for that reason, I love these. Because I can eat the whole package, but when it's gone, it's gone. There isn't leftovers that I have to tell myself not to eat. I plan on only eating 2-3 a week, so I am not too reliant on them. And once my stomach has shrunk a little and I am more used to proper portion sizes, I will eliminate them from my diet completely.
So if you are using them to simply get started, I think they can be great. But I wouldn't rely on them long term.0 -
My food intolerances prevent me from eating any of that stuff.
I do all my cooking on weekends and pack lunches for the week, but every thing is prepped and all I have to do is grab it and run.0 -
I have quite a few Lean Cuisines as a college student and have had success. I don't have them ALL the time, but they're easy, quick, and cheap!0
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I am the converse of this notion.One word of warning, from experience....
If you've been making your own food at home, don't let the convenience of moving to these lead to worse options.
Lean cuisines might be just "a little" worse for you than home made, then the hot pockets might be just a little worse than the lean cuisines, then McDonalds is just a little worse than the hot pockets... you get the idea.
Don't "a little worse" back to bad habits.
The so and so is "a little better than" McDonald's which is my example of the worse food on planet earth.
Any time somebody has anything negative to say about anything I eat, I say, "at least it's not McDonald's".
Some of us must crawl before we can walk.0 -
Most of them are pretty tasty I agree with all the sodium comments.. Drink more water if you plan on eating them... Very conveinent and way better for you than fast food...lol 0
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I like them. Just drink a few more cups of water. I noticed a higher sodium intake when I have them.0
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