Turbo Takeoff Day 4

So, I'm tired and grumpy- my body is definitely NOT impressed with Turbo Takeoff. I would love to do some more reading behind why they think eating such a low number of calories for the first week is a good idea. I am no dietician so I can't offer a professional opinion, but I don't see why we need to be shocked quite this hard. A person with less than 100lbs to lose would be averaging under 1000 calories daily. I get a few more since I'm quite obese, but not too many. I am finding myself to be constantly feeling mentally slow, yawning all the time, and irritable- these are not good things to deal with! I can't wait for this week to be over so I can go on the "normal" Nutrisystem plan, although I still have to do some reading on how different it is now from what I remember before.

So, these are the Nutrisystem TurboShakes. The box suggests adding a tiny bit of mint extract to make a chocolate mint shake, so I tried that. Personally, I am never really a fan of drinking my calories unless they're alcoholic, so I'd much rather be getting my usual Nutrisystem desserts than these shakes. 

Honestly, though, they're not terrible... they're just not good. I would never buy them, and I'd never choose to drink them, but I can get them down okay. The powder blends pretty well with water and it's not chunky or lumpy, which helps a lot. It's best when it's really cold.

The NutriCurb bars are okay, but I'm not as much of a fan. I like some of their other peanut butter products better. I don't find these to be any more satiating than their other bar products, despite the additional grams of protein. I have no issues eating them, but they likely wouldn't be a thing I would order since if I want a protein bar there are lots of good choices at the grocery store for not much money, and way more flavour selection.

I don't mean to be so negative this week... but I'm really, really hungry. I knew that this was going to be bad, but again, I wasn't expecting it to be this bad. I'm also using the an app to track my calories, and I'm way below where it recommends I should be. While I am more sedentary even than its most sedentary setting due to my health, this is still a significant caloric deficit over and above what it says will cause me to lose 2lbs/week. I am really looking forward to next week when the calories go back up to "normal" for Nutrisystem. Hopefully then I won't feel so deprived.

I still have no pictures, and I'll admit that it's again because as soon as I open food, I wind up cramming it in my mouth, so it's not very photogenic. I am starting to come to the end of the Turbo Takeoff, so there is less choice.

Surprisingly, many of the entrees are still at least similar to their 2011 incarnations, although there are several that I miss. Yesterday I tried the chili with beans. I did add a little bit of sour cream as my extra, but I missed being able to throw a baked potato or some sweet potato fries underneath it. It's still pretty tasty though, and I wished for more. 

Today started with the blueberry lemon baked bar. Since I used to love the dessert version, I had high hopes for this which were unfortunately dashed as soon as the fake lemon hit my tongue. It was just not right. The texture was somehow dry and chewy at the same time, and it was much like eating flavoured cardboard. This one needs to go back for a reformulation, in my opinion. What would be so terrible about using a little lemon zest?

For lunch, I had the chocolate peanut butter lunch bar, which I think might be exactly the same as it used to be. It's still delicious. My only objection to it being in this box is that it's a little annoying to have that for lunch followed by the peanut butter NutriCurb bar for afternoon snack. Two bars already was irking me, and to have them both be peanut butter flavoured (and the second one less tasty to boot) felt like insult to injury.

Dinner was the chicken pasta parmesan, which seemed similar to the one they used to make although now it comes in a little pouch instead of a plastic tray. I am not sure why, when the other pasta dishes have come in the trays. Either way, I was so hungry by dinnertime and I felt so disappointed when I poured it into a bowl and saw how small the portion was. It was gone within minutes and I was sitting glumly looking at an empty plate. The flavour was fine, and while this wouldn't be one of my favourites, it was serviceable, though. I really miss the old Sloppy Joe Mix though. I never ate it as a sloppy joe but I put it over pasta so this entrée reminded me of it. 

Only three more days to go... since they pick the food in the Turbo Takeoff week, my choices are starting to dwindle. I never had a shortage of selection when I was on the program in the past, since I liked having several months' worth of food on hand so that I could have what I wanted when I felt like it and not feel like I had to eat something because it was the only thing left in the box. I'm looking forward to getting into the other items I selected, and hopefully I will like them!

Getting excited again

Sometimes I think all it takes to get re-energized about weight loss is a new recipe or two! One of the things that really sucks about a lifestyle change is not being able to eat the food you love (which got you to where you needed the lifestyle change!). The best part about Nutrisystem is that I'm learning ways to adapt those old meals into things that are healthy and still delicious! I mean, who would have thought that cheesecake was doable on a weight loss program?

I've got a review and a few new meal ideas to share today.


Chicken with Dumplings (Dinner):


Boy, what a disappointment this was! I knew when I saw the shape of the box that it wasn't the same as the one on the Canadian plan that I reviewed earlier, but I was hoping it would at least taste similar. *buzz* Sorry, you lose. The gravy is runny and it just doesn't have that rich flavour I loved in the original entree. Now, the new one does have 7 grams of fat fewer and is lower in calories too, but I'd rather have the other meal anyway.


Pancake Mix (Breakfast):


I made another version of the Blueberry Ricotta Danish with plain pancake mix and cherries and it was still delicious! I think this is a great base to play around with, with different fruit filling and dried fruit in the mix.


I also used the Pancake Mix for breakfast this morning. I got the idea from looking on the NS boards for other savory breakfast ideas, since I think the Egg Frittata is gross. So I tried this and it was amazing!

Cheesy Egg and Bacon Biscuits:


1 pkg NS Pancake Mix
1/3 cup milk
1/4 tsp baking powder
1 oz shredded cheese
1 tbsp bacon bits
2 tbsp Egg Beaters

Mix together everything except the Egg Beaters (and maybe save a little cheese too) and pour the batter into sprayed muffin cups. Top each muffin with 1/2 tbsp of Egg Beaters and any remaining cheese. Bake at 350 until the tops are crispy and eat while they're hot!

This breakfast was SO filling and delicious. I think I am going to have it again tomorrow! You could also try subbing ham or veggie sausage for the bacon if you prefer.


Chicken Pasta Parmesan (Dinner):


I like this entree as-is, but I was craving a cheesy flavour tonight and didn't want to overdo the cheese since I'd had those yummy breakfast biscuits already today. I sauteed a little spinach and onion in a pan with garlic, and dumped the Chicken Pasta Parmesan over top. I stirred in 1 tbsp of Ultra Low Fat Philadelphia cream cheese and let it simmer until it was bubbling. This was so creamy and delicious! I might add some mushrooms and tomatoes next time, too.

Still here!

I haven't written in a few days but things have been pretty busy on the home front. My son is getting so interactive and playful! He's four months old and full of wonder. I have to share, yesterday he rolled over for the first time! I'm one proud mama.

I'm starting to run out of new breakfasts and desserts to review, since I pretty much only ordered a few things that I thought I'd like. Here's what I've had the past few days:

Chicken Pasta Parmesan (Dinner)


This was pretty good! Noodles, chicken, and cheese in a zesty tomato sauce. I love having my pasta dishes with Caesar salad and a slice of garlic bread. Despite the small serving of main course, it's pretty hard to feel deprived when you have all that to eat!

Nacho Crisps (Dessert)


I'm not really a salty snacks person but they got to choose the items I'd get for my free week, and this was one of the things they put in my box. They are actually pretty good. They are thicker than regular tortilla chips but they have a satisfying crunch and made a great snack.

Black Bean Tortilla Soup (Lunch)


My only question about this was, where on earth are the tortillas? If they just called it black bean soup, there'd be no question it was what it said. To put it simply, if you like bean soup, you'll like this. Beans are generally low fat and high fibre so they probably didn't change a regular bean soup that much. I must admit I was wishing for a dollop of sour cream, some tortilla chips, and cheese to eat with it though. I might sneak a little fat free sour cream on top next time but I guess I'll have to skip the rest.

Chicken with Dumplings (Dinner)


This tasted like good old fashioned comfort food. It's hard to be unhappy with a dish full of chicken chunks and little dumplings in a thick gravy. I was using my slice of bread to mop out every drop!

Homestyle Chicken Noodles with Gravy (dinner)


This disappointed me, not because of the taste, but again because of the description. I was expecting something similar to the chicken and dumplings but with noodles instead. What I actually got was basically chicken noodle soup. If it had been marked chicken noodle soup, I would have known what to expect (and probably wouldn't have ordered 3 of them). I really like sauces and gravies, so thin stock just didn't do it for me. I'm going to save them for when I'm not feeling great and would normally be wanting chicken noodle soup and I think I'll enjoy them a lot more then.

Honestly, after nearly two weeks, I don't have too much to complain about. I can see myself eventually getting bored with the limited menu (especially since Canadians get even less choice than Americans!) but Dan suggested I just set up a 2 week rotation where I don't eat things more often than once every two weeks. That really isn't so bad and I think I can manage that. I'll have to have some of my favourites more often though! In general, the food is pretty good, although some of the dishes could use a little more flavour. On the plus side, spices like black pepper and chilies are all permitted so I can jazz them up myself.

My elliptical machine and I are becoming buddies again, so hopefully I'll have another good number on the scale this week. My plan is to exercise at least 3 days a week and so far I've been doing that.

No real urges to cheat yet... not even for pizza!