Musings

So it's now been ten days on the new Nutrisystem program, and while I did manage to get through Turbo Takeoff, so far I can honestly say that where there has been any change in the program, I personally find it to be a disappointing one.

I was having a discussion with my friend and he asked me why I didn't just eat more of the frozen portion controlled entrees from the grocery store, like Weight Watchers Smart Ones or Healthy Choice. I told him that I found myself with some sort of frustrated mental block about them. I like them sometimes but I really think of them as "diet" food. And I don't (didn't?) feel that way about Nutrisystem for some reason that I can't fathom. I suspect it has something to do with the fact that I can jazz up Nutrisystem meals while a frozen meal pretty much is as-is, take it or leave it. And of course, here in Canada we still can't get the Nutrisystem frozen meals for some reason. But, I digress.

Portion sizes have never been generous on Nutrisystem, and for someone like me who enjoys large portions, even if I have to move things around to make it so, that's been an issue. But I was so sad today looking into the lunch cup of cheddar broccoli rice. I will say that it tasted absolutely delicious... but man, I don't think I could ever get used to having a cup of rice as my main meal. I used a Powerfuel and had a piece of salmon and a salad, and had this as my side dish. It was an excellent side dish... but I simply cannot see it being the main entrée. Perhaps it's supposed to be used like this? But if a Powerfuel is no longer standard with lunch anymore, that seems a bit off, too.

I had the same issue with the dinner entrée meatballs in marinara sauce. While they were yummy, the serving size was pathetically small. There was literally five meatballs the size of marbles in a few spoonfuls of sauce in the pouch. I was so disappointed to see that. I realize I am getting a lot of mileage out of this word, but that's how I have been feeling. I took one of my usual tricks and measured out a portion of whole wheat pasta for the carb that you add, and also cooked up half a spaghetti squash to mix in with the pasta, which I topped with meatballs and a little bit of low sodium tomato sauce. I personally find that throwing a little "real" pasta in with the spaghetti squash helps with both taste and satiety. I did pick up a pack of Tofu Shirataki noodles though, to give them a try- that might work better even than the spaghetti squash although normally I give tofu the big sideeye.

The other entrees I've sampled recently are the thick crust pizza, walnut chocolate chip cookies, and white chocolate chunk cookies. Fortunately, there has been no deterioration here; both the pizza and the walnut chocolate chip cookies are as I remember them. The white chocolate chunk used to be a single cookie, and I do prefer it in the new way where you get multiple tiny cookies like with the walnut ones- so there is one small improvement at least!

Honestly though, while I am losing weight (7lbs lost as of this morning), I don't see how I could stay on this program long term anymore. Disappointment truly is the word of the day. I guess Nutrisystem wouldn't want to hire me to be their staff blogger again anyway (although I don't even think they have a blogger program anymore) since I don't have much good to say right now other than it does work if you follow it.

Dan was actually jealous tonight...

My dinner was so good tonight, Dan was actually jealous of it! That's one heck of a milestone for Nutrisystem. I decided to jazz up the Thick Crust Pizza a little bit. One of my favourite foods pre-lifestyle change was BBQ chicken pizza. So today, I saved two proteins from earlier in the day for dinner, and I made a chicken pizza!

It's permitted to sub out the tomato sauce they give you with BBQ sauce (as long as it's less than 20 calories per tbsp), so I did that, and I cut up a serving of chicken into little chunks. Then I topped the pizza with my favourite veggies; onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, and green pepper. I grated a little mozzerella on top to supplement the NS cheese (since I had saved enough protein servings), and baked it for ten minutes. It was amazing! This is definitely something I plan to eat again.

Even with boxed entrees like this, there is definitely room for creativity. On the Nutrisystem site, there are message boards where people post their favourite recipes. I definitely plan on trying them out!

Here are some more meals I've sampled lately:

Rice, Beef, and Vegetables in Teriyaki Sauce (Dinner):


This one was another meal where I needed to adjust my expectations. Rice? What rice? There was literally one tablespoon of rice in the little plastic compartment on the side! I know rice is starchy but this was ridiculous. Also, teriyaki sauce is supposed to be sweet, and this was more of a beef broth than anything else. This was certainly edible and there was nothing wrong with it, but it wasn't what I was expecting and frankly I'd rather have a dish that tasted more carb-y. The meal was filling, but left me feeling unsatisfied.

Chicken and Noodles with Lemon Butter Sauce (Dinner):


Like the above meal, this just wasn't what I expected. In fact, I didn't taste any lemon at all. Was it good and filling? Sure, but it just wasn't what I was hoping for. It tasted good and I liked it, but I probably won't order too many more of this one.

Vegetable Lasagna with Basil Tomato Sauce (Dinner):


Unless you're a vegetarian, I see no reason to choose this instead of the lasagna with meat sauce. I usually love vegetable lasagnas because I expect them to be full of chunks of vegetables. This one, not so much. I missed the meat and took this one off my order list.

Noodles with Chicken and Vegetables (Lunch):


This was pretty good. It was like chicken noodle soup, but with a thicker sauce. I actually thought when I pulled it out of the cupboard that it was another of the chicken and barley meals, so I was a little disappointed when I opened the cup. Then I looked at the label and realized that it was something different. Chicken noodle soup really isn't my favourite thing so this wasn't a huge hit for me, but it was tasty and I did like it.

My next month's box should be here in a few days. It'll be nice to have some variety again- I'm running out of choices!

Cheating Already?!?!?

Yes, it's true. I admit it. I've already cheated. Well, sort of. You start eating healthy, and your brain already starts to sabotage you... I dreamed that my husband and my mother bought a pizza and some fries and were encouraging me to eat them. Gee, thanks guys.

I'm starting to really feel positive and optimistic about succeeding on Nutrisystem. So, there's been one meal I didn't like. There have been lots that I did and I'm enjoying having a nice selection to choose from each meal. I also noticed in the paperwork they sent me, there are meals listed that weren't in my original package, so I think I get an even wider selection on my second order! I'm looking forward to trying some more new things.

Today for breakfast, I had a yummy parfait. I used the Nutrisystem Granola cereal and substituted yogurt for the milk and had it over strawberries. It was delicious and satisfying. I couldn't fit all the granola on the parfait for the picture- I had to add more after I'd eaten a little bit!



For lunch, I tried the Chicken with Barley & Vegetables in Sauce. It was more of a stew like consistency but it was pretty good.



I had to deal with that pizza craving somehow, didn't I? Fortunately, there's a Nutrisystem meal to fill the gap, and I had a Thick Crust Pizza for dinner. I threw on a bunch of vegetables and it was pretty good, although not as cheesy as the real thing of course. It was a great dinner with Caesar salad (well, romaine lettuce and fat free dressing) and garlic bread.



Dessert was a White Chocolate Chunk cookie. It was pretty good, but it didn't have that rich sweet texture I was hoping for. I love, love, love white chocolate macadamia nut cookies and I wanted something like that. I will probably stick to the fudge brownie next time instead.



So far, so good! I love that there's still lots of new things in the cupboard for me to try. It's almost like being in a restaurant and having a whole menu of things to choose from for each meal.