Have you tried those "Nutrisystem" meals that they advertise on TV? Are they recommended for bandsters? It seems like they have small portions and are powered by the new science of the glycemic index(?)

It would seem that they would be good meal choices for bandsters? Any thoughts?

The portions are the perfect size for a bandster meal. I tried Nutrisystem before I got the band and gained weight on them. That's because the small portions were so unsatisfying that I'd eat my Nutrisystem meal, still be hungry, and then go eat another full meal. Since the band, a Nutrisystem meal fills me up. Some of the meat in a few of the meals is very dry, so you have to make sure you chew well. Also, some of the meals are horrendous -- truly horrible, horrible tasting crap. But some of them are very good, so much so that I actually crave a few of them. It takes time to sort the good from the bad, so if you go on Nutrisystem, be patient and keep trying different meals. Oh, another bonus is that the meals have added protein. You can easily get 40-50 grams of protein daily on the program.

I cant stand anything that comes in a box like that, but its a good easy solution provided there's not too much salt or too many additives - read the labels.

I tend to cook big portions when I cook and freeze in single sizes, even zip loc bags of rice etc so there is nearly always something in my freezer I can grab if I dont want to join in on the pizza or fish and chips.

Other than that I cook every night. I think long term for your health and your weight, it really is necessary to commit to shopping for and cooking fresh food.

....I cook every night. I think long term for your health and your weight, it really is necessary to commit to shopping for and cooking fresh food.

That's the ideal, but I don't think that will be possible for me until after I retire. I eat 3 of my 4 meals at the office, so the convenience of Nutrisystem works well for me. I work 16 hour days and only manage to get to the grocery store every 6 weeks or so. It's now after 1:00 a.m., and I'm still at the office. (Yes, I'm goofing off while I'm running a program on another computer.) Maybe one of these days my life won't be so pathetic, but in the interim, I thank god for pre-packaged meals like Nutrisystem. Otherwise, I'd be eating candy bars out of the vending machine.

Whoa, you certainly are busy! I hate cooking, but have hungry mouths to feed so I'm in a totally different situation.

Why wouldn't you just buy the frozen South Beach or Lean Cuisine meals? There are many that are low carb low fat, and it's a lot easier to

buy one at the store and try it, look at the ingredients, etc.

I wouldn't recommend NS foods 3 meals a day, longterm, but I do think it can provide good portion control and protein for the occasional meal or short-term diet plan. NS will let you buy things "a la carte" too, which is nice. I did their program a long time ago and fell in love with their veggie sloppy joe. Now I just call them up and order like 20 of them and keep them in my desk drawer when I need a quick, unplanned meal or snack. 100 cals, 10 g protein, yummy taste, works for me in a pinch!

<p><p><p>You can always check into home delivery food plans. There are quite a few. In Houston area we have one called Diet Gourmet (check on line) which is very good. They have a 1100 calorie plan. Full day is about $19 a day, which isn't too bad. The food is good. I've done that one before (but wound up eating two meals at once.....) I live in Clear Lake and there is a place in League City where it is delivered and I just go pick up my week's meals. May start back on that after I get to solids. They also have low-carb, and protein only and unlike some of the plans you can opt to NOT take breakfast, or lunch, or whatever. I have seen reviews of home delivery foods and Nutri-System and Jenny Craig are at the bottom of the list taste-wise.</p></p></p>