Diet Plan Try Out: NuMeasure, Day 1
In the quest for both balanced health and some early-summer weight loss (& since a few of last year's outfits don't fit), I decided to try out meal-delivery service NuMeasure. First off a few disclaimers: I don't work for them & I paid full price for my order (I even paid shipping, since I didn't order the 4 weeks required to get free shipping).
The research:
I found NuMeasure a few years ago. After buying a Seattle Sutton's Healthy Eating (also a meal delivery service) I was put on their mailing list. At some point, NuMeasure spun off of Seattle Sutton in a way I don't completely understand and am too lazy to research.
Is this diagram helpful?
Before buying this most recent order, I researched a few options. I wanted some sort of prepared meal set-up and something healthy - not just a pill or meal replacement bar (although I don't mind the occasional shake, I'm not drinking two a day and eschewing adequate servings of fiber rich fruits, veggies, and whole grains.) My company has a discount through Jenny Craig so it was cheaper, but from what I read, the meals were basically Lean Cuisines. I could do that cheaper myself. (If you have experience with Jenny Craig or another service, fill us in down in the comments section).
So I went with NuMeasure, which I knew to be fresher. I went with 1200 calories per day (the woman's weight loss plan). You can specify vegetarian, meat but no fish or tuna but no shellfish, which is helpful because I don't care for seafood (unless I'm literally at the sea, and then I'm just picky about it).
The plan I bought was Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner for 5 days, which is $99/wk plus $15 shipping. So that's $7.60 per meal - more than I'd normally spend but worth the time saved at the grocery store & in the kitchen in the short term. This isn't sustainable for me in the long term, which is why I only bought 2 weeks. If you buy 4 weeks, you get free shipping.
The delivery
Bright and early this morning, as promised, a very heavy box showed up on my front porch. Have you ever heard of packaging porn? It's this thing an ex-boyfriend told me about where people get really excited to unwrap technology like a new iPod or Kindle or whatever (so you can see why he's an ex). Well the NuMeasure delivery was very well packaged as well. A sturdy box completely lined with foam panels, with a layer of ice packs and air-cushions on top. Keep the box for your next awkward picnic, or leave it on your porch when your next delivery is scheduled and they'll recycle it. (If you don't have another delivery, I guess you're stuck with it.)
The food
The box contains 1 week's worth of meals and a list of all the meals for that week; all must be refridgerated. A few of my items did arrived frozen, but not in an unappetizing way (for example, a brightly colored vegetable medly) but most were not. You can eat them in whatever order you choose, but I'd prefer to eat the freshest items first - like the salads and meat items on days 1-3 and the soups or bean-based items last. I chose an egg bake with whole grain toast as my inaugural meal and followed the directions for microwaving (!) the egg bake while I tossed the bread in my toaster.
I sat down with my coffee and the piping hot breakfast & grabbed some jam from the fridge after discarding the provided orange marmalade which I accidentally microwaved, causing sparks and probably releasing virulent chemicals from the not-microwave-safe packaging -oops.
The egg bake was surprisingly fluffy with a fair dose of flavor enhancing green pepper and onion. It did have a bit of a chalky
aftertaste, which I attribute to the fact that eggs just shouldn't be microwaved. Next time, I'll heat it on the stovetop. The bread was delish - moist and light with nutty whole grains.
One advantage of NuMeasure shared by programs like NutriSystem & JC (Jenny Craig, not Jesus Christ, although this could apply to Him as well...) is the portability factor. You can throw one of the meals in an insulated lunch bag and heat it up for your breakfast, lunch or dinner, as long as you have a microwave or even a toaster oven. Some of the meals don't even need to be heated - the salad or wrap-style sandwich for example. The black plastic containers are recyclable.
I'll update periodically as time goes on, but here's today's summary:
Price: 5/10 (10/10 if you can get a Groupon or Living Social deal!)
Delivery/packaging: 10/10
Food variety: 9/10
Food taste (so far): 6/10
The research:
I found NuMeasure a few years ago. After buying a Seattle Sutton's Healthy Eating (also a meal delivery service) I was put on their mailing list. At some point, NuMeasure spun off of Seattle Sutton in a way I don't completely understand and am too lazy to research.
Is this diagram helpful?
Before buying this most recent order, I researched a few options. I wanted some sort of prepared meal set-up and something healthy - not just a pill or meal replacement bar (although I don't mind the occasional shake, I'm not drinking two a day and eschewing adequate servings of fiber rich fruits, veggies, and whole grains.) My company has a discount through Jenny Craig so it was cheaper, but from what I read, the meals were basically Lean Cuisines. I could do that cheaper myself. (If you have experience with Jenny Craig or another service, fill us in down in the comments section).
So I went with NuMeasure, which I knew to be fresher. I went with 1200 calories per day (the woman's weight loss plan). You can specify vegetarian, meat but no fish or tuna but no shellfish, which is helpful because I don't care for seafood (unless I'm literally at the sea, and then I'm just picky about it).
The plan I bought was Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner for 5 days, which is $99/wk plus $15 shipping. So that's $7.60 per meal - more than I'd normally spend but worth the time saved at the grocery store & in the kitchen in the short term. This isn't sustainable for me in the long term, which is why I only bought 2 weeks. If you buy 4 weeks, you get free shipping.
The delivery
Bright and early this morning, as promised, a very heavy box showed up on my front porch. Have you ever heard of packaging porn? It's this thing an ex-boyfriend told me about where people get really excited to unwrap technology like a new iPod or Kindle or whatever (so you can see why he's an ex). Well the NuMeasure delivery was very well packaged as well. A sturdy box completely lined with foam panels, with a layer of ice packs and air-cushions on top. Keep the box for your next awkward picnic, or leave it on your porch when your next delivery is scheduled and they'll recycle it. (If you don't have another delivery, I guess you're stuck with it.)
The food
The box contains 1 week's worth of meals and a list of all the meals for that week; all must be refridgerated. A few of my items did arrived frozen, but not in an unappetizing way (for example, a brightly colored vegetable medly) but most were not. You can eat them in whatever order you choose, but I'd prefer to eat the freshest items first - like the salads and meat items on days 1-3 and the soups or bean-based items last. I chose an egg bake with whole grain toast as my inaugural meal and followed the directions for microwaving (!) the egg bake while I tossed the bread in my toaster.
I sat down with my coffee and the piping hot breakfast & grabbed some jam from the fridge after discarding the provided orange marmalade which I accidentally microwaved, causing sparks and probably releasing virulent chemicals from the not-microwave-safe packaging -oops.
The egg bake was surprisingly fluffy with a fair dose of flavor enhancing green pepper and onion. It did have a bit of a chalky
aftertaste, which I attribute to the fact that eggs just shouldn't be microwaved. Next time, I'll heat it on the stovetop. The bread was delish - moist and light with nutty whole grains.
One advantage of NuMeasure shared by programs like NutriSystem & JC (Jenny Craig, not Jesus Christ, although this could apply to Him as well...) is the portability factor. You can throw one of the meals in an insulated lunch bag and heat it up for your breakfast, lunch or dinner, as long as you have a microwave or even a toaster oven. Some of the meals don't even need to be heated - the salad or wrap-style sandwich for example. The black plastic containers are recyclable.
I'll update periodically as time goes on, but here's today's summary:
Price: 5/10 (10/10 if you can get a Groupon or Living Social deal!)
Delivery/packaging: 10/10
Food variety: 9/10
Food taste (so far): 6/10