Meal Replacement Diets: What you Need to Know

Meal replacement shakes have been around for a long time. From SlimFast to Nutrisystem, the concept of drinking a calorie-controlled, full-nutrition beverage instead of eating a meal has been a diet mainstay. In recent years, however, meal replacements have reached a whole new level. Companies have come out with drinkable diets that are so nutritionally complete, you could potentially exist on that substance alone. Could meal replacement shakes or even a fully-liquid diet really help you lose weight?

Meal replacement does work for weight loss. These systems are easy and convenient and completely remove choice from the equation which can be good for people who are on the go or have trouble choosing healthy foods. Because these drinks are calorie and nutrient-controlled, meal replacements can definitely help with weight loss as long as the rest of your health is good. If you replace one or two meals a day with shakes, you would need to make good choices with your snacks and remaining meal. If you tried a complete meal-replacement system, you’d still need to make good choices about exercise and stick to that diet.

Sticking to these programs is one of the things that makes them flawed. Because meal replacements are so mindless and consistent, they are boring. Even if a meal replacement comes in a few different flavors, we want our food to be exciting and varied. If you have to drink the same drink all day, every day, it becomes very difficult to make yourself carry on with that regimen. Ideally, finding joy in cooking and eating healthy foods would be a much more satisfying and sustainable way to lose weight and stay fit long-term.

It’s important to also pay attention to the ingredients in these meal replacements. While some really are designed to give you a healthy diet, others are too low in fiber or some minerals or might contain chemicals and preservatives. Some preservatives or additives can cause water retention which could get in the way of weight loss. So, if you’re still planning to try out meal replacements, choose wisely which ones you try and always remember that having a healthy relationship with food should be a life goal.