My last article explained some difficulties when it comes to weight loss, and the new-to-me method I was going to try. This is me putting that plan into action!

My game plan: To avoid my usual pitfalls of too-large portions of calorie-dense meals, I decided to let someone else do most of the portioning. That “someone else” was Lean Cuisine and SmartOnes frozen meals. Since I eat mostly vegetarian, this meant I would be eating pasta about twice a day. Who could complain about that? I also wanted to incorporate veggies for extra fiber to fill me up. Anything that wasn’t pre-packaged I carefully measured and portioned out. To log my calories, I used the free myPlate app by LiveStrong. This app also tracks protein, carbs, and fat, which was interesting to see. (Note: I used to use myFitnessPal, but I find this app to more visually appealing. It has many of the same features, including the barcode scanner, which I love). My goal was to stay under 1400 calories a day. Here’s what I ate, how I felt, and how much weight I lost over five (only five!) days of this method!

Day One

My pasta primavera dinner.

Breakfast:

Two Alive! brand women’s gummy multivitamin....................25 calories

Breakfast Essentials powder + one cup of almond milk......190 calories

Quaker peach almond oatmeal cup....................................290 calories

Breakfast total..................................................................505 calories

Lunch:

1.5 cups of Dole Greener Selection salad.............................15 calories

2 tablespoons Full Circle Greek Feta dressing.....................80 calories

SmartOnes Pasta with ricotta and spinach.........................290 calories

Lunch total........................................................................385 calories

Snack:

FiberOne Strawberry Streusel bar....................................150 calories

Dinner:

SmartOnes Pasta Primavera..............................................250 calories

2 TB Western Family grated parmesan................................20 calories

¾ cup Mediterranean Classic Blends frozen veggies...........35 calories

Dinner total.......................................................................305 calories

Day one total calories: 1345

Weight loss stats will be here!

Day one summary: Today, I was excited to be making some changes in my diet. I love the first couple of days of any meal plan where your body hasn’t registered the change yet, but your brain is fired up and excited. I enjoyed all my meals and didn’t feel deprived at all. The Quaker oatmeal cup was good, but a little too sweet, and it really pushed my breakfast calories up, so I decided to try other options going forward. I added the vitamins and the Breakfast Essentials to my diet just to give me an extra boost.

Day Two

Bagged salad = quick and easy.

Breakfast:

Two Alive! brand women’s gummy multivitamin...................25 calories

Breakfast Essentials powder + one cup of almond milk......190 calories

Two medium farm-fresh eggs, scrambled...........................140 calories

One Western Family deluxe cheese slice.............................70 calories

Breakfast total..................................................................425 calories

Lunch:

1.5 cups of Dole Greener Selection salad.............................15 calories

2 tablespoons Full Circle Greek Feta dressing.....................80 calories

SmartOnes mini rigatoni with vodka cream sauce..............270 calories

Lunch total........................................................................365 calories

Snack:

Luna S’mores bar...............................................................180 calories

Dinner:

SmartOnes angel hair marinara..........................................180 calories

2 TB Western Family grated parmesan................................20 calories

Nate’s Meatless Meatballs (4).............................................146 calories

Dinner total.......................................................................305 calories

Day two total calories: 1316

Weight lost since yesterday: 2 pounds!

Day two summary: Today I was cranky. This usually happens around day three, so I surprised it happened so soon. Even the drop on the scale didn’t boost my morale. It could be some fluke—I wasn’t getting my hopes up. I still enjoyed all the meals. My app said my protein was low, so I picked up a Luna bar instead of the FiberOne just to give me a little boost.

Day Three

Macaroni and cheese for dinner!

Breakfast:

Two Alive! brand women’s gummy multivitamin...................25 calories

Breakfast Essentials powder + one cup of almond milk.....190 calories

Two medium farm-fresh eggs, scrambled...........................140 calories

One Western Family deluxe cheese slice.............................70 calories

Breakfast total..................................................................425 calories

Lunch:

Two cups of spinach..............................................................20 calories

Two tablespoons Western Family Italian dressing................80 calories

Lean Cuisine cheese tortellini.............................................300 calories

Lunch total........................................................................400 calories

Snack:

Luna chocolate peanut butter protein bar..........................190 calories

Dinner:

Lean Cuisine macaroni and cheese....................................300 calories

¾ cup Western Family frozen stir fry vegetable mix.............35 calories

Dinner total.......................................................................335 calories

Day three total calories: 1349

Weight lost since yesterday: Another two pounds!

Total weight lost so far: Four pounds?!

Day three thoughts and summary: I got on the scale and I was confused. Another two-pound loss seemed impossible. I am feeling lighter by this point, my energy level is good, and I still don’t feel deprived. In fact, I feel like I’m already falling into a routine. I love having the scrambled eggs for breakfast, and all I have to do when I pack my lunch for work is toss my greens and measured dressing into a container and grab a meal out of the freezer. SO easy! Less prep is one of the reasons I wanted to try this, and it’s definitely working. Morale is up today!

Day Four

Three cheese ziti marinara for lunch

Breakfast:

Two Alive! brand women’s gummy multivitamin....................25 calories

Breakfast Essentials powder + one cup of almond milk......190 calories

Two medium farm-fresh eggs, scrambled...........................140 calories

One Western Family deluxe cheese slice.............................70 calories

Breakfast total..................................................................425 calories

Lunch:

2 cups of spinach..................................................................20 calories

2 tablespoons Western Family Italian dressing.....................80 calories

SmartOnes three cheese ziti marinara................................280 calories

Lunch total........................................................................380 calories

Snack:

FiberOne chocolate fudge brownie......................................90 calories

Dinner:

Lean Cuisine macaroni and cheese...................................300 calories

2/3 cupWestern Family frozen peas......................................70 calories

One Western Family deluxe cheese slices.........................140 calories

Dinner total.......................................................................510 calories

Day four total calories: 1405

Weight lost since yesterday: 1.4 pounds

Total weight lost so far: 5.4 pounds!

Day four thoughts and summary: I can’t believe the scale is still going down. I’m actually camping tonight, so it was a little harder to stick with the plan. Somehow packing a LeanCuisine dinner when I knew I was going to miss out on campfire cooking was hard... but I did it. I did give myself an extra slice of cheese in my dinner, which pushed me over 1,400 calories for the first time this week.

Day Five Final Weigh-In!

Weight lost since yesterday: .8 pounds

TOTAL weight lost so far: 6.2 pounds!

Final thoughts: I really enjoyed this experiment. I think I can definitely maintain it during the work week, especially for lunches and dinners, and that will save me a lot of calories in the long run. The simplicity of the meals is so convenient, and they all taste delicious. I look forward to seeing how my long-term results look once I keep this cycle up for awhile! I’ll continue to log my calories on the weekends, so while I may not be sticking to the plan, I’ll still be aware of what I’m eating. Follow me for future updates!

*Please note, I cannot guarantee these results and I am not a medical professional. You should always check with your doctor before making any major changes in your diet.