Meal Replacement Powders etc

[Ditto]

'Life Without Diabetes' by Roy Taylor

Thanks for the book rec, I've just reserved it at the library. Gave up on trying to use my Audible credit, I fail at online.

Well done on getting your head around your diet, that's half the battle, I think I've got mine sussed now, with any luck. No liquids I'm afraid, I just couldn't hack it. Y'all are obviously made of sterner stuff. 🙂

 

[zuludog]

I've never been very hungry in the morning, just a few cups of coffee, so I usually leave my MRP till mid morning

Roy Taylor's book is based on research he did at Newcastle University, hence the diet is often known as The Newcastle Diet

Since then a couple of other authors have advocated a low carb/low cal diet for rapid weight loss and control of diabetes
Notably 'The Fast 800' book by Dr Michael Mosley; and Dr David Unwin
The Fast 800 uses proper food, no MRPs, so you might find that useful

You could try getting the book from amazon; I have always found their Used Books to be in good condition and reasonably priced

Then there's YouTube, and you will find videos by those three above

However, since then the bandwagon has been rolling, and there are a lot of very similar books & videos out there
It's worth browsing on YT, but try not to get overwhelmed

 

[Ditto]

I've got all those other books. I like a good read, always have found nutrition to be a fascinating subject. I read the book, get all fired up with enthusiasm and then gradually forget all about it. 🙂 I'm doomed!

 

[zuludog]

I've got all those other books. I like a good read, always have found nutrition to be a fascinating subject. I read the book, get all fired up with enthusiasm and then gradually forget all about it. 🙂 I'm doomed!

SNAP!!

 

[MAC2020]

My mind trick didn’t work!

Banana is lovely!

Hi Zuludog, Colin and everyone who has tried the Extante 200 calorie shakes and Newcastle plan.

In a bid to lose weight and train my body to accept fewer calories and kick start 2021 with cleaner LCHF meals, I'm trying the 800 cal a day Newcastle diet with a vegan twist and my box of, wait for it, sixty shakes arrived this morning. That should be my eight weeks worth, or two months supply on one shake a day.

On the plus side, I definitely have not recently contracted Covid-19, former strain or new virulent/variant strain because my taste buds and sense of taste is at 100%.

On the downside, these Extante Shakes, well at least the Vegan Banana bread flavour one I’ve just tried is FOUL tasting! With an awful sweetener lingering after taste, plus it tastes very chemicalized (is that a word?).

How on earth do you get through one let alone sixty? It’s taken me two hours to drink 100ml of the stuff. Not sure I’ll be able to stomach more than one a day at this stage if I was considering four weeks on the plan. (Maybe that's their sneaky other plan to force you not to have more than one-a-day?). And I have a whole box full having paid £51 for sixty.

Woe is me.

I've just thought, since you all are loving the banana flavour, perhaps the VEGAN banana flavour tastes odder or differently to the regular Banana flavour. Could it be?

To be fair, most vegan shop bought products taste odd, as the manufacturers have to pad it out with all sorts of stuff to make it even remotely palatable. Hence it's usually better for me to stick to raw fruits and vegetables and add whatever seasonings myself.

Advice anyone? @ColinUK? @Ditto? Should I just stick with it, hold my nose and gulp it down?

How did it go with you in the end @zuludog? @ColinUK and @Ditto? Target Weight loss achieved and maintained?

 

[ColinUK]

Hi Zuludog, Colin and everyone who has tried the Extante 200 calorie shakes and Newcastle plan.

In a bid to lose weight and train my body to accept fewer calories and kick start 2021 with cleaner LCHF meals, I'm trying the 800 cal a day Newcastle diet with a vegan twist and my box of, wait for it, sixty shakes arrived this morning. That should be my eight weeks worth, or two months supply on one shake a day.

On the plus side, I definitely have not recently contracted Covid-19, former strain or new virulent/variant strain because my taste buds and sense of taste is at 100%.

On the downside, these Extante Shakes, well at least the Vegan Banana bread flavour one I’ve just tried is FOUL tasting! With an awful sweetener lingering after taste, plus it tastes very chemicalized (is that a word?).

How on earth do you get through one let alone sixty? It’s taken me two hours to drink 100ml of the stuff. Not sure I’ll be able to stomach more than one a day at this stage if I was considering four weeks on the plan. (Maybe that's their sneaky other plan to force you not to have more than one-a-day?). And I have a whole box full having paid £51 for sixty.

Woe is me.

I've just thought, since you all are loving the banana flavour, perhaps the VEGAN banana flavour tastes odder or differently to the regular Banana flavour. Could it be?

To be fair, most vegan shop bought products taste odd, as the manufacturers have to pad it out with all sorts of stuff to make it even remotely palatable. Hence it's usually better for me to stick to raw fruits and vegetables and add whatever seasonings myself.

Advice anyone? @ColinUK? @Ditto? Should I just stick with it, hold my nose and gulp it down?

How did it go with you in the end @zuludog? @ColinUK and @Ditto? Target Weight loss achieved and maintained?

Stick with it.
Add plenty of ice to the blender when you make the shake.
Even consider adding a spoonful of cocoa or a dash of double cream to the shake as you mix it.
Drink it quickly as none of them benefit from sitting around.

As for long term, I got bored with them. Relaxed my eating, put a few kilos back on but got more of a handle on what low carb eating actually means for me.
That said I’m using up anything perishable in my fridge right now and intended on reintroducing shakes again next month.
I won’t be buying any more but have tonnes of sachets sitting there so I might as well use them. Probably one in the morning and then a low carb main meal later will do me.

 

[Ditto]

I loved the milkshakes but I like SlimFast as well @MAC2020. I'd drink them and a meal! Just keep going if you can. I couldn't, I've gone back to two meals a day low carb as I just got too hungry but I'm a weirdo so don't go off anything I say. I've got various shakes in the cupboard in case I feel strong at any time. I really should do the liquid diet, I just can't.

edit/
Hang on, I've just remembered, Exante is with water isn't it? I couldn't do that either, I made them up with milk!

 

[grovesy]

I loved the milkshakes but I like SlimFast as well @MAC2020. I'd drink them and a meal! Just keep going if you can. I couldn't, I've gone back to two meals a day low carb as I just got too hungry but I'm a weirdo so don't go off anything I say. I've got various shakes in the cupboard in case I feel strong at any time. I really should do the liquid diet, I just can't.

edit/
Hang on, I've just remembered, Exante is with water isn't it? I couldn't do that either, I made them up with milk!

I don't do Very Low Carb either. Would not even try shakes!

 

[MAC2020]

Thanks for all your responses. Don't feel too bad now!!

 

[zuludog]

Hello MAC 2020
Sorry to hear of your disappointment with the MRPs Remember that they are not intended to be a wonderful gastronomic experience, they are just to do a job
Having said that I haven't had any problems drinking them, and although they tend to be a bit sweet, some of them are quite pleasant
But so far I've only had the 'ordinary' ones, so perhaps the vegan ones are different

When I decided to go an a diet scheme, full of enthusiasm I ordered a 4 week trial box of Exante meals, bars & shakes, and also bought a few MRPs from local shops - mainly Slimfast but also Holland & Barrett and Superdrug's own brand
Most supermarkets sell them, although they are usually tucked away in obscure sections

To cut down the sweetness I add a spoonful of natural yogurt, and milk powder to those that should be made up with milk
I tried making them up in a jug with a fork, but a proper shaker is much better

All these MRPs are very similar, being made from skimmed milk powder or soya extract with added vitamins, minerals, flavourings, and sweetener; and although I haven't completely checked the nutritional content is more or less the same

These things are not cheap, but once you've bought from Exante they send you offers by email, so now I browse round shops, including discount stores for any that are on offer, and Exante's offers
I also buy Exante's diet bars, but not their meals

You say " with a vegan twist" - so does it absolutely have to be vegan?
I haven't checked the details of the composition, but at a quick glance the MRPs don't contain any meat or fish, just SMP; so maybe you could consider something that is vegetarian but not vegan?

Possible solutions for yourself are to make up some sort of vegan shake from something like vegan milk, psylium powder, ground cinnamon, and so on
But you would also need to take suitable multivitamin & mineral tablets
Or you could make up some sort of smoothie

Does it have to be a shake? As I'm sure you're aware, if you Search YouTube and Amazon books for 'vegan weight loss' there are loads of references

I was about 90kg last August, and 83,2kg on Christmas Eve, but thanks to Christmas and the very cold weather I relaxed a bit, so now I'm just under 86kg
But I'm back on the straight and narrow, and hope to get down to my target of 80kg

As I said, so far I have only used the ordinary ones, but I'm curious, so I've ordered a few vegan samples from Exante, including the Banana Bread, so we shall see
I'll report back when I've tried them, hopefully in a few days
Interestingly the reviews for the vegan MRPs range from 5 star to 1 star and from Yummy to Disgusting

Incidentally, I used to have a typical British diet with a fair amount of meat in it, but gradually I have cut that down to very little meat, changed to olive oil, and so on - all the healthy stuff we hear about!
And along with that my glucose levels, cholesterol, blood pressure etc have all improved
This was not a dramatic, deliberate, overnight change, it just worked out like that

The real problem was that I found it difficult to lose weight, and even though I had cut out most carbohydrates I still ate a small amount
So following a plan was easier in some ways, even though it was hard at first

 

[zuludog]

COLIN UK

I know what you mean about using up stuff in your fridge
As I live on my own, if I buy a few veg they seem to last for ages, so I often buy frozen veg and just use what I want

But the meals in Roy Taylor's book are easier in that respect. The quantities are not too great, and it's not much of an ordeal to have the same thing 2 or 3 night's running
Also, as they have hardly any carbs or cals you can eat a bit more without any problems

 

[Ditto]

I always have to use up every single thing, can't bear waste, so now I shop daily. I know with the virus we're just supposed to do one big weekly shop but I go off the rails when it comes to food, so daily is better for me. I can get my head around that. 🙂 Good luck peoples with the healthy food plans, I hope you all find one that suits. I think I've cracked it now (from my lips to God's ears).

 

[MAC2020]

Hello MAC 2020
Sorry to hear of your disappointment with the MRPs Remember that they are not intended to be a wonderful gastronomic experience, they are just to do a job
Having said that I haven't had any problems drinking them, and although they tend to be a bit sweet, some of them are quite pleasant
But so far I've only had the 'ordinary' ones, so perhaps the vegan ones are different

When I decided to go an a diet scheme, full of enthusiasm I ordered a 4 week trial box of Exante meals, bars & shakes, and also bought a few MRPs from local shops - mainly Slimfast but also Holland & Barrett and Superdrug's own brand
Most supermarkets sell them, although they are usually tucked away in obscure sections

To cut down the sweetness I add a spoonful of natural yogurt, and milk powder to those that should be made up with milk
I tried making them up in a jug with a fork, but a proper shaker is much better

All these MRPs are very similar, being made from skimmed milk powder or soya extract with added vitamins, minerals, flavourings, and sweetener; and although I haven't completely checked the nutritional content is more or less the same

These things are not cheap, but once you've bought from Exante they send you offers by email, so now I browse round shops, including discount stores for any that are on offer, and Exante's offers
I also buy Exante's diet bars, but not their meals

You say " with a vegan twist" - so does it absolutely have to be vegan?
I haven't checked the details of the composition, but at a quick glance the MRPs don't contain any meat or fish, just SMP; so maybe you could consider something that is vegetarian but not vegan?

Possible solutions for yourself are to make up some sort of vegan shake from something like vegan milk, psylium powder, ground cinnamon, and so on
But you would also need to take suitable multivitamin & mineral tablets
Or you could make up some sort of smoothie

Does it have to be a shake? As I'm sure you're aware, if you Search YouTube and Amazon books for 'vegan weight loss' there are loads of references

I was about 90kg last August, and 83,2kg on Christmas Eve, but thanks to Christmas and the very cold weather I relaxed a bit, so now I'm just under 86kg
But I'm back on the straight and narrow, and hope to get down to my target of 80kg

As I said, so far I have only used the ordinary ones, but I'm curious, so I've ordered a few vegan samples from Exante, including the Banana Bread, so we shall see
I'll report back when I've tried them, hopefully in a few days
Interestingly the reviews for the vegan MRPs range from 5 star to 1 star and from Yummy to Disgusting

Incidentally, I used to have a typical British diet with a fair amount of meat in it, but gradually I have cut that down to very little meat, changed to olive oil, and so on - all the healthy stuff we hear about!
And along with that my glucose levels, cholesterol, blood pressure etc have all improved
This was not a dramatic, deliberate, overnight change, it just worked out like that

The real problem was that I found it difficult to lose weight, and even though I had cut out most carbohydrates I still ate a small amount
So following a plan was easier in some ways, even though it was hard at first

Hi Zulu

Thanks for your reply. Yes the vegan banana was awful but yesterday I tried the vegan chocolate, and altogether a different experience. A little sweet but otherwise rather pleasant to my surprise! I have the vegan blueberry and the vegan coffee to try next so I'll see how that goes. Let me know how you get on with the vegan ones.

But yes, I take your point that they are not meant to be a gastronomic experience. My partner also takes that view toward food, for the benefit not the appetite. Consequently he's able to spoon feed himself cod liver oil without much fuss. Mind you he's a huge bread eater ( which I couldn't understand- Why so much bread?). I wasn't before I met him. But, somehow I was influenced, and hey-presto, here I am with a "bread (and other carb) intolerance". He's not to blame though, lol. I am!!! These things tend to creep up over years of indulgence (if a vanilla T2). Then the body starts to whisper, then shout, then complain, then comes the pain, then symptoms. I hope I've caught it at the shout stage.

Great tip on making my own vegan shakes. Will have a go once I've drunk my way through these. Unfortunately lactose intolerant so have to be vegan. Thanks also for the tip on how to reduce the sweetness, @ColinUK (btw happy belated birthday!) also suggested adding cocoa and plenty of ice.

It doesn't have to be a shake but the other products on offer from Extante were non-vegan and I wanted to try the Newcastle plan which seemed to suggest Extante as a popular choice, so I thought give it a go.

I'm around 80kg but last year was at 77kg at my best pre-Xmas, with my target at 60kg. So I have some way to go.

It's interesting that you have reduced your meat intake, added OO etc. and inadvertently noticed the health benefits that come along with it. I definitely feel exercise plus lo-carb-lo-fat vegan, for me, is the way to go, basically lots of heathy green and colourful cruciferous veg, salads, soups, stir fries, tofu, easy on the EVOO, fruits in moderation and plenty of water to bulk it out to get that satiated feeling. It was really working for me pre-Christmas so hope I can continue to make progress in this new year. My challenge is when I get stressed I tend to reach for something comforting often carby so I have to be mindful of when I'm feeling stressed and respond in a healthful way like taking a walk or drinking water.

Just as a final point, I went to Vision Express last week Wednesday to check my eyesight as I know loss and deterioration of eyesight can be an indicator of DB complications. Anyway, I hadn't been for a check up in perhaps over ten years and I noticed my eyesight was not as sharp as many years ago. The prescription wasn't terrible IMO. The last test many years ago I had registered 0.25 in each eye. This time I registered 0.75 in each eye and was told I needed glasses for driving and reading. No other problem. No glaucoma, cataract, blocked tiny vessels, etc. I ordered a set of glasses and lenses to be collected soon. But the Optician gave me the following tips when asked what can be done to improve eyesight and stop the white cholesterol rings that can form around the pupils:
1. Reduce red meat and
2. eat KALE, not carrots, kale!

 

[MAC2020]

I always have to use up every single thing, can't bear waste, so now I shop daily. I know with the virus we're just supposed to do one big weekly shop but I go off the rails when it comes to food, so daily is better for me. I can get my head around that. 🙂 Good luck peoples with the healthy food plans, I hope you all find one that suits. I think I've cracked it now (from my lips to God's ears).

Yes I really understand frequent grocery shopping. I lived in France some years ago and picked up their habit of grocery shopping every two to three days. They didn't do big weekly shops like we do here in UK and stick things in the freezer. They even buy baguettes daily which was great when I was eating them, but off the menu these days.

When I was younger and living in London in my first flat, I was so frustrated that I couldn't get through refrigerated food before they went off and I had to throw them away. Those days the supermarkets didn't offer single sized anything. They are better now, but it was a real struggle back then.

 

[zuludog]

My Exante vegan MRPs are expected in a day or two, then I'll report back

As you might know, there are a lot of videos and books about lactose intolerance
Search YT & Amazon books, and play around with their Search Boxes for things like lactose/dairy free weight loss, smoothies, recipes, and so on

You could try putting ground or milled nuts into a shake or smoothie, but you would probably need to shake it up a few times as you drank it
There are also things like pea flour but I'm not sure what they would be like raw

It might be worth having a good browse round a Chinese or Indian or Health Food shop; they have all sorts of things
I have always found the staff at my local Holland & Barrett shop helpful and pleasant. If you get their loyalty card they send you offers now and again

I think Exante have vegan meals & soups & bars besides shakes - have a look at their website

I gave up most processed food especially meat, junk food, convenience food some time ago, and recently I've been more careful about that sort of thing
Obviously when I was diagnosed I cut down a lot on carbs, but now I'm trying to reduce carbs to next to nothing
And as you do that sort of thing your intake of salt, fat etc is reduced automatically
I'm not vegetarian or vegan, but I'm more conscious about that sort of thing
I have increased the amount of fish I eat, especially oily fish
I've reduced the amount of chicken I eat; certainly battery chicken as it isn't so good. Sometimes I get a properly reared one, but there is the problem of living on my own, and I freeze some of the cooked meat

I like tomatoes, but for a long time I didn't like tinned fish such as sardines; then I realised it was the tomato sauce I didn't like, so now I get fish in brine or oil
I also do sprouted seeds

Many people take diagnosis with D as the motivation to change their diet and so on
I've heard the comment - I'm healthier now I have diabetes than I ever was before

I can remember when everyone cooked with lard
Once my Mum particularly wanted olive oil for something and she had to get it in a small bottle from the chemist
Then along came Mazola, and it all started to change

I don't do much frying, so the only oil I use is olive oil
I don't especially get virgin or extra virgin, I'm happy enough with the ordinary promiscuous stuff!
I just look on the shelves for anything that looks reasonable

I was diagnosed in 1998, though looking back it had been building up for months before that.
Although I wear glasses I haven't got any diabetic problems in my eyes, or anywhere else as far as I can tell, but it's not easy keeping it like that

 

[MAC2020]

My Exante vegan MRPs are expected in a day or two, then I'll report back

As you might know, there are a lot of videos and books about lactose intolerance
Search YT & Amazon books, and play around with their Search Boxes for things like lactose/dairy free weight loss, smoothies, recipes, and so on

You could try putting ground or milled nuts into a shake or smoothie, but you would probably need to shake it up a few times as you drank it
There are also things like pea flour but I'm not sure what they would be like raw

It might be worth having a good browse round a Chinese or Indian or Health Food shop; they have all sorts of things
I have always found the staff at my local Holland & Barrett shop helpful and pleasant. If you get their loyalty card they send you offers now and again

I think Exante have vegan meals & soups & bars besides shakes - have a look at their website

I gave up most processed food especially meat, junk food, convenience food some time ago, and recently I've been more careful about that sort of thing
Obviously when I was diagnosed I cut down a lot on carbs, but now I'm trying to reduce carbs to next to nothing
And as you do that sort of thing your intake of salt, fat etc is reduced automatically
I'm not vegetarian or vegan, but I'm more conscious about that sort of thing
I have increased the amount of fish I eat, especially oily fish
I've reduced the amount of chicken I eat; certainly battery chicken as it isn't so good. Sometimes I get a properly reared one, but there is the problem of living on my own, and I freeze some of the cooked meat

I like tomatoes, but for a long time I didn't like tinned fish such as sardines; then I realised it was the tomato sauce I didn't like, so now I get fish in brine or oil
I also do sprouted seeds

Many people take diagnosis with D as the motivation to change their diet and so on
I've heard the comment - I'm healthier now I have diabetes than I ever was before

I can remember when everyone cooked with lard
Once my Mum particularly wanted olive oil for something and she had to get it in a small bottle from the chemist
Then along came Mazola, and it all started to change

I don't do much frying, so the only oil I use is olive oil
I don't especially get virgin or extra virgin, I'm happy enough with the ordinary promiscuous stuff!
I just look on the shelves for anything that looks reasonable

I was diagnosed in 1998, though looking back it had been building up for months before that.
Although I wear glasses I haven't got any diabetic problems in my eyes, or anywhere else as far as I can tell, but it's not easy keeping it like that

Thanks so much!! Lovely ideas.

I have a friend who swears by sprouted seeds. Says it's life giving!!!

 

[MAC2020]

@zuludog happy to confirm Vegan Coffee, Chocolate, and Blueberry all taste fine to me. Only vegan Banana lets the side down. Will experiment ways to improve Banana's taste as I have 14 more sachets to get through!

 

[zuludog]

@zuludog happy to confirm Vegan Coffee, Chocolate, and Blueberry all taste fine to me. Only vegan Banana lets the side down. Will experiment ways to improve Banana's taste as I have 14 more sachets to get through!

You could try making it up with gin!

 

[zuludog]

Search YouTube for Exante Diet, there are lots of references; especially 'Kate's Losing It'

 

[MAC2020]

Search YouTube for Exante Diet, there are lots of references; especially 'Kate's Losing It'

Will do!