Are Meal Kits Effective And Can They Form Part Of An Effective Weight Loss Plan?

When discussing diets and nutrition in general, we tend to spend most of our time on the contents. How many calories should I be eating? Which food types are good for weight loss and which are not?

However, you may still be struggling to lose weight. On paper, a diet or nutritional plan can look very effective but humans are far more complex than that. It is possible that every one of us has the willpower to stick doggedly to a diet that stops working for us.

This is why it is such a universal experience to go through cycles. On January first, we resolve to stick to a diet with the full intention of doing so. But by February, our resolve has fallen away and we’re back to square one. Then as summer approaches, we have visions of our ideal “summer bodies.” But that doesn’t last and the cycle continues.

The problem is that we are focusing too much on what we should and shouldn’t be eating, rather than working on sustainability. A diet can be truly revolutionary, but if it is not sustainable, it will get you nowhere.

There are a number of ways to make your diet more sustainable. You can choose a diet that allows you to eat foods you particularly love or you can even join support groups. In this article, we’re going to look at a very practical approach that having been gaining popularity recently, meal kit subscription plans.

What is a meal kit subscription?

The fundamental idea behind a meal kit is relatively straightforward. Many people don’t know how to cook or just don’t have the time. They end up eating fast food or frozen dinners which don’t provide them with a balanced diet. Meal kits offer a simple alternative.

A meal kit is a box that is delivered to your door containing all the ingredients you need for one dinner, chopped and ready to be cooked or even already prepared and ready to eat. It comes with a simple recipe that anyone can follow. In about twenty minutes, you have a home-cooked dinner that is balanced, nutritious, and perfectly portioned.

How can meal kits help you lose weight?

One of the reasons so many diets are unsustainable is that they require an excessive amount of meal planning and cooking. You need to figure out at the beginning of each week what you are going to eat every single day so that you can shop for the right ingredients to get the balance just right. Then, you have to prepare and cook your meals accordingly.

Breakfast is easy enough. Lunch is a little more difficult, but manageable. Dinner, however, is a lot of work, especially if you are coming home exhausted from work every evening and time is of the essence. Meal kit subscription services do the meal planning for you, and make cooking a simple task that requires little effort. At the beginning of each week, you choose your meals from the meal kit company’s menu. Then you simply come home every day to the right meal waiting for you.

Just by virtue of taking care of a lot of the drudge work involved, meal kit subscription plans can make a diet sustainable. You don’t have to stress about shopping for the right things, planning what to make, and cooking. You just have to turn up. But many meal kit companies go beyond simply making dinner time easier.

Choose a diet

The biggest meal kit companies in Canada for example are HelloFresh, Chefs Plate, and GoodFood. Some in South Africa are Plated, and Fit Chef. Have a look at HelloFresh’s meal plans to get an idea of what these companies offer. All of their meals are nutritiously balanced, but their plans can go further. They cater to a range of different diets. Even if you do not want to stick to one particular diet, you can level up your weekly meal plan by choosing a couple of vegan dishes, or sometimes doing a high-protein night.

HelloFresh is not unique in this. The other big companies, as well as many of their smaller competitors offer similar plans. In doing so, they make it easy for you to choose a diet and stick to it. Even if you do slip during the day and eat something that is not permitted by the diet, you will get right back on track at dinnertime.

Portion control

Another important way meal kits make diets more sustainable is by taking care of portion control. Very few people stop eating when they are satisfied. We tend to continue until we feel a little too full. However, with meal kits, portion control is a part of the deal. You cook exactly what you need for one meal or receive a specific meal portion and so there is no extra food left on your plate to tempt you. Afterwards, you feel healthy and comfortable. It is also important to mention that meal kit ingredients are generally whole foods. Using processed foods when eating on a busy schedule is just par for the course, so being able to cook with fresh ingredients is incredibly important.

Willpower

Willpower is important when trying to keep healthy. But we often use the word to beat ourselves up instead. Sometimes it is important to remember that all humans struggle to stick to diets and exercise plans. Sustainability is something that we should think about as much as we do the contents of those plans.

Meal kits are just one step towards finding a sustainable weight loss plan and certainly something to consider if you struggle with time and perhaps if you are not such a fan of cooking. As mentioned before, choosing foods that make you happy is another. So is keeping up with others who are working through the same diet as you. Remember, the best meal plans need to take human nature into account. If they don’t, they simply will not work out.