To think that I could lose weight and have good nutrition by living off protein bars, protein shakes and juices?

I am currently on the New You plan and didn't want to do it, initially, because of the processed food element. Prior to this, I was on clean eating and keto.

That being said, I tried a DIY VLCD and became nutrient deficient so knew I couldn't achieve what I needed to on my own, at the calorie deficit needed to lose, in the time I wanted to lose.

Protein bars are just as trashy as the New You VLCD, but without the 100% fortified nutrition, and not all vegetables and fruits are great nutrition.

But, for a week, none of that really matters.

Longer term, I'd look at real food sources for protein if you don't care about dropping weight quick via a VLCD e.g. tuna, eggs, nuts, chicken, lentils, chickpeas etc. Add some veg and some healthy fats and you're good to go.

anything too Cathy ??

Honestly you'll end up unwell. 🥰
I'm sure you're beautiful anyways, just make better choices around food without starving.
It's such a waste of life and brain power.
Swap cooking oil for spray. Swap any sauce, mayo etc for the lighter version, eat plenty of fibre, your body will clear out naturally.

Starving yourself?
If it was easy to fight it, then you wouldn't need to diet because you wouldn't be overweight.
It is a stupid idea.
Eat between 11am and 8pm, healthy food.

I wouldn't recommend it. I was living off protein shakes and fruit juice for 2 weeks after complications from wisdom tooth removal. It completely wrecked my gut and gave me the squits.

Having a smoothie for breakfast or lunch then having two low carb meals a day would be a better option. If you read up on volume eating (basically including lots of watery fruits and veg in your diet) you'll get that full feeling without needing to eat / drink lots of processed stuff.

If you're a meat eater, those mini fillets of chicken are much quicker to cook than an entire breast. Bung in the oven, or fry with some frylite and serve with a couple of sides of green veg (I buy frozen broccoli, peas etc) to save time on prepping.

I can't understand why you'd want to though.

A decent omelette takes 10 minutes to make and 5 to eat. Packed with protein & veg. Or home made tsatsiki & wholemeal pittas. Or home made hummus and veggies. Or grilled salmon and steamed veg.

Are you seriously saying you can't find 15 minutes in an evening to feed yourself, yet you have time to faff about with shakes. Maybe take a look at your priorities instead.

Seriously, this isn’t rocket science. Just eat real food.

No UPF, refined carbs, sugar, alcohol.

Eat mostly protein (chicken, fish, tofu, eggs) + plants.

Don't overcomplicate this. “Eat food, not too much, mostly plants”. But do not neglect protein.

Food pyramid:
vegetables
protein
complex carbs
fruit

But you’d get very bored..

I use protein shakes and protein bars intermittently just depending on if I don't feel like cooking or if I'm trying to keep it to a lighter day but still get my protein in. But it's not a substitute for real food in my opinion.

I struggle the most with breakfast so I meal prep my breakfast and I can tell you what I eat: a serving of plain Greek yogurt mixed with a serving of chia seeds, a tablespoon of honey or maple syrup, and a cup of frozen mixed berries. I layer that like a parfait in glass jars and I put it in the fridge and I eat it for 4 days because that's how many jars I have.

It has almost a whole day's supply of fiber and a lot of protein, and it tastes pretty good. You get a little sweetness from the honey and maple syrup and from the berries. Would something like that work for you?

There's nothing nutritionally good about it. Do it if you want, but don't kid yourself that it's healthy

You’re missing a whole bunch of nutrients you need from other sources especially dietary fiber, essential fats, and a variety of phytonutrients and antioxidants. You’d likely be low in iron, B12, calcium (unless shake made with milk), omega 3 & 6 for example.

This is basically Slim Fast but even that requires you to have a healthy meal in the evening containing protein, carbs and veg plus 2 100 calorie snacks - so you don't keel over or raid the fridge at 3am.

I think if I tried this I'd get the runs, frankly.

What are you aiming to achieve? Lose a pesky few pounds or lose several stone?

If it's a few pounds then sure, do it for a week. Longer term it's not good for your digestive system and your healthy gut bacteria.

If you've got lots to lose, then you need a different approach. Maybe do the smoothies and protein stuff one week in very month, but the rest of the time you've got you have really good nutrition - proteins from meat/fish/eggs/cheese/pulses; cut out most processed carbs; no sugar including not too much fruit; loads of vegetables. Smaller portions.

Sure if you want to end up in hospital

You can lose weight on any calorie deficit.
however juicing isn’t great as the fibre gets lost.
protein bars are ultra processed and don’t contain that much protein so you’d be low in protein and lose muscle. So I think it’s a dreadful idea.

Sure, if you want to be malnourished and then gain it all back that’s the way to go.

If you’re thinking of doing it for a week, go ahead. But it’s not a sustainable long term diet for healthy nutrition.

My best friend lost a lot of weight rapidly doing the 121 diet which is essentially shakes and protein bars. She ended up needing her gallbladder removed and has since regained all the weight. You would lose but i dont think its a particularly healthy or sustainable way to do it

Batch cook on the weekend. Meal prep several meals at a time. Then you can heat them up easily.

Meal prep/batch cooking also helps control calories and properly sized portions.

For some people it quiets the noise around food and the protein does fill you up, though most protein bars have around the same carbs as protein. Things like a tin of tuna, some ham or cooked chicken pieces are great sources of protein and easy. The issue with any diet where you don't tackle what has led you to overeat, especially one where you're not learning about the nutritional value of what you are eating, is that once you go back to eating normally your old habits will kick back in and you're likely to put the weight back on.

No, it really wouldnt.

It would sustain life yes, in the same way a PEG feed sustains life by providing essential calories & nutrients.

Not enjoyable though is it?

Anything that causes a calorie deficit will work. The easiest way I've found to lose weight is just to skip a meal - saves time too.

I used to skip breakfast but now skip lunch, as uses more calories. I always snack in the evening and struggle not to, so this still allows me to do that and lose weight

Im partial to a protein shake when I can't be arsed with a meal, mine are beefy topped up with collegen so it's filling. If you make your own smoothies on top with a load of colours in then you'll probably get by. Chuck some supplements in.

You may not be able to sustain it though. Your brain will go wtf dude. Been there. Something goes twang when you just drink your calories after a bit and your mouth feels lonely.

See how it goes, but if the cravings hit then something is missing.