Let the Experimentation Begin

Despite being morbidly obese from the time I was 10 until I was 28, I have never previously tried a program like NutriSystem. This is the first time I’ve tried any commercial weight loss program that required consuming “special food.”

Though I know NutriSystem and other similar programs take the guesswork out of weight loss by providing convenient, pre-portioned, shelf-stable foods, that never appealed to me.

Part of the joy I experience in life is cooking – and if you’re eating a series of pre-packaged convenience foods, you’re not actually cooking. I viewed commercial weight loss programs like NutriSystem as robbing people of the joyful experience of planning and preparing their own meals.

I’m here to eat crow. Umm…wait, I can’t eat crow today. It’s not on my list of approved foods. Err…well, I’m here to say I was wrong.

There, I said it. Wrong. Did you catch that? C’mon…if you were Mr. Ex, you’d mark this date on the calendar – it really is a rare occasion.

Seriously, I have enjoyed my NutriSystem experience thus far, but I knew that I would grow weary of a program that required me to reach into a cupboard, grab a cardboard container, nuke for a few seconds and be on my way. There is little joy in microwaveable sustenance.

First of all, NutriSystem foods do not have to be microwaved. All packages have directions for stove-top preparations so you, too, can feel like you’re cooking almost from scratch. But best of all, the NutriSystem.com community has a host of recipes that offer ideas for different ways to prepare the company’s standard food items.

For instance, one recipe uses NutriSystem’s scrambled eggs and cheese to make a spinach-artichoke quiche. Quiche is definitely something I could get excited about. If you click on one of the NutriSystem links on this site, you can simply search "Recipe Club" to find this and many other yummy-sounding recipes.

Not feeling that ambitious this morning, I opted for something a little simpler. I sautéed about a teaspoon of onion and red bell pepper in a non-stick pan, and added it to my NutriSystem scrambled eggs and vegetarian sausage. Was it gourmet? Not quite, but it definitely had more of a home-cooked feel, which increases the satisfaction of my experience.