M&S "Count on Us" Range - good/bad?

ct_roy

Hi,

Before anyone gives out I know I should be taking the time to prepare fresh veg, complex carb, high protein/low fat meals for weight loss (and eating every 3hrs etc.)

However, my lifestyle at the moment makes this pretty damn near impossible (or else I'd be eating dinner at 9pm!)

So....I'm looking for convenient fast healthy meals. Something that can be prepared as quick as possible for someone who gets in the door at about 7 or 7.30pm each week night. (my breakfast is generally muesli or low fat cereal and my lunch is generally salad with chicken or low fat wrap - and I try to get healthy snacks mid morning and afternoon - usually almonds or raw cashews)

I know as a general rule, ready meals are bad - however, I've been stacking up on the Marks and Spencers Count on Us ready meal range of late because I can get a well balanced meal calorie wise. i.e.

an example - M&S Count on Us Chicken Balti has:

400 cal
Protein - 45g
Carbs - 230g
of which sugars - 90g
Fat - 70g
of which sat - 0.8g
Fibre - 4.4g
Sodium - 0.2g
Salt Equivalent - 0.5g

It's bloody nice aswell!

So, my question is, should I keep eating these as part of a "well balanced diet" with exercise or should I try something else??

Are there any hidden downsides to these meals that the pack doesn't tell you about?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated!

corkcomp

ct_roy wrote: »

Hi,

Before anyone gives out I know I should be taking the time to prepare fresh veg, complex carb, high protein/low fat meals for weight loss (and eating every 3hrs etc.)

However, my lifestyle at the moment makes this pretty damn near impossible (or else I'd be eating dinner at 9pm!)

So....I'm looking for convenient fast healthy meals. Something that can be prepared as quick as possible for someone who gets in the door at about 7 or 7.30pm each week night. (my breakfast is generally muesli or low fat cereal and my lunch is generally salad with chicken or low fat wrap - and I try to get healthy snacks mid morning and afternoon - usually almonds or raw cashews)

I know as a general rule, ready meals are bad - however, I've been stacking up on the Marks and Spencers Count on Us ready meal range of late because I can get a well balanced meal calorie wise. i.e.

an example - M&S Count on Us Chicken Balti has:

400 cal
Protein - 45g
Carbs - 230g
of which sugars - 90g
Fat - 70g
of which sat - 0.8g
Fibre - 4.4g
Sodium - 0.2g
Salt Equivalent - 0.5g

It's bloody nice aswell!

So, my question is, should I keep eating these as part of a "well balanced diet" with exercise or should I try something else??

Are there any hidden downsides to these meals that the pack doesn't tell you about?

Any thoughts greatly appreciated!

i think you probably know the answer already? Your unlikely to get any of the regular posters here recommending ready meals .. The meal above has a very high simple carb (sugar) content, unless its post workout! the fat content is also quite high eventhough its not saturated .... why dont you cook the protein / meat part a day in advance (fresh salmon would cook in under 10 minutes) and just bung on some fresh veg when you get in, spinach, brocolli etc would be ready in 5 minutes tops!

ct_roy

thanks corkcomp,

i must get better at evaluating sugar and fat content.

and i'll have to get better at meal planning aswell!

it's tough but I guess it's just getting into the habit and making the time - easier said than done!

Honey-ec

I'm assuming the fat content is a typo as 70g of fat is pretty much your entire RDA - no way would you get that amount in a low-cal meal for one.

EileenG

ct_roy wrote: »

an example - M&S Count on Us Chicken Balti has:

400 cal
Protein - 45g
Carbs - 230g
of which sugars - 90g
Fat - 70g
of which sat - 0.8g
Fibre - 4.4g
Sodium - 0.2g
Salt Equivalent - 0.5g

Something seriously wrong with those figures. I get that the protein, carbs and fat add up to 1730 calories, not 400.

Actually, my problem with the M&S COU food is that they tend to keep fat very low by adding in junk carbs. Read the ingredients, there are an awful lot of things like modified maize starch and maltadextrin and other things that are not really food.

A much better fast food is something like a piece of fresh fish or meat and some green vegetables. If you have a good non-stick frying pan, you can even cook the fish and veg in it together, so less washing up. And of course, eggs are the ultimate fast food. You can scramble a couple of eggs faster than you can make a piece of toast.

Piste

Another thing you could do is make your own ready meals. Whenever you have a bit of time (maybe at the weekend) make a large portion of curry/lasagne/sirfry whatever you like and freeze portions of it, then during the week just whip it out and bung in the microwave- easy peasy!

rubadub

EileenG wrote: »

Something seriously wrong with those figures. I get that the protein, carbs and fat add up to 1730 calories, not 400.

Yep, doesn't look like just a single typo either.

Are there any hidden downsides to these meals that the pack doesn't tell you about?

Most packs are full of marketing BS. If you typed in the ingredients list and recheck the other figures we could give better comments. I love spotting all the scams and tricks they use. You really have to learn how to read packs, those figures should have been pretty obvious that something was amiss.

cozmik

Here's a link for the Chicken Balti

http://www.calorie-count.com/calories/item/91.html

corkcomp

cozmik wrote: »

Here's a link for the Chicken Balti

http://www.calorie-count.com/calories/item/91.html

that actually doesnt look too bad ... - for a ready meal!

ct_roy

sorry guys yes i entered in the nutritional data incorrectly - the Calorie Count link is accurate - phew!

anyways thanks for all the feedback - much appreciated - am going to get my hands on some fresh meat the weekend and cook it up for the week!

...just as soon as I finish my other count on us meals

here's another

Count on Us Bangers and Mash - yum yum

Cals - 380
Protein - 21.6g
Carbs - 57.2g
of which sugar - 7.6g
Fat - 7.6g
Fibre - 6g
Sodium - .76g
salt equiv - 1.9g