This is something I never imagined I’d try. I generally eat well, I know what’s good for me, what’s bad and can be very disciplined. However from time to time I struggle with what to eat for lunch. Nothing beats a good sandwich but with wheat causing skin reactions I’ve had to give them up. My gym sessions end around lunch time and by the time I’m home I’m very hungry. There’s only so long that a juice or Nakd bar can keep me going. This is where Exante Diet comes in. I saw people chatting about it on Twitter and when they kindly offered to send me some samples I thought I’d have a go at incorporating them into my routine.
I took these meal replacements before cutting wheat from my diet. So, if some of you read my latest post on quitting wheat, rest assured that this was before and I’m actually doing well at keeping my food diary and avoiding wheat now.
Let me start by telling you a little bit about Exante Diet. They have a range of flexible, easy-to-follow weight-loss and weight management plans. The idea is to replace your normal meals with theirs and control your portion sizes. You can pick from the specially designed meal packs, create your own or just shop each item individually.
Onto the food!
Let’s start with pancakes, who doesn’t love pancakes? These are very simple to make and are packed full of protein and minerals. Mix the contents of the pack with 100ml cold water and then give it a little whisk. The mixture makes one big pancake or a couple of little ones. I had mine with some fruit and they’re honestly really tasty. Much better than I was expecting. The Blueberry & Raspberry pancakes were a little on the sweet side for me but, I still enjoyed them and would happily have them again. The Maple Syrup Pancakes were also very tasty. They filled me up for a good few hours but I had to have some more fruit before dinner time arrived (I generally do an hour of exercise a day).
I’ll be replacing this photo and adding additional ones next week.
Onto the low carb and high protein diet bars. These are what I was most excited about. Anything that’s handy to chuck in your handbag and enjoy on the go is good in my books. I often like to have an energy boost before or after the gym and I thought these would work well. Sadly, I didn’t enjoy the peanut one, it tasted too salty. I’ve seen mixed reviews of them, many people seem to really enjoy them. It’s always important to keep in mind that people’s tastes can really differ so don’t always go off one review. I’m keen to get my hands on the mint, cookies and cream or cherry and almond bars, I’ve seen some good reviews on them and would like to put them to the test. Will I be making a purchase of them? I’ve had a look at the ingredients list and they don’t appear to contain wheat, so yes, there’s a high chance I will.
Now it’s time to move onto the diet shakes. I’ve never really been one for milkshakes but to my surprise these were okay, not amazing but pleasant. I particularly enjoyed both the Hazelnut and the Honeycomb shakes as they were quite creamy in consistency and masked the protein well. I added a little almond milk alongside the water to thicken them up a little. If I had one for breakfast they’d fill me up ’til around 11:30 but if I used them as a replacement for lunch I’d need something a little extra to keep me going. Don’t forget that I was also having daily gym sessions while testing out these products.
I was quite nervous about trying out the foods but in all honesty they weren’t too bad. The pasta, ham and mushroom soup was surprisingly creamy and I enjoyed it (photo will be added next week as I’m currently away from my camera). I wished I’d had a couple more of these for lunch times because they tasted good and filled me up. I had it alone at 1pm and then maybe around 4:30 I had some mango before having my evening meal around 7pm. Later that week I tried the moussaka and I really wasn’t very keen on it.
Overall I can see how replacing your meals with Exante Diet shakes, meals, bars and soups will help to reduce your portions and eat balanced meals. If you struggle with knowing what to eat this could be a good way of curbing your food and shifting any excess weight. I won’t be incorporating this into my daily lifestyle as I believe I eat well at the moment and having cut out wheat this means that my options would be limited. I did enjoy trying out the products and I really liked having a quick and easy lunch to make. I think I’ll give the diet bars another try soon and I’ll be sure to let you know how I get on with them.
The shakes and some of the meals are ideal to take into work because they’re very easy to make. The pancakes were delicious for breakfast or lunch but they wouldn’t be any good to take into work – unless you have access to a cooker and pan. If you’re thinking of giving something from the range a try I would recommend the pancakes and hazelnut shake highly.
Find out more about how the Exante Diet can benefit your lifestyle and if you’re thinking of giving it a try then be sure to check out the offers page.