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Hi. I’ve created one post for a number of things I’ve collated over a few weeks. Feel free to separate them out or ask me to do that in order to respond.
I joined a few weeks back while the kids were on school holidays so I spent that time fiddling with my menu planner a lot on a daily basis to understand how it all works. I’ve slowly grown to appreciate that it is the tool I’d hoped for but it’s not been that intuitive to get a grip of. And I have to say that the training doesn’t do it justice. I’ve read a lot of forum comments citing confusion and I totally get where they are at. If I had wanted to get up and running quickly I think I would have left through frustration of lack of progress which would have been a shame.
I joined purely for the nutritionally balanced meal planning. I’m already well read and committed to the ‘right’ foods so my menu scored something like 91% first time without any changes to my usual purchases – raising to 93% with some tweaks. So, having done a lot of ‘playing’ and working out a lot of things myself the questions I have very much point out what I think is missing in the training and site function. I hope you will take this feedback on board and action it to make trimdownclub exceptional 😉
First up: Can I assume that the personally nutritionally balanced plan is appropriate for any age?
I have an 8 year old son with learning and mobility issues who is starting to put on weight. I have a responsibility to manage this and need a structured way to do it that his extended carer group can buy into and follow.Next: Training on the menu planner.
I found that the journey you intend new clients to follow didn’t work – I kept finding myself in places that didn’t match up to where you wanted me to be or the time or stage I was at in the weeks or menu creation.
Videos should be available on the page that they are relevant to as well as on the guidance journey.
There is no explanation as to what the little green + symbols are directing me to do regarding +fat/sweet.Questions on the menu planner:
Does the menu update to reflect the nutritional requirement change that comes with weight loss input or do you have to create a new menu after you’ve updated?
Does it balance out through the day? – if you have additional fats in the morning does it reduce your requirement through the day?
If I want to use a recipe again that I have created for myself in the menu planner is there a quick way to simply select that again when creating a new menu – instead of re-creating it all over again. Would I have to submit the recipe to trimdownclub?
Why do I need so many options to fulfil my food choices? I can happily use the few that I like frequently and It means I’m selecting foods that I don’t want to appear just to get a blue indicator. Is there a way to prevent them from showing up in my planner?
Do you advocate fasting/juicing detox days and how might I build that into the menu planner?Suggestions:
Free foods, free spreads, Food exchange list should be a one click direct resource link to access from the home page instead of searching the site for the info. I found them a pain to locate.
From and educational perspective it would be informative to have the k/cal info to put things into perspective and retrain the relationship with required calories to show how a balanced diet provides whats needed.
There should be a search function in the forum – it’s a valuable resource to your members, I would have found a lot of answers much quicker and been much happier earlier on.
There should be an explanation about things like tomatoes being a vegetable (or a search function!) – peeps are short on time and this took me ages to work out!
You need an iPhone app for the menu at the very least! Now the kids are back at school and I’ve not frequent desktop access, I’m (and I’m sure most peeps) going to struggle to keep on track.Finally:
I appreciate the marketing aspect of the email content but it’s starting to annoy me that every single one as far as I’ve seen has been a direct sales pitch. I’ve unsubscribed but concerned that I might miss genuine valued information about the site etc. Are there separate lists?Thanks for reading and I hope some of this transpires to make the site even better than it currently is 🙂
Nice work- thanks, Saz.
Hi Saz, and welcome. Thank you for your feedback – I’m glad you’re liking the site, and that you are coming in already so in tune with healthy principles. I am happy to answer your questions (I’ve numbered them for clarity):
1. Your son: The principles of the plan can be used for anyone of any age, but the menu patterns in the Menu Planner application are intended for people of specific measurements. If your son is physically active, his needs would be similar to yours (given your measurements); however, if his mobility is limited, it may be too much – if this is the case, please do repost, and I will put something together based on your pattern.
2. Menu Planner: Yes, the system does reflect the requirement change based on changing weight (which is why it is so important to keep it updated in your profile). Yes, intake is generally balanced throughout the day – so if you add food in the morning, it is recommended that you reduce later intake; this is much, much preferable over bulking up at night (unless that’s when you have a big workout).
3. New menus/recipe: You can repeat menus in general – there’s no reason to generate new ones if you have reached a high health score, and certainly no need to re-input food selections. Regardless, you are welcome to submit recipes to us.
4. Fasting/detox: No, we don’t advocate fasting, as it can actually slow down your metabolism. Keep in mind that our program in general is intended to be a gentle detox. If you are seeking something more focused, we have what we call a “detox,” but it does not involve fasting – you can ask Customer Service about this (they can be reached through the “Contact Us” link below).
5. E-mails: I will forward your query to Customer Service.
Again, thanks for your input, and please do repost if you have additional concerns or questions.Hi
Thanks for the response. I’ve a few thoughts and question that have come from it. I hope you can help me with these….
My son is very sedentary. He probably gets about 90 mins of assisted movement/exercise a week. He’s slowly increasing in size around his waist and thighs. Can you educate me as to why he would have the same requirement as myself as a 41 year old female? Would it be best to set up a profile specifically for him?
Menu planner: So just to clarify – I understand that when I’m planning a days food and changing the menu items, if I add foods into the morning that take me over the nutritional requirements (i.e. a red number) the planner does not readjust for that in the later meals of the day. That I need to manage this adjustment myself?
Detoxing: My personal trainer wants me to juice for a couple of days a week. These juices have amongst other ingredient, avocado, protein supplements and vegetables. And he allows snacking on almonds. No obvious carbs. Does this constitute fasting or considered okay?
+Fats/Sweets in menu planner: Can you explain a little how I should respond to these in the menu planner. Are they intended as something I should include to get the balance? Or are they just an addition for personal preference? Should I be including one or the other, or both?
Thanks again for your help.
Saz.
Hi, Sazbaz. Thanks for the information.
1. If your son had a certain level of activity, his needs would be the same as yours because of his stage of growth, which requires quite a bit of energy and protein. Because he is sedentary, however, his energy needs are a little under 2/3 of yours. Because of the nature of this program, his needs would best be met this way, and you have the advantage of eating the same foods.
2. Regarding the Menu Planner, yes, that is for you to adjust.
3. The detox items you mentioned appear to be somewhere in-between, but it depends on the amounts. If you can post exactly how much of each food, I can run a calculation for you.
4. Fats and sweets are calculated into your menu.Thanks for clarifying.
I’m going to stick to plan for the full 8 weeks before I consider doing the detox so shall get the food quantities when and if that becomes relevant so I don’t waste your time.
One final thing you might help me with; I have diastasis recti remaining 6 years after childbirth. I’m told that I need more animal protein and collagen to help mend and build from the inside. I’m considering taking a supplement drink as my evening snack. Do you have any advice on how this fits with the plan or any alternate solutions/products with quality collagen and protein (as the product I have found seems to have equal carbs and pros)? I’ve listed the ingredient values below….
Skimmed & whole milk
Hydrolysed Collagen
Vitamins: E Acetate, B12, Nicotinamide, Pyridoxine, D3
Maltodextrin
Green Tea extract
Colour
Stabiliser
Acidity regulatorKcal 56
Fat 1.5
(Sat) 0.9
Carbs 4.9
(Sugar) 4.9
Pro 5.9
Salt 0.3Advice on this one would be very much appreciated as it affects the aesthetic results of my weight loss and therefore has considerable influence on my motivation!
Thanks, Saz.
Hi, Saz. The ingredients of that supplement look fine, though it would help to know if the colour is natural. It’s a bit small for an evening snack – you may actually get better results from incorporating bone broth and vitamin C-rich vegetables into your lunch or dinner meal, and then having a serving of plain Greek yogurt with active cultures as your last snack.
No less important are the right exercises. If you would like more information about this, please do repost.Hi
Can I buy a quility bone broth? And collagen? Or is quality something I need to invest the time in creating myself here?
Could you tell me what vegetables have the highest vitC content (and would a vitC suppliment be an option to ensure I’m getting enough to maximise the benefit of the bone broth – I assume thats the point).
I exercise every day. I usually interval run for between 12 and 20 mins before doing an hour of hot yoga.
Many thanks, I very much appreciate your adice on this subject.
Best, Saz.
Hi, Sazbaz. It’s good to read that you’re exercising – yoga is great.
It is best if you prepare your own bone broth, but you can buy it over the internet (for example, http://www.wisechoicemarket.com/bone-broth/) or use the internet to find a local source. Bone broth is made just like chicken soup, but you use the feet and some beef bones instead of regular meat.
The vegetables highest in vitamin C are red bell peppers, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi, and raw green peas. Tomatoes are a fruit high in vitamin C, but you can certainly use them as a vegetable.
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