Busy families, older folks, single folks, and workers of all kinds love the convenience of popping a frozen meal into the microwave to save time and energy when preparing whole meals just isn’t an option. Not only are they easy to cook, they’re portable, compact, portion controlled, and can be somewhat inexpensive for the level of convenience they offer.
But not all frozen meals are as healthy as they seem. Here are Noom’s tips on how to choose when it comes to health frozen meals.
Healthy frozen meals 101
- Read the nutrition labels and ingredients and make sure the portion sizes are within the ranges listed below per serving. Spend the extra time in the frozen-foods aisle to make sure you’re not taking home 1,600 calorie “heart healthy frozen meals” that actually only meet that criteria if you eat a 1⁄4 cup serving of the entire package.
- Stick to frozen meals that have 800 mg of sodium or less, are 450 calories and under, have a maximum of 25 grams of fat, and contains at least 3 to 5 grams of fiber.
- Keep your eyes peeled for frozen meals that have lots of vegetables. They’ll up the fiber content, keep the calorie count down, fill you up, and help you meet your veggie and vitamins and minerals requirements for the day.
- When choosing frozen meals with meat, stick with lean meats like fish and chicken.
Even healthy frozen meals are still frozen meals
At the end of the day, even healthy frozen meals are just a mediocre stand in for meals that provide for a well balanced and nutritious diet that aids in wellness, long term weight management, and a better relationship with food. Check out Noom today for a look at how our innovative approach to meal planning and weight management benefits all types of lifestyles and dietary needs.
