Only 130 Calorie 5 Vegetable Lentil Soup

7 Responses to Only 130 Calorie 5 Vegetable Lentil Soup

1. 

   dymty February 15, 2009 at 11:34 am #

   Hi Linda,

   I'm just wondering if 150 calories is enough on such a cold and damp day.

   I'm also curious to know how many people are being led off-track when so much emphasis is being placed on low calorie foods. Our bodies are pretty darn smart and seem to know when they're being starved. The action it takes is to parse out a percentage of caloric intake and store it as fat for a 'rainy day'. If the idea of counting calories is to alter one's body composition relative to the lean muscle/fat ratio, calorie restriction is only effective where one is consuming excess calories. Often, the result of severe calorie restriction is lethargy, irritablility and feeling cold most of the time.

   Maybe you've posted here and I've missed it, but perhaps you could remind people about the importance of establishing and maintaining a healthy metabolism, and how calorie restriction can interfere with and slow down metabolism. Perhaps you could share with your readers the notion of establishing their basal metabolic rate, and how your 130 calorie per serving soup would fit into their goal of consuming the appropriate number of calories.

   You can use the following equation, called the Harris-Benedict formula, to make an estimate.

   BMR Formula

   Women: BMR = 655 + (4.35 x weight in pounds) + (4.7 x height in inches) – (4.7 x age in years)

   Men: BMR = 66 + (6.23 x weight in pounds) + (12.7 x height in inches) – (6.8 x age in year)

   The Metric Version for the equation is:

   Women: BMR = 655 + (9.6 x weight in kilos) + (1.8 x height in cm) – (4.7 x age in years)

   Men: BMR = 66 + (13.7 x weight in kilos) + (5 x height in cm) – (6.8 x age in years)

   This is the minimum number of calories one needs to consume in a 24 hour period to maintain their present weight, and DOES NOT include any calories needed to perform ANY ACTIVITIES.

   A 130 calorie serving is really a great idea. It fits well into breaking up the required calories into six or eight meals. Keep in mind, if your BMR is 1800 calories, you would need to eat just under 14 bowls of this soup over the span of the day, and may still leave you short on protein, which is critical in maintaining lean muscle tissue. Lean muscle tissue is key in maintaining a healthy metabolism.

   Phillip
2. 

   linda.larue February 16, 2009 at 10:27 am #

   Hi Phillip,

   Just read your long comment, and am trying to figure out your question/comments with respect to this soup blog. As blogs and emails do not always best lend to fully understanding, such as speaking 1:1 where mutually respectful dialog can occur.

   First, I am well aware of the Harris-Benedict formula, but how it ties into having a bowl of nutritiously dense, low Calorie soup is stumping me. Couple points not mentioned in your comment are as follows: (1) What is the Intent readers nutrition and/or weight goal? Some goals may be weight loss, weight gain, weight homeostasis, and possibly eating foods that have high fiber due to GI issues. (2) Soup is versatile, which means it can be a starter or paired with a protein be a meal (you can increase a serving size.) Obesity is a national epidemic/crisis that is costing us trillions of dollars according to the CDC. You can read a post on the Linda LaRue blogspot where I quote a recent survey study conducted by the Millikin Institute.

   In these challenging economic times, soup makes "cents". Making a comforting bowl of soup that is only pennies per serving is is frugally nutritious. 12g of protein and 6g of fiber is substantial, especially for our Vegan Intent community members. Plus, shopping at local farmers markets supports our hard working local farmers (local economy) and is green too. That's good karma for our planet, my local community, and our Intent community. Finally, did you know studies show men rank soup as their #1 comfort food.

   With respect,

   Linda LaRue, RN MEd, ATC
   http://www.LindaLaRue.com
   Creator, The SOUPer Slim Diet and Crunchless Abs
3. 

   dymty February 16, 2009 at 5:32 pm #

   Hi Linda,

   I was merely mentioning the notion of a single serving of 130 calories is quite restrictive, and perhaps asking you to reflect on how a single 130 calorie serving might tie into one's daily requirements. Thank you for shedding more light on this for me and the other readers by suggesting in your response that readers consider their nutritional and other health goals when faced with food choices.

   Also, the minimum daily requirements for protein intake is between 0.45 and 0.8 grams per pound of body weight (WHO and USRDA, respectively). For a 150 lb. person, 12 grams of protein meets 17% of the minimum protein requirements. The fiber content (6 grams) is a little more than 20%.

   Soup is great. I love soup and have it often. I've also used it as a diet food because it is usually filling and low in calories as you mentioned, but found that the low protein content caused muscle loss. As a small part of a healthy diet, soup is quite good. I have several cans on my shelf, as well as home-made soup I've put up, made with mustard and collard greens, spinach, carrots and various beans.

   I think offering the recipe is great, but this soup is not substantial enough by itself unless one is on a severely calorie-restrictive diet. "Only 130 Calories" can be misleading if it is not shown in context with respect to the whole diet. You know, how cereals are described as 'part of this complete breakfast', where other foods are included.

   Thanks again for expanding on this.

   Phillip
4. 

   mitchs October 1, 2009 at 2:28 pm #

   If you will have healthy things in your daily food then it will work for you as a Life Extension medicine because usage of fresh veggies makes a man healthy and active.
5. 

   emmas123 April 16, 2010 at 7:54 am #

   I think Linda that soup would be really tasty and healthy as well. I was also recommended by the Australian Medical Locums to drink that soup regularly because it is the only best way to keep yourself warm and away from sour throat in the winters of LA.
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