Soylent?? ...Really???

[Gavin Greenwalt]

I'm backing it and will give it a try for a few weeks for lunch. It can't possibly be less healthy than my regular lunch at work. It's not about time per say I am just bored with food. I like his analogy about going to the movie theater. "I enjoy going to the movie theater, but I don't want to go 3 times a day." Sometimes I just don't want to be hungry and sometimes I want a nice tasty meal. Usually when I just don't want to be hunger I eat some crappy processed bullshit that isn't nutritious so that I can get on with my life. It'll be like 9pm and I'll realize I haven't eaten and I'll scavenge around the kitchen for something that I can eat right then and there.

Also this will be the ultimate backpacking food. I'm going to save 3-4 days worth for my next backpacking trip. Just add water. No need to bring a stove/pot which will save weight.

 

[Elsie N]

This reminds me... time for my food day ritual of drinkeating an oversized mug of a concoction of a tblspoon of Diamond V XPC, a scoop of RAW (caps are mine '-) Organic Green Super Food, a big dash of Vitamin C Powder, A big dash of L Arginine, tspoon of L Glutamic Acid, (1) 100 milligram opened capsule contents of Niacin, dash of Ceylon Cinnamon, dash of powdered Ginger, two small scoops of Coconut Sugar (Glycemic Index of only 35 while refined sugar is somewhere in the high seventies, low eighties IIRC), about 2 tblspoons of Organic Raw Cacao powder, a tspoon of MSM powder, large dash of Acerola, and after adding hot water to stir and mix the ingredients, a dash of Angostura bitters along with a good sized splash of Pomegranate and Black Cherry juices... sans any other ingredients or preservatives.

EDIT: ALMOST FORGOT... ONE SCOOP OF MEGA MEN MAXIMUM NUTRITION

Yummy! I LIVE FOR THIS STUFF!

Oh, I do drink the heavy broth slowly, otherwise the Niacin will cause flushing of the skin if taken above a threshold of some 40 milligrams all at once.

Can't really call this a replacement meal since I have no schedule for eating a "meal" other than when the mood strikes me. However I do eat a nice-sized bowl of oatmeal with Ceylon cinnamon, Nutmeg powder, Allspice powder, and Ginger powder plus a good helping of Olive Oil/Coconut Oil stirred in and sweetened with a goodly number of raisins, on a schedule... I eat this with coconut milk poured over before starting a fast and immediately after breaking the 24 hour fast. Keeps your gut having something to do.

See edit above:

Just thought I should mention in case some other soul out there might be thinking this is something to adopt, this is not for married couples, unless both spouses stay on the same regimen. That is, this concoction can cause an individual to become a gaseous giant, like Uranus for example.

If both spouses are on board, then the duality of the gassiness will nullify the embarrassment factor and just become a laughing gas moment. But if just one member of a family does this, what starts out as funny moments soon turns into disgusting farting sounds... even though there is no sulpherous odor to the methane.

Just thought I should mention the downside to an otherwise positive experience.

 

[Mark Phelan]

I'm backing it and will give it a try for a few weeks for lunch. It can't possibly be less healthy than my regular lunch at work. It's not about time per say I am just bored with food. I like his analogy about going to the movie theater. "I enjoy going to the movie theater, but I don't want to go 3 times a day." Sometimes I just don't want to be hungry and sometimes I want a nice tasty meal. Usually when I just don't want to be hunger I eat some crappy processed bullshit that isn't nutritious so that I can get on with my life. It'll be like 9pm and I'll realize I haven't eaten and I'll scavenge around the kitchen for something that I can eat right then and there.

Also this will be the ultimate backpacking food. I'm going to save 3-4 days worth for my next backpacking trip. Just add water. No need to bring a stove/pot which will save weight.

You are SO wrong. Everyone knows that Raman Noodles are the ultimate backpacking food.

 

[Zak Brickett]

You are SO wrong. Everyone knows that Raman Noodles are the ultimate backpacking food.

He's right.

 

[Brandon J.F.]

I'm backing it and will give it a try for a few weeks for lunch. It can't possibly be less healthy than my regular lunch at work. It's not about time per say I am just bored with food. I like his analogy about going to the movie theater. "I enjoy going to the movie theater, but I don't want to go 3 times a day." Sometimes I just don't want to be hungry and sometimes I want a nice tasty meal. Usually when I just don't want to be hunger I eat some crappy processed bullshit that isn't nutritious so that I can get on with my life. It'll be like 9pm and I'll realize I haven't eaten and I'll scavenge around the kitchen for something that I can eat right then and there.

Exactly the reason it interests me.

 

[Jeff Kilgroe]

You are SO wrong. Everyone knows that Raman Noodles are the ultimate backpacking food.

You guys should try eating squirrels. They're abundant and easy to catch, provided you're smarter than they are. All you need is a knife to clean and prep them and a long stick for skewering over a fire. Who takes a frickin' stove with them when they go backpacking??? seriously. That said, I can't deny the Ramen Noodles, but sometimes I like to add a bit more protein into the mix. There's always fish, too... Or snakes. Personally I avoid rattlesnakes, although they're easier to catch than most. They're mean to start with and they taste like greasy rubber bands.

As for this Soylent shi.. er, stuff, it looks bland and boring. I like food. I like to make it and I like to eat it. I like it to have flavor and texture. Not a fan of pre-processed crap, or at least no more manufactured than Ramen Noodles. Seems like Soylent is missing some essential things I'd like it to have and has some other stuff in it that I don't want and would try to avoid. IMO, it looks like a scam. Other than fat content, I think I could do better by drinking baby formula. Which is essentially what this stuff is.

 

[Gavin Greenwalt]

You are SO wrong. Everyone knows that Raman Noodles are the ultimate backpacking food.

That was my conclusion after much testing (including my "bagel expedition", bagels and peanutbutter are not the ultimate backpacking food FYI) , actually "Cup-O-Noodles" I decided was the ultimate backpacking food. But Ramen still requires the stove. This is a cold mix. Just need filtered water.

 

[Billy Barber]

Technically we can live without sex too but that won't be happening.


And least I hope not.....

 

[Ivan Kovax]

He's right.

So very, very right.

 

[Scott Crawley]

The discussion so far has been fun to read. I was asking myself "What is wrong with REAL food?" so I actually followed the link and this is this is the justification behind the whole thing:

But a lot of us don't eat healthily, and a lot of us don't enjoy the process of preparing food, especially when we're eating alone. Furthermore, the way we eat today is incredibly wasteful throughout the entire production and consumption process, to the point where it actively damages our bodies and our planet.​

To paraphrase: We can't be bothered to feed ourselves well so, in the name of preserving the planet (It isn't sheer laziness... really it isn't) we should eat more processed, manufactured foods. That is the answer to our problem.

Now I'm thinking this guy is attempting to use more of the problem to create the solution. I am thinking... if this is the logic he uses in his engineering then he won't be helping to build my body. I can make a mess of that all by myself. That's a fact. ;-)

The disconnect between ourselves and our food. THAT imho is the problem. Fix that. Fix your food. Produce what you can. Locally source what you can't. Look a cow in the eye. If you can't bring yourself to kill it, the experience might just curb your desire to eat quite so much of it.

Respect your food.

That is my truth. Feel free to substitute your own. ;-)

EDIT:
Oh and eat game not cows... not because it is lower in fat or any of that shit, but because you actually have to catch it first. Your body will love the exercise.

 

[Hrvoje Simic]

You guys should try eating squirrels. They're abundant and easy to catch, provided you're smarter than they are. All you need is a knife to clean and prep them and a long stick for skewering over a fire. Who takes a frickin' stove with them when they go backpacking??? seriously.

Maybe the guy can mix up a squirrel replacement version.
Backpacking 2.0

 

[Scott Crawley]

Maybe the guy can mix up a squirrel replacement version.
Backpacking 2.0

 

[Elsie N]

...

The disconnect between ourselves and our food. THAT imho is the problem. Fix that. Fix your food. Produce what you can. Locally source what you can't. Look a cow in the eye. If you can't bring yourself to kill it, the experience might just curb your desire to eat quite so much of it.

Respect your food.

...

EDIT:
Oh and eat game not cows... not because it is lower in fat or any of that shit, but because you actually have to catch it first. Your body will love the exercise.

To further punctuate your "give a cow a break" theme, I've read research that over a long period of time they found that people who eat poultry live longer than those who eat pork, who live longer than those who eat beef. The happy correlation here is that chickens are the most efficient at turning feed into meat, pigs are the second most efficient, and cattle are the very least efficient... by a wide margin.

I live in cattle country and the prolonged drought we are in has reduced the numbers of cattle drastically. It will take some years to recover once the drought is over because of the gestation length and the time it takes to raise an animal for next generation breeding or slaughter. We can do the planet and ourselves some good (cattle herds are probably pumping out more damaging pollutants, because methane is more damaging to the atmosphere by far than CO2, than all our coal fired power plants. Strictly IMO.)

All we have to do is substitute more efficient meats in our meals... not to mention a little less of it, and we can lessen the demand for beef so that there is less urgency to rebuild herds to their ultimate levels. And by making it less profitable to operate feedlots where cattle are shot full of hormones and anti-biotics, more cattle will stay on the range and will become healthier to eat as grass fed beef (which actually contains Omega 3s while penned, fed cattle do not.)

I've personally eaten no beef for more than a decade... not because I am anti beef per se, but because I am pro-efficiency for the most part.

As for eating game, it has almost become sacrilege among the younger generations to be a hunter. I have a red-headed great-nephew who is a crack shot. He hunts almost on a daily basis depending on what the hunting season is. His Dad only requires him to eat what he kills. Didn't take long for him to take things like crows and grackles off his game list. He aspires to be a game biologist when he grows up. I think his life as he lives it will make him a sensitive and aware citizen when he takes his place in society as an adult.

But for those who do their hunting online or in a big box store, try bagging a package of buffalo meat. Maybe that will impart some hardiness to a body, who knows?

 

[Ivan Kovax]

I love that mindset Elsie!

 

[Scott Crawley]

the most efficient at turning feed into meat... cattle are the very least efficient... by a wide margin.

I am curious if you are referring to grass fed, free ranged cows or if tests were restricted to feed lot, grain fed cattle. Judging by the size of a cow, and all of those stomachs I would expect it to be fairly efficient at processing it's food into muscle.

 

[Elsie N]

I am curious if you are referring to grass fed, free ranged cows or if tests were restricted to feed lot, grain fed cattle. Judging by the size of a cow, and all of those stomachs I would expect it to be fairly efficient at processing it's food into muscle.

I don't think they made the distinction in the paper I read. I'm just thinking on my own here, but I'm assuming it has to do with the length of time to raise the animal. And while I don't know this for a fact, it could have to do with the ratio of meat to hide to bone etc. for a cow vs a chicken, for instance.

And while I do not remember where I read the information (wasn't considering I might need to revisit the research at the time... I just store the synopsis of this type of data in my brain for personal use) I'm pretty sure they had data to back up their claim. I'm always on the lookout if research like this is done with an outcome pre-determined in order to further an agenda, and no alarms went off when I read this or I would have noted that.

 

[Scott Crawley]

I see. It's an interesting idea, from a mass production standpoint.

Thanks.

I don't think they made the distinction in the paper I read. I'm just thinking on my own here, but I'm assuming it has to do with the length of time to raise the animal. And while I don't know this for a fact, it could have to do with the ratio of meat to hide to bone etc. for a cow vs a chicken, for instance.

And while I do not remember where I read the information (wasn't considering I might need to revisit the research at the time... I just store the synopsis of this type of data in my brain for personal use) I'm pretty sure they had data to back up their claim. I'm always on the lookout if research like this is done with an outcome pre-determined in order to further an agenda, and no alarms went off when I read this or I would have noted that.

 

[Gavin Greenwalt]

EDIT:
Oh and eat game not cows... not because it is lower in fat or any of that shit, but because you actually have to catch it first. Your body will love the exercise.

Exercise? You can catch a month's worth of food by going to a field, climbing a ladder and sitting in a little tree house for 8 hours. I would get that much exercise stirring Soylent. And instead of sitting there for 8 hours I could then go for a bike ride, ski, hike or kayak for 8 hours while your lazy ass was sitting quietly and motionless all day.

I see absolutely nothing noble about spending an hour or two every day cooking. If you enjoy that. Good for you. But it's not lazy to want to do *different* things with your life than be a chef. It's like me calling you a lazy slob because you don't want to spend 2 hours pumping water and carrying it back to your apartment. "Ohhhhh so you're too lazy to walk to a river and bring back a bucket of water to take a shower huh? Yeah sure make your running water all about society and the environment... let's be honest, you just are too lazy to walk to the river and then filter and boil your water for 3 hours a day."

 

[Hrvoje Simic]

One can think of natural food as a composite made by Master Compositor and everything else including this as a composite done by an amateur wanabee playing with a node tree. The sequence to be produced is a building block of one's own body.

What you consume becomes you.
A notion applicable to Mind food as well and quality of building blocks of one's thought structure.

 

[Scott Crawley]

I do see nobility in providing nourishment for people. I am sorry that you do not. It is because of the efforts of folks who do those things that we have the luxury to go out and do something more than just survive. On the other hand if it is done improperly, we could destroy ourselves and the planet. It is an enormous thing that they do.

If we all had more respect for this abundance of food that we have and better understood the real cost of its production, I think we would be making better choices for ourselves and the environment. That is the idea I was trying to share.

Edit: If you are right though, and there is no inherent nobility in spending a life producing food for the rest of us, then these people are very much wasting their lives. Honor their sacrifice by giving it meaning. Do more with your time than ride a bike, ski, kayak or hike. (read that as equal parts cheeky wise ass and sincere concern.)

Exercise? You can catch a month's worth of food by going to a field, climbing a ladder and sitting in a little tree house for 8 hours. I would get that much exercise stirring Soylent. And instead of sitting there for 8 hours I could then go for a bike ride, ski, hike or kayak for 8 hours while your lazy ass was sitting quietly and motionless all day.

I see absolutely nothing noble about spending an hour or two every day cooking. If you enjoy that. Good for you. But it's not lazy to want to do *different* things with your life than be a chef. It's like me calling you a lazy slob because you don't want to spend 2 hours pumping water and carrying it back to your apartment. "Ohhhhh so you're too lazy to walk to a river and bring back a bucket of water to take a shower huh? Yeah sure make your running water all about society and the environment... let's be honest, you just are too lazy to walk to the river and then filter and boil your water for 3 hours a day."