Review – Soylent (Week 1) #SoylentPioneer

So it’s been a week since I’ve been on Soylent.

I started off weighing 73.2kg last Sunday (5/4/2015) and I’m…………..wait for it…………….72.4kg now!

While I did not substitute food for Soylent totally in the past week, I did count calories as a method to lose weight and overall eat healthily.

Starting off, I calculated my Base Metabolic Rate (BMR) over a few websites and found that I needed about 2200kcal a day.

You can calculate yours at the Health Promotion Board Calorie Calculator (http://www.hpb.gov.sg/HOPPortal/gamesandtools-article/2406). It factors in your daily physical activity level and your job nature to give a more holistic and accurate calculation.

So if I drink Soylent purely everyday, I take in only 2000kcal of pure health and burn 200kcal. I think this is what contributed to my weight loss. While i don’t know if Soylent should be marketed as a weight loss product, I do know that you’ll definitely be healthier knowing that you are consuming a product that provides healthy calories and fulfills your daily human nutritional requirements.

I’ve gotten use to neutral taste of Soylent. The texture is gritty while its taste mostly like well blended oatmeal owing to the majority oat flour that it’s made of. I relish the fact that I do not spend a single cent on breakfast and lunch at work and I’ve got more time to focus on my tasks or even catch a power nap during lunchtime.

The breakdown of my meals for the week is as shown below. 1 packet of Soylent once made can last for 48 hours. 4 packets were used in the 1st week on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday.

Monday
Breakfast – 500ml of Soylent
Lunch – 500ml of Soylent
Afternoon Snack – 500ml of Soylent
Dinner – Home cooked Bee Hoon Soup

*Remainder 500ml was ‘stolen’ by Michelle for Breakfast

Tuesday
Breakfast – 500ml of Soylent
Lunch – 500ml of Soylent
Afternoon Snack – 500ml of Soylent
Dinner – 500ml of Soylent

Wednesday (Non-Soylent Day)
Breakfast – Fishball noodles
Lunch – Boiled Sweet Potatoes
Dinner – Thai Food

Thursday
Breakfast – 500ml of Soylent
Lunch – 500ml of Soylent
Afternoon Snack – 500ml of Soylent
Dinner – Claypot Chicken Rice

*Remainder 500ml was ‘stolen’ again by Michelle for Breakfast

Friday
Breakfast – 500ml of Soylent
Lunch – 500ml of Soylent
Dinner – Carbonara Pasta
Supper – Lots of Beers

Saturday
Breakfast – 500ml of Soylent
Lunch – Fried Chicken Nasi Bryani
Dinner – Chinese Tapas at Sum Yi Tai

*Remainder 500ml was ‘stolen’ once again by Michelle for Breakfast

Sunday
Breakfast – Scrambled Eggs, Bacon and Mushrooms
Lunch – Fish and Chips, Iced Lemon Tea
Dinner – Birthday Buffet

The foremost Singaporean social activity is eating in Singapore so it would be somewhat impossible to replace eating with just consuming Soylent alone.

Let’s see what week 2 will bring and if my weight loss is sustained!

Reviewed by Jason “Tao Ni” Chew