Disclaimer: This blogpost ‘The NUPO Diet Review’ features my own personal experience trying out the NUPO diet, specifically the NUPO Very Low Calorie Diet (NUPO VLCD). This is neither a nursing-related post, nor a sponsored post.
Those of you who know me personally know that I’ve struggled with weight loss all my life. And ‘being on a diet’ has been an ongoing phase for most of my years. I’ve tried so many diets and ‘healthy eating’ ways throughout the last decades, but the problem remained.
Being a student nurse brought onto me a pile of guilt. See, I love preventive nursing and I aim to inspire my patients to be healthy in my clinical practice. But how can I do that when I can’t even lose weight myself for a healthier life?
That was when I started seriously thinking about going under the knife for bariatric surgery. At exactly 100kgs I would have had to go the private route, so I started searching for more information on the operation. I won’t go into detail on what researching the subject brought up. However, just before scheduling a private appointment with a bariatric surgeon, I came across the NUPO diet. Now THAT was something I had still not tried! Considering the thought of a non-invasive diet versus an invasive procedure, I decided to give it a go. After all, what did I have to lose apart from weight?
What is the NUPO VLCD and how does it work?
The NUPO Very Low Calorie Diet (VLCD) is an easy-to-follow diet that provides you with 800 kcal per day, which is significantly less than what the body burns during a day. This caloric deficit naturally leads to weightloss.
The NUPO diet provides you with a maximum of 50g of carbohydrates per day. Carbohydrates are the body’s primary energy source, thus, when the carb intake is low, the body is forced to find an alternative energy source. After about 2 days on the NUPO VLCD, the body’s own carb stores are depleted, and the body starts to break down its stored fat, creating ketones to use as a source of energy. Once this stage is reached, the body is said to be in ketosis – a phase characterised by a relatively low but stable blood sugar level, high ketone content in the blood, and high fat combustion.
What does the NUPO Diet meal plan consist of?
When on the NUPO VLCD you can consume 6 NUPO products per day. Typically you can have oatmeal for breakfast, a shake, soup for lunch, another shake in the afternoon, a meal in the evening, and a final shake later on. It is very important to consume all 6 portions during each day so as to ensure your nutritional needs are met.
What I love about the NUPO diet is that I find most of the products amazingly tasty! And trust me when I say, I’ve had issues with shakes in the past! Besides this, you can switch between different tastes and products, which helps you keep the excitement going.
Preparing the products for consumption cannot be easier (and having a very busy life makes the NUPO diet a sustainable option for weightloss!). Shake powder is added to 300ml of water, mixed in a shaker, and then consumed. All other products are mixed in the same way with different amounts of water, and then heated in a microwave oven for 2 minutes, or in the case of the omelet, cooked for 2 minutes per side in a pan.
As a student nurse I’ve found it really easy to carry my meals around or mix shake powder into a shaker with 300ml of water and consume wherever. Not to mention the convenience of ready-made meals which require very little preparation time!
NUPO do have other products. I have personally taken the Slim Boost Fill My Tummy fibre pills to help me curb my hunger in the initial phase, especially considering the fact that I am prone to bingeing when stressed or hungry.
and now for the results…
I decided to write this review after following the NUPO diet for just over a month so I can feature the resulting measurements here…saying I’m overjoyed is an understatement!
| 5th November 2023 | 10th December 2023 | |
| Weight | 100 kg | 91 kg |
| BMI | 40.1 | 36.5 |
| Neck | 41 cm | 39.5 cm |
| Bust | 131 cm | 124.5 cm |
| Bicep (R) | 42 cm | 40.5 cm |
| Waist | 131 cm | 120 cm |
| Hips | 123 cm | 114 cm |
| Thigh (R) | 72 cm | 65.5 cm |
The NUPO diet has given me the possibility to lose weight in an easy sustainable way. I couldn’t be happier! I still have a lot more excess weight to lose, so I am continuing this diet until I reach my desired weight…and I am finally confident that I will not only reach it, but be able to maintain it!
Since the weigh-in listed above, I have lost another kg in the past week…down to 90 kgs! Looking forward to touching the 80’s again most probably by next Sunday – my weigh-in day 🙂
Some may argue that 800 kcal are too little and “not healthy”. What I personally would answer is that I have weighed the pros and cons, and I believe that it is much better to follow such a diet than going for bariatric surgery which is an invasive procedure or doing nothing and ending up with cardiac disease.
Obviously, if you, reading this NUPO diet review, feel drawn to try it out, do consult your GP and get advice specific to your personal situation before starting this or any other diet.
NUPO products can be bought from all leading pharmacies across Malta and Gozo as well as from selected beauty salons. For more information you can also contact NUPO Malta on Facebook by clicking HERE.
Would you like to be a guest writer for Student Nurse Life? I’d love to hear from you! Contact me 🙂
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Claire is keen about public education on health-related subjects as well as holistic patient-centered care. She is also passionate about spreading awareness on the negative effects that domestic abuse leaves on its victims’ mental, emotional, social and physical wellbeing.
Claire aspires to continue studying following completion of her Nursing Degree, because she truly believes in lifelong education.
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