San Diego Fast Food: Optimal Nutrition for San Diegans on the Go
Published : 07/05/2007 by Chris Zook
Tired of counting calories when you shop and cook? Tired of shopping and cooking altogether? Even worse, tired of riding the Starbucks rollercoaster to keep your energy levels up throughout the workday? A new Carmel Valley-based business called Optimal Nutrition Inc. may be just the service for you.
Imagine eating healthy gourmet organic meals twice per day, custom tailored to your weight goals and delivered to your home or place of work. The only time and effort required on your part involves filling out a questionnaire to determine your caloric needs, spending a few minutes each week online buying the meals, and a few minutes preparation at the microwave.
Optimal Nutrition truly wants to make the process as easy as possible. Or as the company’s president, Michelle Weinstein, puts it, “Convenience is our biggest selling point.”
Another big selling point is the company’s practice of using farm fresh, organic ingredients whenever possible—which is nearly 100 percent of the time. When it comes to meat, the company only uses free-range turkey and chicken and wild tuna, salmon, and cod, while strictly avoiding meats and produce that have been exposed to harmful chemical additives and GMOs (genetically modified organisms).
“There’s no other company like ours that does it, and it is so needed in this day and age,” explains Weinstein.
In addition to providing customers with the exact sized portions they need to meet their caloric goals, which can be adjusted to help someone lose, gain, or maintain their weight, Optimal Nutrition also accommodates people on a gluten-free diet and, beginning in July 2007, vegetarians.
Weinstein reveals that a large percentage of her quickly growing customer base are professional athletes who need to maintain high energy levels throughout the day, or may even need to pack on weight. Other typical customers include “busy executives, pregnant moms, or moms with small children, who don’t have the time to shop, cook, and clean.”
She goes on to point out that many busy executives find it difficult to leave their offices to eat a decent meal and often resort to a slice of pizza and a Starbucks, adding that it’s important to maintain normal blood sugar levels in order avoid making a bad decision.
After contacting the company and filling out a nutritional assessment questionnaire
, Optimal Nutrition designs meals that are portioned specifically for your body based on Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR), body fat, activity level, and other important factors. All you need to do is select from the five different menu choices for the week listed on the Optimal Nutrition website (the entire menu for the month is posted). The meals are prepared to provide the right balance of proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and other important nutrients in order to help sustain energy levels. (Note that all meals are reheatable, therefore no salads or wraps are among the menu options.)
To supplement meals, Optimal Nutrition also offers a similarly balanced energy bar that can be used as a meal replacement or for a boost between meals. These freshly baked bars come in such tempting flavors as Peanut Butter Chocolate, Blueberry Bliss, and Chewy Vegan Chip.
Once the order is placed, meals are shipped out frozen on dry ice, or can be picked up fresh in person at one of several locations in San Diego County, including La Jolla, Del Mar, and Carlsbad.
According to Weinstein, a typical female customer who orders 2 meals and 1 energy bar can expect to spend $30 per day. Men, who order 2 larger meals and 2 bars, pay about $40, and athletes, who require even bigger portions, will spend $50 per day.
Most people use the service 5 days per week, but as Weinstein explains, those who have very specific weight goals are advised to use the service 7 days per week. The company also sells a structured water product on their Web site for optimal hydration as well as the ingredients to blend a breakfast smoothie.
If the convenience of eating a stress-free healthy organic diet delivered to your door is worth the cost, then Optimal Nutrition is your optimal choice.
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