I understand you, I also love soups because they are healthy and delicious, and I make them myself. The problem is that those soups that are sold in stores are not really healthy. It's better to cook your own, so you'll be sure of what you're eating.
I understand SeizureAd. Such a pain to make from scratch. It's not always realistic or possible. I'm a big reader of labels. While it may not be as good as homemade, it can still be better than other options. They make the light versions these days. The thing I don't like about canned soup is the sodium but the light version are supposed to have less. So, I don't think it is a bad idea and am sure you can get some nutrition. Do you like salads at all? My grocery sells prepared salads of varying degrees of healthiness that really satisfy me. There is a southwest chicken that I like. It comes with a specific amount of dressing so you don't go over the right amount to get the calories on the label. As grabbing lunch can be unhealthy, I think finding 'healthier' alternatives are a win even if not the absolute best you can do. By the way, one thing that I DO like about soup is I can usually dump in pot to make, make a big batch and then put in a Tupperware to bring and heat up. So, you could make soup on Sunday afternoon, have it for lunch at work on Monday and Tuesday, make another batch Tuesday night of another type of soup and have it Wednesday and Thursday. ?? You could probably freeze it on Sunday as well to use all week? So, this might be easier to work with than other things in terms of preparing yourself ahead of time.
Canned soups are convenient, but they lack nutrients. That's because the veggies in them are usually not the highest quality (soup is traditionally where you use the ingredients that didn't come out so well in the growing process), they can be old before being made into soup and they are always overcooked. Some soups are also very high in sodium. Now, can you overcome this? Maybe a little. There are places that sell better quality premade soups, but they can be expensive. They also don't store for a long time, as they are fresh, so you have to buy them often. One way to beat all this is to make your own soup while you're sleeping with a slow cooker. But there's still the prep work, and that can take time. But otherwise, the form of your food isn't the point, the content of it is. If you're putting balanced meals into the soup you're getting a balanced meal, but few canned soups can do this. It's very hard to shortcut eating if you''re trying for long-term weight loss that stays off, because that requires a permanent change in diet, not just something you're going to do for a period of time. But again, it just depends on what's in the soup -- if it has enough quality nutrients, sure, you can live on soup.