Oh NO!

BoxerBrawler
BoxerBrawler Posts: 2,032 Member
edited November 10 in Health and Weight Loss
Going out for dinner with my dad tonight and he wants to go to the dreaded Olive Garden where everything on their menu is over 700 calories! I am good at asking for substitutions e.g., no dressing on my salad so I can get vinegar on the side, double the veggie in place of the starch, lean meat not covered with cheese, etc. But out of all the places we could go to that place is hard when it comes to getting the healthiest options available! I'm running a deficit right now, worked out and already had lunch so I have the room in my day, but still... ugh!!!!!
«1

Replies

  • clambert1273
    clambert1273 Posts: 840 Member
    why worry about it... go out, eat and have a nice time :)
  • Sinistrous
    Sinistrous Posts: 5,589 Member
    You're allowed to take a day for yourself, you know. Just maintain.
  • abatonfan
    abatonfan Posts: 1,120 Member
    Olive garden has a nice under 600 Calorie menu. I personally like the lasagna primavera with grilled chicken (470 Calories) with the minestrone soup (110 calories per bowl).
  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
    Its OK to go over your calories 1 day and guess what? You will still lose weight...

    I went to buffalo wild wings one week and pigged out (15 wings and fries) come weigh in day, I still lost. Not as much as normal, but a loss is a loss. Good luck and enjoy
  • 52cardpickup
    52cardpickup Posts: 379 Member
    cushman5279 wrote: »
    Going out for dinner with my dad tonight and he wants to go to the dreaded Olive Garden where everything on their menu is over 700 calories! I am good at asking for substitutions e.g., no dressing on my salad so I can get vinegar on the side, double the veggie in place of the starch, lean meat not covered with cheese, etc. But out of all the places we could go to that place is hard when it comes to getting the healthiest options available! I'm running a deficit right now, worked out and already had lunch so I have the room in my day, but still... ugh!!!!!

    ... I don't understand the problem. If you have room in your day, what's the issue?
  • LAWoman72
    LAWoman72 Posts: 2,846 Member
    ^ Yup...just saw a commercial where they said they have 550 and under dishes.
  • girlviernes
    girlviernes Posts: 2,402 Member
    LOL olive garden? Man, one of my first meals out was Cheesecake Factory. You can do it!
  • BoxerBrawler
    BoxerBrawler Posts: 2,032 Member
    Thanks everyone. I know I can do it and I know I can give myself a break and enjoy, eat what I want and still lose or maintain. It's just that I've been participating in a fitness challenge and I've been doing so good I don't want to derail myself. Although, honestly sometimes when I eat more I lose more.
  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
    cushman5279 wrote: »
    Thanks everyone. I know I can do it and I know I can give myself a break and enjoy, eat what I want and still lose or maintain. It's just that I've been participating in a fitness challenge and I've been doing so good I don't want to derail myself. Although, honestly sometimes when I eat more I lose more.

    I've found that too, sometimes I lose when I'm sure I've gained
  • neveragain84
    neveragain84 Posts: 534 Member
    Every day won't always look pretty. There are some days I'm over in calories, but this isn't a race... it's a lifestyle change. Just enjoy being together and do better tomorrow.
  • astrose00
    astrose00 Posts: 754 Member
    girlviernes wrote: »
    LOL olive garden? Man, one of my first meals out was Cheesecake Factory. You can do it!

    Me too! Talk about stress!!!
  • astrose00
    astrose00 Posts: 754 Member
    I think they have non pasta dishes, like grilled chicken breast and a veggie. I had that before. It wasn't good, but I'm sure it was low cal, lol. That pasta dish someone mentioned with the chicken for 470 calories sounds great.
  • MinnieInMaine
    MinnieInMaine Posts: 6,400 Member
    Just remember that if you stay in your calories (or don't go over very much) but see a jump in your weight, it's probably from the sodium. Restaurant food is loaded with it! Drink lots of water with your meal and a little extra for the next few days.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    You know it's also okay to order something and not clean your plate, right? If your meal is 1000 calories and you have 500 in your day, just eat half of it! Take the rest home, or share it with someone. What's the big deal?

  • SueInAz
    SueInAz Posts: 6,592 Member
    Olive Garden has some lower calorie choices as others have mentioned. If you're worried, eat half of the meal and take the rest home for another day. My mom always asks for a box when the food is served and she boxes half up before she even starts eating.
  • adge1475
    adge1475 Posts: 77 Member
    I go there pretty often, actually (seriously, once a week, it's my sister-in-law's favorite place), and I usually get the grilled chicken with a side of asparagus. No harm, no foul, move on.
  • meltedsno
    meltedsno Posts: 208 Member
    http://media.olivegarden.com/en_us/pdf/olive_garden_nutrition.pdf

    The above link is the nutritional value of everything served at olive garden. If you do your homework before you go, you will find a nice variety of things that are lower in calories. Don't know where you got the "everything is over 700 calories" mentality, but you are incorrect.

    I ALWAYS check out nutritional values at restaurants before going out to eat and I know ahead of time what I am going to have. If the restaurant doesn't have anything posted online, I don't go there. I find somewhere that I can go and enjoy myself without feeling guilty for "splurging".

  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    meltedsno wrote: »
    I ALWAYS check out nutritional values at restaurants before going out to eat and I know ahead of time what I am going to have. If the restaurant doesn't have anything posted online, I don't go there.

    If I followed that philosophy, I'd never go to another restaurant in my life, because there are basically no restaurants where I live that post up nutritional information. (Heck, even finding a restaurant that has a website is pretty rare.)

    Just get good at guesstimating.
  • Robbnva
    Robbnva Posts: 590 Member
    edited January 2015
    segacs wrote: »
    You know it's also okay to order something and not clean your plate, right? If your meal is 1000 calories and you have 500 in your day, just eat half of it! Take the rest home, or share it with someone. What's the big deal?

    Yep, no clean plate club when you go out.
  • HeySwoleSister
    HeySwoleSister Posts: 1,938 Member
    When I last went to Olive Garden, their lowest calorie "lite" entree was 600 calories, which is WAY more than I spend on a meal, especially chain restaurant meals. (Local chef-driven eatery? I eat what I want, no regrets) I just got the regular lasagne and only ate half. It was OK. WAY too salty, though. Blergh.
  • Saphira291
    Saphira291 Posts: 54 Member
    I actually just went to Olive Garden last night for the first time cause some friends invited us out haha.

    They had a section of the menu that was like under 550 calories or something like that. It's actually got a decent amount of options on it. Personally I just went ahead and shared the tour of Italy with my husband and didn't worry too much about it. I'm just putting in some extra exercise and better eating today.

    I say just go enjoy yourself
  • Arliah
    Arliah Posts: 266 Member
    Seriously, don't sweat it ... enjoy the time with your dad instead!
  • GiveMeCoffee
    GiveMeCoffee Posts: 3,556 Member
    You have room in your day as you've already stated, so it's not an issue at all. You're having dinner with your Dad, enjoy that time with him.
  • farmmjb
    farmmjb Posts: 3 Member
    My daughter and I are going over the weekend. I just did a Google search of Olive Garden's Healthy choices menu and found three options under 500 calories. I'm planning ahead.
  • HerbertNenenger
    HerbertNenenger Posts: 453 Member
    surely they have at least a soup that's not too bad. Good luck !
  • GiveMeCoffee
    GiveMeCoffee Posts: 3,556 Member
    HerbertNenenger wrote: »
    surely they have at least a soup that's not too bad. Good luck !

    Cause just soup out sounds like a fun dinner with Dad....
  • lishie_rebooted
    lishie_rebooted Posts: 2,973 Member
    adge1475 wrote: »
    I go there pretty often, actually (seriously, once a week, it's my sister-in-law's favorite place), and I usually get the grilled chicken with a side of asparagus. No harm, no foul, move on.


    Actually there was fowl!
    *ba-dum-ching!*

    Sorry, I had to!

    meltedsno wrote: »

    I ALWAYS check out nutritional values at restaurants before going out to eat and I know ahead of time what I am going to have. If the restaurant doesn't have anything posted online, I don't go there. I find somewhere that I can go and enjoy myself without feeling guilty for "splurging".

    That's depressing. It's pretty much only chains that post nutritional info online and if I was limited to the likes of Applebees & 99 for the rest of my life, I'd be a hermit.

  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    edited January 2015
    700 sounds pretty reasonable for a dinner to me.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    603reader wrote: »
    That's depressing. It's pretty much only chains that post nutritional info online and if I was limited to the likes of Applebees & 99 for the rest of my life, I'd be a hermit.

    Agreed. Though we don't have those here and our local chains don't tend to post nutritional info either. Pretty much the only places that do are the American chains like McDonald's or KFC, which I haven't eaten in at least a decade and would be more than happy to never eat at again.

    I think legislation is stricter in the USA and many states require restaurants to publish this info. But in the rest of the world, they trust our ability to look at a plate of food and not eat too much of it. (Also, portion sizes outside the US are much smaller in general.)
  • TimothyFish
    TimothyFish Posts: 4,925 Member
    If it really bothers you, skip a meal the next day and suddenly, that 700 calories is equivalent to 350.
This discussion has been closed.

Categories