Dieting While Working in Fast Food

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joley456
joley456 Posts: 8 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I recently started working at Five Guys, and while I'm happy to have a job, it's thrown a wrench in my diet plans. I only have a half hour break (over an eight hour shift) and the easiest thing for me to do is eat their food. I try to make healthy substitutions (one patty, lettuce wrap instead of bun) but I know it's not healthy. Any tips on how to deal with this?
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Replies

  • eeejer
    eeejer Posts: 339 Member
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    make a lunch at home and bring it?
  • HamsterManV2
    HamsterManV2 Posts: 449 Member
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    Yep you will have to prepare your own meals. And make it heavy enough that once you are done, you won't want to eat their food at all. I.e. in a 1800 calorie day, have a 800 calorie lunch and dinner+lunch= the remaining 1000.

    Also drink lots of water. Chug a bottle of water before eating. And ask yourself if you are actually hungry or is it just appetite (the desire to eat vs the necessity).
  • LazSommer
    LazSommer Posts: 1,851 Member
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    Mmmmm
  • eeejer
    eeejer Posts: 339 Member
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    joley456 wrote: »
    the easiest thing for me to do is eat their food

    losing fat is not always easy.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Pack a lunch.

    I work in an office and only take a half hour lunch. I pack most days. On days when I don't, I tend to go to Five Guys, strangely enough. It can easily fit within my calorie budget though so it's not a problem.

    But seriously, pack a lunch.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
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    While I don't think you *have* to pack a lunch in order to lose weight, I think it can make it much easier. Maybe you could choose certain days of the week where you pack lunch and other days when you eat at work and adjust your other meals as necessary?
  • jessiefrancine
    jessiefrancine Posts: 271 Member
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    1) Consider packing your own prelogged meal at home to bring for lunch.
    2) Look up the calorie content of your Five Guys meal and work it into your day. I did a quick search and the database says a bunless burger is 440 calories - not too crazy, depending on what you are eating the rest of the day.
    3) As a previous poster said, stay super hydrated. Drink a big glass of water before your meal to increase satiety.
    4) Are there lower calorie options available at work? Salads, soups, any kind of vegetable? Consider those instead of a burger.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    jessiefrancine wrote: »
    4) Are there lower calorie options available at work? Salads, soups, any kind of vegetable? Consider those instead of a burger.

    Five Guys has a pretty limited menu: burgers, hot dogs, french fries, peanuts, milkshakes, pop (soda for you uncivilized people :smiley: ) . You can get the burgers bunless (either in a bowl or with a lettuce wrap like she wrote in the OP) and you can add a lot of veggie toppings. But no salad, soup, etc.

  • jessiefrancine
    jessiefrancine Posts: 271 Member
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    So I just took a quick look at the Five Guys nutrition info on their website, and the burger I referenced from the MFP database must be the "little hamburger." Not sure how big that is and whether or not it would be satisfying enough on its own, so I think packing your own healthier meal is probably the way to go. Doesn't have to be complicated. Make a sandwich on whole grain bread or in a pita, add lots of veggies, throw in a yogurt or fresh fruit. Just make sure you log it all to know if you're staying within your calorie allotment.
  • enterdanger
    enterdanger Posts: 2,447 Member
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    They have veggie burgers at my 5 guys. Maybe get that with a lettuce leaf for the bun? I'm gonna have to go in with the pack a lunch people. I'm super busy at work and tend to desk eat....I've been bringing an apple and a quest bar on the days I have no time. It does the trick and quest bars on onsale this week at acme 2 for $4 (at least in the philadelphia region). I just bought like 50 of them.
  • janejellyroll
    janejellyroll Posts: 25,763 Member
    edited April 2016
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    enterdanger wrote: »
    They have veggie burgers at my 5 guys. Maybe get that with a lettuce leaf for the bun? I'm gonna have to go in with the pack a lunch people. I'm super busy at work and tend to desk eat....I've been bringing an apple and a quest bar on the days I have no time. It does the trick and quest bars on onsale this week at acme 2 for $4 (at least in the philadelphia region). I just bought like 50 of them.
    enterdanger wrote: »
    They have veggie burgers at my 5 guys. Maybe get that with a lettuce leaf for the bun? I'm gonna have to go in with the pack a lunch people. I'm super busy at work and tend to desk eat....I've been bringing an apple and a quest bar on the days I have no time. It does the trick and quest bars on onsale this week at acme 2 for $4 (at least in the philadelphia region). I just bought like 50 of them.

    Unless your Five Guys is super-different from mine, the veggie burger isn't an actual patty -- it's just the option to get vegetables on a bun. It's tasty if you like a sandwich made of various burger toppings, but it isn't going to be very filling in a lettuce leaf. It would also be low enough in protein that I would recommend anyone eating it bring along something else for protein -- in which case OP should probably just pack a lunch.
  • joley456
    joley456 Posts: 8 Member
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    enterdanger wrote: »
    They have veggie burgers at my 5 guys. Maybe get that with a lettuce leaf for the bun? I'm gonna have to go in with the pack a lunch people. I'm super busy at work and tend to desk eat....I've been bringing an apple and a quest bar on the days I have no time. It does the trick and quest bars on onsale this week at acme 2 for $4 (at least in the philadelphia region). I just bought like 50 of them.

    The veggie burger isn't actually a burger made of vegetables, it just means you get all of them as a topping, that was the first option I considered but as others have said, it's pretty limited. But I do like the quest bars, I have a box that I got off Amazon.
  • joley456
    joley456 Posts: 8 Member
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    jessiefrancine wrote: »
    1) Consider packing your own prelogged meal at home to bring for lunch.
    2) Look up the calorie content of your Five Guys meal and work it into your day. I did a quick search and the database says a bunless burger is 440 calories - not too crazy, depending on what you are eating the rest of the day.
    3) As a previous poster said, stay super hydrated. Drink a big glass of water before your meal to increase satiety.
    4) Are there lower calorie options available at work? Salads, soups, any kind of vegetable? Consider those instead of a burger.

    The reason I haven't been doing that is because of time, but I figure I'll make something the night before or just take a quest bar or two. Oddly enough, I've never actually gone over my calorie limit or anything else after eating because I can usually only eat half at a time (though I've come close). And as other repliers have said, there's literally no healthy options, I had a customer ask if we had anything that wasn't greasy, meaty, or processed and all I could do was point them to the box of peanuts we give out for free lol.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
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    Don't you have a locker or cubby or someplace where you stick your coat or purse? It seems like you'd be able to take a lunch bag with ice packs. Or, if you drive to work, you could leave it in your car.
  • xXxWhitneyxXx
    xXxWhitneyxXx Posts: 119 Member
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    I would weigh 300-400 pounds if I worked at five guys. LITERALLY love their burgers and fries, could easily live off of them. So my only advice is ... good luck. Pack a lunch most days of the week and allow yourself a day or two of deliciousness ... but ... good luck lol
  • Asher_Ethan
    Asher_Ethan Posts: 2,430 Member
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    You say you don't have time. You can always make your lunches while you watch tv at night. Besides your 8 hour shift what else do you have going on?
  • HealthierRayne
    HealthierRayne Posts: 268 Member
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    This girl is doing a fitness competition and she works at McDonalds... IG page
    You may want to check out her page to get some ideas on how to manage work and weight loss.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,867 Member
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    janejellyroll wrote: »
    While I don't think you *have* to pack a lunch in order to lose weight, I think it can make it much easier. Maybe you could choose certain days of the week where you pack lunch and other days when you eat at work and adjust your other meals as necessary?

    This is what I would do.
  • misskarne
    misskarne Posts: 1,765 Member
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    Only half an hour's lunch in eight hours? Is that even legal?

    The solution is simple: take your own lunch.
  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,996 Member
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    misskarne wrote: »
    Only half an hour's lunch in eight hours? Is that even legal?

    The solution is simple: take your own lunch.

    In the US, breaks given vary by state and can also vary by industry.

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