HELP buffet when on a diet

kanaada

Guys so I'm invited to a buffet lunch this weekends and to be honest I haven been very good diet wise this week and this buffet lunch is not possible for me to avoid

Karb_Kween

Do they have a salad bar?

nowine4me

Sounds dangerous. Stick with Lean meats (chicken, beef, pork) raw fruits and veggies. Not banana pudding with vanilla wafers!

ItsyBitsy246

Enjoy! Just keep an eye on portion sizes and food choices. Make that your meal for the day and just have an evening snack or something light if you want to eat a big lunch.

jemhh

Are we talking a delicious one of a kind buffet or Golden Corral?

Christine_72

We go to a buffet every 3mths or so (lunch), and i eat everything!!! I don't have breakfast, and am usually too full to have dinner that night either. It happens too infrequently that i don't worry about how many calories I'm consuming on that day.
If you're worried, throw in some extra exercise and maybe shave off 100 calories from your calories leading up to the day and a few days afterward. One day of gluttony isn't going to make a huge difference in the bigger picture.

dragon_girl26

My strategy for buffets: start with a big plate of salad first. Once I finish that, I get one plate for hot foods, so I'm inclined to choose only the things I really want instead of gorging on everything. I typically try to avoid the rolls since I'd rather spend the calories on other things.
I make a point to eat slower and enjoy my food so I don't feel tempted to keep up matching plate for plate with everyone else at my table. Finally, one or two items for dessert, depending on what is available.

jemhh

The university I went to had one dining hall and it was all buffet style. 21 buffet meals a week for nearly 4 years means that buffets don't thrill me too much. When I go to one now I load up on salad and then get grilled or roasted meat.

zyxst

Me, I take half of what I really want. I had Chinese buffet for lunch today. Finding out it had a dessert buffet put me over.

icemom011

Take smaller plate if they provide those, choose small portions, this way you can try different thungs. Eat slower, don't try to keep up with others, they might, and possibly will overindulge. You don't have to. Hopefully, there will be others???? who might mind what they are consuming. Just look around, take your time, make best choices and enjoy yourself. If it's something you absolutely want, take a sample even if it's high in calories. There's next meal, where you can cut back. Good luck, have fun.

trigden1991

There are a number of ways to approach this;

-Don't eat many/any calories in the day before you go.
- Exercise more that day
- Eat a sensible amount at the buffet
- Enjoy yourself and don't worry

3 of the above will help you achieve your goal whilst enjoying yourself.

deannaaaaaaaaa

smaller plates if possible is a huge help. small snack (fruit, light yogurt, egg etc) for breakfast & small snack for dinner if necessary. Also continue to save up your calories throughout the week- even an extra 100 cal per day can make a huge difference.

also exercise

bscmcse

Uggg, I hate buffets. While you eat that 1st big plate of salad, look around. You don't see too many thin people at buffets. Maybe that will provide some motivation to eat some lean protein & veggies.

endlessfall16

I love buffets. Last Sunday I went to Hometown with a friend, and as if it wasn't enough my wife and I went again on Monday. )

To me buffet is like free electrical charge outlet. I get to load up alot of calories/energy for the road.

That said, it all depends on how disciplined you are with the next few days, OP. My discipline is such that I gained 3 pounds+ Tuesday morning but I dropped it all this morning.

teetertatertango

I'm not a huge fan of salads, so I tend to go for a variety of cooked vegetables. Squash, collard greens, green beans, pinto beans, etc. Usually the baked chicken is pretty good, or the roast, and sometimes there are non-breaded fish choices or steak. That all goes on one plate. If I have a second smaller plate, it will be fruits and my dessert. I like having a roll for my dessert. If there is something I really want to have, I will have it. I just don't have everything I could possibly like every time.

Chinese buffets I load up on as many veggies as they have (some buffets are MUCH better than others in this regard), a little sushi, non-breaded meats & fish. Possibly a small serving of rice or noodles. And I always make room for the crab rangoon or donuts, if they look good that day.

As long as I stick to 1.5 plates and mostly reasonable stuff, it seems to work out OK. I would plan to hit maintenance calories, going for a deficit on a buffet day would not be my preference.

PennWalker

dragon_girl26 wrote: »

My strategy for buffets: start with a big plate of salad first. Once I finish that, I get one plate for hot foods, so I'm inclined to choose only the things I really want instead of gorging on everything. I typically try to avoid the rolls since I'd rather spend the calories on other things.
I make a point to eat slower and enjoy my food so I don't feel tempted to keep up matching plate for plate with everyone else at my table. Finally, one or two items for dessert, depending on what is available.

That's a really good idea to eat a plate full of salad first. I will remember that the next time I eat at a buffet.

DanerTee

I like the salad plate as a filler strategy. That way you are ravenous heading to the buffet and make all kinds of poor choices!