Eating out tonight

hlr1987
hlr1987 Posts: 151 Member
edited February 2020 in Health and Weight Loss
OK so- going out for dinner tonight. Do I:
A) eat what I really want to off the menu, which puts me about 200 calories over for the day (but still under maintenance)
B ) order what I really want to but aim to eat about 2/3 of it to roughly stay in budget
C) order something within budget (and still good) but not what I really want to eat?

Replies

  • cdudley628
    cdudley628 Posts: 547 Member
    I would go for A personally. If I'm under maintenance then I have no problem splurging a little bit. I know my weight loss may be a little slower, but that's okay for my goals.
  • serindipte
    serindipte Posts: 1,557 Member
    It's A for me! I also manage my calories as a weekly average, so basically "bank" my calories for those higher days.
  • KevinWH87
    KevinWH87 Posts: 74 Member
    I agree with everyone else here. If it bothers you that you're going over - and I understand, I can get OCD like that at times - you could offset that with 200 calories-worth of exercise, or just go 200 under tomorrow.
  • kenyonhaff
    kenyonhaff Posts: 1,377 Member
    Well, honestly I've done all of these. A lot depends on the situation at hand.

    B would be my choice -- IF that remaining 1/3 can be lunch tomorrow!
  • shaf238
    shaf238 Posts: 4,021 Member
    A all the way for the reason already stated.
  • hlr1987
    hlr1987 Posts: 151 Member
    Thank you :smile:
    A it is!
  • DancingMoosie
    DancingMoosie Posts: 8,619 Member
    Go with A and do an extra workout to burn 200 cals?
  • JennJ323
    JennJ323 Posts: 646 Member
    A
  • asellitti6523
    asellitti6523 Posts: 37 Member
    Option A would be my choice. C would not even be a consideration. If I don't get something I really want I'm likely to cave into cravings for something else and will end up eating another snack that in total with the meal would put me over option A. B could work but if it's not going to fill you up and you are going to snack, going with option A is better.
  • Chef_Barbell
    Chef_Barbell Posts: 6,644 Member
    Always A for me otherwise I would stay home and cook lol 🤷🏼‍♀️
  • Katmary71
    Katmary71 Posts: 7,031 Member
    Chef_Barbell wrote: »
    Always A for me otherwise I would stay home and cook lol 🤷🏼‍♀️

    This is how I feel too. If I'm just going to order a chicken breast and broccoli I likely make it better at home so there's no reason to go out. I'm not going to order the fattiest thing on the menu but would go with something I don't normally get to have if I don't go there often.

  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 34,069 Member
    In a way, I'd think of it as a question about how you want to live for the rest of your life, in order to maintain a healthy weight: Practice that, now.

    Personally, I do all 3 of those, at different times.

    A, fairly frequently (especially if only 200), including times when for me it's way more than 200, and even well over maintenance at times - though I'm actually in maintenance now. If it's really special food, I'm eating it.

    B, sometimes, especially if the food makes for yummy leftovers for tomorrow, or would be ultra-high-cal when I've been eating out kind of often.

    C, if I'm mostly going out for the social aspect of the experience, and it's at a restaurant where there's nothing that really fires me up.

    I do find that my tastes don't incline as much to the ultra-heavy choices every time, as they might once have done, so something more in the C realm happens kind of automatically. YMMV.
  • lgfrie
    lgfrie Posts: 1,449 Member
    Most often my choice is A plus additional exercise to cover the calorie difference.

    If for some reason I can't do the extra exercise, then I still eat what I want.

    A diet is a long term thing; you're not gonna be perfect everyday. You're more likely to stay compliant over a longer period of time if you loosen the reins once in a while so you can have what you really want ... once in a while.
  • noelkro80
    noelkro80 Posts: 248 Member
    I’d do option “A” every time & just make sure that I banked calories over the course of the week to use or do some extra exercise to credit me them extra calories that I will be consuming
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    For me personally, A...or B if it was a large portion and I could take it for lunch later but most of our favorite restaurants are finer dining with reasonable portions so usually A.

    I don't see any point at all in going out to eat and not ordering what I really want...that said, we don't eat out all that often...so when we do, I get what I'm really wanting.
  • Jthanmyfitnesspal
    Jthanmyfitnesspal Posts: 3,522 Member
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  • eryn0x
    eryn0x Posts: 138 Member
    edited February 2020
    All good comments. The only addition I have is to let your hunger guide you. Agree, 200 calories over isn't a biggy, and at 1/3, 600-800 calories isn't a colossal meal dining out. However, also let your hunger guide you. If you find you are full, pack the rest. Or leave it. Over-eating is just as wasteful as leaving it on your plate anyways.

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