Going out to eat? Have a plan!

Nyantho

Here is a tip that always serves me very well.

When you decide to go out to eat, take a few minutes during the day beforehand and visit the restaurant's website and nutritional data sheet. Decide what you want to eat based on your calorie goals before you ever get hungry and definitely before you walk into the restaurant.

I find that walking into a restaurant knowing exactly what I want to eat based on my goals is WAY better than what the server says about the special, or what looks good, or what I'm in the mood for. Heck, I'm always in the mood for donuts and ice cream and cheeseburgers if you get down to it. I have a plan beforehand and I stick to it. I don't eat by chance or accident or mood or anything else.

Another good aspect of this, is that it stays fresh in your mind just how caloric the fries are, or how much you can save by removing the cheese and "special sauce" from a sandwich. I ate at a chain restaurant last week and where I would have just ordered a chicken wrap thinking I was being healthy, I found out on their website that it was a nearly 1000 calorie meal!

Knowing this ahead of time, I re-worked their menu item by removing the cheese and dressing and replaced it with guacamole to keep it moist and tasting good. Just that little change cut the calories in half and it was still delicious and satisfying - probably more so because I could actually taste the vegetables instead of the dressing.

dbmata

When I go out to eat, I make it worth it, so most places I go don't have nutritional data, let alone a menu on their website. It is a great suggestion though in cases where you can do so.

lisamarie1780

Here is a tip that always serves me very well.

When you decide to go out to eat, take a few minutes during the day beforehand and visit the restaurant's website and nutritional data sheet. Decide what you want to eat based on your calorie goals before you ever get hungry and definitely before you walk into the restaurant.

I find that walking into a restaurant knowing exactly what I want to eat based on my goals is WAY better than what the server says about the special, or what looks good, or what I'm in the mood for. Heck, I'm always in the mood for donuts and ice cream and cheeseburgers if you get down to it. I have a plan beforehand and I stick to it. I don't eat by chance or accident or mood or anything else.

Another good aspect of this, is that it stays fresh in your mind just how caloric the fries are, or how much you can save by removing the cheese and "special sauce" from a sandwich. I ate at a chain restaurant last week and where I would have just ordered a chicken wrap thinking I was being healthy, I found out on their website that it was a nearly 1000 calorie meal!

Knowing this ahead of time, I re-worked their menu item by removing the cheese and dressing and replaced it with guacamole to keep it moist and tasting good. Just that little change cut the calories in half and it was still delicious and satisfying - probably more so because I could actually taste the vegetables instead of the dressing.

I don't eat out that often and when I do, I like to feel free and enjoy it. I eat well most of the time and work hard physically... I don't want to be stressing over something that should be enjoyable...

So... to summarise, I eat what I want when I go out.