Is anyone else terrified of restaurants?

laursey

Through this process I've really gotten a handle on my eating. I'm no longer baking a batch of cookies because I just polished off a pan of brownies.
The one thing I can't wrap my head around is eating out. The salt, the fat, the sugar, the trans fat. I feel totally out of control.
I'm going away for 12 days to visit family for a wedding, and I've just been informed that 10 out of the 12 evenings will be spent eating out, even though we have full access to a kitchen. Everything is planned, and I don't even have control of where we will eat. I'm really dreading it.
I'm just about to transition to maintenance calories and am nervous about that. I don't need this eating out to derail me. I'm going to up my exercise. Any advice?


Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter

Pebble321

Don't panic, eating out is always going to happen sometimes, so learning how to stay healthy while eating out is another skill to add to the list!
I suggest that if you know where are you are going to eat ahead of time you can have a look online to see if they have posted a menu. I've never seen calorie counts on a menu in Australia, but it sounds as though it is more common in the US, so that might be handy.
Usually I try to order something that is as "plain" as possible, so I have a better idea of what is in the dish. So, I wil order a pork cutlet or grilled fish, or chicken breast (even if it is stuffed with something) or a steak, rather than a pasta dish or casserole style.
Ask for sauce on the side.
Order salad with no dressing or steamed veges as a side dish.
But mostly, don't panic, enjoy eating out. If you go over calories a little for a week or so, when you know that you have all the tools to get back on track when you are home again.
Oh, and one more bit of advice - nothing is more depressing at a restaurant table than someone complaining about how unhealthy the food is! Just choose as wisely as you can, keep and eye on portions and accept that some things are beyond your control!

laursey

Good advice. I'll try to keep my thoughts to myself.
I'm going to England. Not sure if they post their nutrition details or not. But I will definitely check that out.


Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter

Jorra

The best guide I have ever found to eating out is Eat This, Not That. They have loads of articles about making smart choices when eating out. They also have the best choices for many national restaurant chains if you know where you're going already. Also check out the websites of the places you're going to plan ahead!

http://eatthis.womenshealthmag.com/home

Thexplodingirl

When I can't prepare everything I put into my body I get downright b!tchy because I'm so stressed out. I've eaten out 3 times since May 30th which was the first time since I started my new lifestyle in January. Here's how I deal:
Get easy stuff you can add the individual items if the restaurant doesn't have nutrition information.
Ask for your veggies steamed, or better yet no oil/butter used on the meal entirely.
Stick to lean meats/fish and veggies only
Ask for any dressing or condiments on the side.
Worse comes to worse, calculate your maintenance calories and stick to that, then start over the next day.
I've found it's easiest for me to get egg beaters when eating out. I can get a lot and people don't think of me as dieting, cause I'm eating about the same quantity as everyone else.
I've also in the past gotten kids or senior meals at restaurants, the portion size is is more suitable to me.
Another person on here gave me the advice to ask them to bring a box when the meal comes, and put half of the meal in the box before you start eating, that will help you keep your portions normal.

Good Luck, keep in shape!

corieueber

rubybelle said most of my info - if l know l'm going out l try to look up the restaurant online and often they have a menu so l can have time to think about what l want to order before getting there and my trainers always suggest to;

simple piece of 'meat/fish/chicken' grilled if possible,
heaps of salad with a vinagrette style dressing (on the side is great so you control how much is on it,
vegies if they can do them without drowning in butter etc
for potatoes/rice/pasta just a small small small serve (half size of your palm is my personal guide)
heaps of water
whenever you have time get out for a walk

dont forget to enjoy being with your family and have a great time at the wedding

FruitLoop05317

Through this process I've really gotten a handle on my eating. I'm no longer baking a batch of cookies because I just polished off a pan of brownies.
The one thing I can't wrap my head around is eating out. The salt, the fat, the sugar, the trans fat. I feel totally out of control.
I'm going away for 12 days to visit family for a wedding, and I've just been informed that 10 out of the 12 evenings will be spent eating out, even though we have full access to a kitchen. Everything is planned, and I don't even have control of where we will eat. I'm really dreading it.
I'm just about to transition to maintenance calories and am nervous about that. I don't need this eating out to derail me. I'm going to up my exercise. Any advice?


try to avoid alcohol at all costs and just drink water to try to keep the sodium washed out of your system, and just make your best judgement with your foods and you will be ok.....and exercise as much as u can!! good luck and congrats on ur hard work!!!
Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter

timanda2

I totally feel your pain...I'm headed home for two weeks for a visit....unfortunately a lot of activities are planned around food...

emmacomeau

I have worked at many restaurants and it is common and totally fine for you to ask questions. Like ie Is that cooked in butter? (my restaurant would cook items in white wine if you didn't want butter) Can you grill it instead of fry it? Can you bring me a to-go box with my plate (then put half the plate away before starting to eat)

Try to eat balanced meals with normal portions and you should be fine

laursey

Thanks so much for all of the great ideas. My anxiety level is dropping. It's so great to have like-minded people to bounce my fears off and to receive ideas from.

Lleldiranne

One of the biggest things is going to be portion control. It might help that you'll be in England; I don't think they are as in love with huge portions at restaurants as we Americans are! But my strategy at a restaurant is to drink plenty of water and only eat 1/2 the food. I generally take the other half home to eat later, but as you will be eating out daily this may not work (although some of it could potentially be a reasonable lunch the next day). Don't feel bad if sometimes part of your meal ends up thrown away. Better to "go to waste" than to go to your waist!

Avoid fried stuff - some English food is very deep fried! Salad is a good option, request dressing on the side and you can control how much of it you get. Clear broth soups are good for filling up with fewer calories, cream soups tend to have more. And if it's an option, order veggies instead of fries ("chips").

Pebble321

Thanks so much for all of the great ideas. My anxiety level is dropping. It's so great to have like-minded people to bounce my fears off and to receive ideas from.

Great, don't ruin a great trip by panicking about food!

nomsquared

I know exactly what you mean!

But you've been given a heads up which is good. A lot of restaurants will have their menus up online, so study them and plan what you're going to eat in advance! If necessary, call the restaurant to get some clarifications on items on the menu (what kind of sauces, portion size, etc)

corieueber

i don't think l ate out anywhere for a good month when l started my new healthy lifestyle - and it wasn't until talking to my trainer and told me one of our local places had a staff member who was also a gym member and a keen mfp user and she had listed a lot of their items into the food on here so l could start eating out knowing what the calories etc were and now l'm learning what to order and enjoying going out occasionally

stevemcknight

I'm a musician who tours a lot. Believe me, I spend countless nights at restaurants/fast food/diners/bars and have to eat there, because that's just where the band stopped. You often have no control over where you eat, but always have control over what you eat! Here's some tips I've learned over the years.

You never have to order off the menu. The menu is just suggestions. Decide what you want and just order it. They'll figure out how to charge you later, but you can tell them up to the single ingredient what you want in a salad for example. It feels weird at first, but the more you get used to it - you're paying them to prepare your food how you want it! Ask for it that way!

You can always throw parts of your meal away. Eat the parts you want, toss the rest.

Fast food options:
McDonalds/Wendys/BK/burger joints. - the worst part really is the exttras. Skip the fries and BREAD on the burgers. The meat and chicken is actually not too bad. I'll regularly have several dollar burgers from the cheap menu, no bread and just a knife and fork. It tastes good and your skipping the junk empty calories and still getting some protein and fat.

(as a side note - fat is good and will neither kill you, nor make you fat. - the only fat to avoid is transfat and even that is getting harder to find as companies slowly eliminate it.)

I'm kind of a pain in the butt to eat with because I'll always ask tons of questions. I want to know what the food is made in, what sauce is put on it, what the ingredients are - etc. Ask questions! It won't hurt and maybe will even educate your family and friends a bit to help them take care of themselves

The biggest thing is - make the right choice 90% of the time, and don't kill yourself for the other 10%. It won't set your progress back on vacation. You've done great work and will continue to do it when you get back, don't worry too much - the extra cortisol will do more harm than the couple crappy food choices you'll make while abroad!

Have fun and best of luck!

Rowann

Good advice. I'll try to keep my thoughts to myself.
I'm going to England. Not sure if they post their nutrition details or not. But I will definitely check that out.


Created by MyFitnessPal.com - Free Calorie Counter

I hail from England, and over the last couple of years ate out at least three or four times a week. I actually found it so much easier to keep control when somebody else was cooking for me than when I cooked at home (different story now, but that's because I moved to NZ and can't afford to eat out as often... ).

Just be sensible; go for grilled meat, salads (dressing on side), jacket potatoes, steamed veg etc. If you have steak ask them not to finish it with butter... you probably won't notice the difference in flavour anyway (I never did).

As has been said elsewhere, if the exact meal you want isn't on the menu talk to the staff. Quite often they can make something up for you with very little fuss.

If you're going to any chain restaurants they're often fairly good about putting nutritional info on their websites. If they're more boutique or independent restaurants then you may need to work a little harder at working out what contains what, but if you try to keep it simple there is enough on the mfp database to give you at least a rough idea of what you're eating.

Lastly, you've worked hard to get to maintenance... just enjoy it, and know that even if you do end up putting back a little of what you've lost, you know how to shift it again. Have fun...

sschiano

this is an interesting piece of advice on this topic that i came across through cosmo that has really helped me out.

sometimes ordering the plainest and healthiest dish on the menu is still seriously taking you off track because of the portion sizes. especially is you're with people its easier to get distracted and its harder to miss when you're full, and you are more likely to eat everything thats on your plate, so ask the waiter to doggie bag half before it even reaches the table.

Namaste1983

All of this advice is great. One thing i do when I go out is i make sure i order the leanest, freshest and most palate pleasing dish i can. I only drink water, add lemon and if i split dessert i feel satisfied. I am a huge fan on taking a walk after dinner or in my case I walk to the restaurant and then back. If im eating with family i go play tag with them in the yard after so i can burn some calories and get my heart rate up. Every little bit counts. Good luck. I'm sure you will do great

Pebble321

I've heard a number of people suggest the "doggie bag half of it before you eat" idea.
Do restaurants get funny about this, or do they just accept it?
Here in Australia there are a number of places that won't let you take stuff home because of concerns that it won't be stored/reheated correctly and could make you ill.
Has anyone done this outside of the US?