Tracking food when eating out

calicobonny

One of my major problems with keeping up with my food diary is when I eat out at places that don't have nutritional information listed. Sometimes I can find something like it online and use that information, but a lot of time that doesn't work. How do people keep track of restaurant items?

melissa0001

I use similar items from the database. If all else fails use the quick added calorie option with you best guess to calories

IMYarnCraz33

MFP has some restaurant foods in their database.
If you haven't looked already you may find what you're looking for there.

maemiller

I use calorieking.com and it lists meals/foods from different restaurants. If i cant find something, i use something similar and use the higher caloric amount

swaymyway

Yeah it's a pain, I tend to just find something similar from the database and always assume it's higher than my guess - for example I ate a bacon and cheese burger at Old Orleans on Tuesday so I just searched for one on here and used the highest cal one I could find.

It's impossible to log it accurately so you just have to sort of guess but not cheat yourself and go for the lowest similar option..as lets be honest most food from elsewhere is going to be higher cal than what we make at home.

kellyscomeback

I downloaded a free app called Nutrition Database and it lists the nutrition values of most chain restaurants.

MyaPapaya75

i generally work out double and count anything from a restaurant to be 600-1000 calories..and i get a doggie bag ahead of time and portion off half to eat the next day or give away lol

determined3138

Dottie's Weight Loss Zone is a good resource - http://www.dwlz.com/restaurants.html#C

TheKitsune6

I've stopped going to places that don't list nutritional information anywhere to find or I will only order something like grilled chicken that's pretty common unless I'm prepared to be over calories for the day.

Pynkklady

Prior to using MFP, I would google the restaurant's nutritional information prior to going, so I knew ahead of time what I could order that would fit into my program. If I couldn't find it online, I asked at the restaurant. Sometimes they have print outs available. Otherwise, I tried to pick what seemed to be the healthiest option, then google that and see if I could get the nutritional values from another restaurant. I've been pretty successful at finding most items in the MFP database or via google.

beach_chelle

I have the same exact problem since all the resturants where I live aren't chains. I usually look for similar items in the database and use those, guessing with my best judgement. Sometimes it is tricky and I usually try to over estimate then under estimate.

calicobonny

Thanks for all the tips! I will get as close as I can to an appropriate calorie count. It would be nice if all restaurants had nutritional information. It makes it easier not to eat too much once you see how many calories things have.