Fast Food

Options
aduff77
aduff77 Posts: 56
in Food and Nutrition
Okay, so I am trying to cut out all fast food but due to my super busy lifestyle (and probably lack of willpower) I sometimes slip and get some on the way home. IF I find myself in line about to order a burger...does anyone know what the best meals are to get at the best places? I find myself just ordering whatever I want bc I'm so discouraged that I'm there in the first place, if i do slip up and eat there I want to know that at least I'm making the healthiest choice possible.

Replies

  • aduff77
    aduff77 Posts: 56
    Options
    Okay, so I am trying to cut out all fast food but due to my super busy lifestyle (and probably lack of willpower) I sometimes slip and get some on the way home. IF I find myself in line about to order a burger...does anyone know what the best meals are to get at the best places? I find myself just ordering whatever I want bc I'm so discouraged that I'm there in the first place, if i do slip up and eat there I want to know that at least I'm making the healthiest choice possible.
  • Shannon023
    Shannon023 Posts: 14,529 Member
    Options
    Go online & see what the nutritional info is for each fast food restaurant. :smile:

    Then avoid those restaurants like the plague. They're poison! :noway: :sick:
  • scheys76
    scheys76 Posts: 92 Member
    Options
    http://www.webmd.com/food-recipes/healthtool-fast-food-choices
  • RedHotRunner
    RedHotRunner Posts: 850 Member
    Options
    Occasionally I get the grilled chicken ceaser salad at Micky D's, with the fat free vinigarette. There's less than 300 calories in it. :drinker:
  • mickie
    mickie Posts: 183
    Options
    I would guess grilled chicken (no mayo), salad (lite dressing), chili, water :laugh:
    I think a regular hamburg has like 220 calories (but who can eat only one)? The temptation is so great in fast food restaurants. Once you're there you'll probably order fries and a shake. The best thing to do is avoid it altogether. Keep snacks in your car (banana, granola bar, multi-grain bar, protein bar, crackers). You gotta watch those carbs though, without adding a protein to them you'll be ravenous in an hour, but at least you made it home without stopping at a fast food restaurant. Then if you have pre-made meals at home you can warm them up and eat! Good luck!:bigsmile:
  • jaglover04
    jaglover04 Posts: 82 Member
    Options
    I really like the chik fil a southwest grilled chicken salad, its so good!! When i go other place i stick to grilled chicken and get a side salad for my side!!
  • adopt4
    adopt4 Posts: 970 Member
    Options
    no burgers, no bread, no breading, no fries, no shake....

    Grilled chicken is fine, don't eat the bun, no mayo, etc.

    My fav is Wendy's Chicken BLT salad, yeah, it's pretty high in calories but the combination of it all just really satisfies. They have a mandarin chicken salad and a southwest salad which are much lower in cals..

    Don't feel guilty about stopping, just eat right when you're there.

    I do agree with the PP to have snacks in your car. Blue Diamond has 100 calorie almond packs that are easy to carry around, and they are filling and satisfy for a long time, fiber bars, etc. I carry an almond pack with me all the time so that if I get hungry somewhere I can eat without tempting myself with fast food.

    My hubby works in a city downtown and says "there's nothing good for you to eat" (yeah right) so I started packing his lunch in a little cooler. Snacks for throughout the day, plus a good lunch but yet it's within calories, and that's made a huge difference in his eating. Also instead of eating all his calories in 1 or 2 meals (he only ate once or twice a day) I give him snacks to take with him so that every few hours he can eat a snack. It's really made him eat less at a time and changed his appetite for the better.
  • dclarsh
    dclarsh Posts: 364
    Options
    I keep a list of all the fast food locations near me, and the healthies items on the menu with their calorie and fat content in my car. It's a little bit of work up front, you have to go to all the websites and look everything up, but it's worth it. You only have to do it once, and you're always prepared for that moment when you're in a total time bind and probably not thinking clearly!
  • thejarviclan
    thejarviclan Posts: 465 Member
    Options
    Do you have Panera, or Jason's Deli? I love their tomato soup and this is what we grab when we're in a rush.

    DO check out the nutrition information before you choose though. Even healthier establishments have bad choices!
  • annhjk
    annhjk Posts: 794 Member
    Options
    Kid's meals are great options too. It gives me the 'fast food fix', but with a lot less calories than most regular meals.
  • Starchaser
    Starchaser Posts: 69
    Options
    I carry cereal bars or protein bars when I'm about, just in case I need to eat and there's nothing decent around.

    When I find myself near a McDonalds I just remember being on their website and finding quarter pound with cheese meal is near 1,000 calories and 48g fat!

    Don't know if you've got them where you are, but Pret A Manger are a great healthy fast food chain.
  • kerrilucko
    kerrilucko Posts: 3,852 Member
    Options
    if you must go with fast food, pull into subway. the chili at wendy's is decent too.
  • aduff77
    aduff77 Posts: 56
    Options
    I would guess grilled chicken (no mayo), salad (lite dressing), chili, water :laugh:
    I think a regular hamburg has like 220 calories (but who can eat only one)? The temptation is so great in fast food restaurants. Once you're there you'll probably order fries and a shake. The best thing to do is avoid it altogether. Keep snacks in your car (banana, granola bar, multi-grain bar, protein bar, crackers). You gotta watch those carbs though, without adding a protein to them you'll be ravenous in an hour, but at least you made it home without stopping at a fast food restaurant. Then if you have pre-made meals at home you can warm them up and eat! Good luck!:bigsmile:


    That's a great idea to keep snacks in my car...not sure why but that thought never occured to me. Will try, Thanks!!:smile:
  • meg0112
    meg0112 Posts: 344
    Options
    Salads with light dressings-chik fil a overall has the lowest calorie options- but fast food IS NOT your only option when you're in a hurry. Carry snacks with you, go to subway or another sandwich/soup/salad place. Or go to a grocery store like Tom Thumb or Kroger, or a Whole Foods, and get something for lunch their. The have soup and salad bars, sandwhiches, pasta salads, ect. Way better choice
  • rlw911
    rlw911 Posts: 475 Member
    Options
    There's a website called Eat This, Not That that has lists with the best items to eat at a lot of the fast food restaurants. Also, I've heard you can buy a pamphlet that has calorie counts for most of the chain restaurants, but I haven't looked for one.
  • PSUgrl921
    PSUgrl921 Posts: 368 Member
    Options
    When I go to fast food restaurants and I'm trying to be good I don't make the healthy choice like I should. What I do is either get a kid's meal of whatever I like (and a diet soda or water) or just the sandwich w/o the fries. Its still not the best but at least I'm eating what I like which makes me feel more satisfied.

    Also, if you have a taco bell around you a soft taco is 200 calories which is a 20 minute workout on a piece of cardio equipment if you go hardcore. :)
  • MelsaEstel
    MelsaEstel Posts: 56 Member
    Options
    I don't know about the rest of them, but McDonalds has a great website for checking nutrition. They have an option (I think it's called create a McMeal) where you choose the items you want to order, then it gives you the nutrition breakdown of each individual option and the meal as a whole. You can then play around and swap items to make it lower cal.

    I agree with others...if you can, stop at Subway. There's no tempting greasy burgers and fries there to throw you off track!

    I also keep snacks in my purse or in my car for those situations, to hold me over until I get home.

    Good Luck!
  • codykitty
    codykitty Posts: 729
    Options
    you can get any Hardees and Carl's Jr sandwiches" low carb style" wrapped in lettuce! cuts calories in half if you get with no mayo and cheese!
  • Moma_Do
    Moma_Do Posts: 108 Member
    Options
    get the sm. chili @ Wendy's it is so yummy and not many calories, also surprisingly big, it filled me up.

Categories