Do you have to eat at home to lose weight?

Blondie1984

I agree with you! I Find everywhere I go the food always is over processed, or really heavy

tameko2

If you did, I'd still be fat. I eat out 7 times a week a minimum. But I'm also a great visual estimator of food, for the most part (which I verified by weighing a bunch of stuff at home) and I don't generally need to snack or eat breakfast, so I just have 2 pretty large meals most days, which means I can eat basically anything on a restaurant menu, aside from some of the really egregious calorie offenders (like the 2400 calorie nacho plates and things are out of the question but a 1300 calorie pasta is managable.)

cnelson1974

I agree that its much easier to eat healther from home because you can see exactly how much of what goes into your food. I do eat out occasionally, but I custom order my food. I still use the website nutritional value (I have to start somewhere to log), but make them cook without butter, salt, or whatever. I found the salt content for most major chains is just rediculous even for items on the 'healthy choice' portion of the menu.

rockangel8907

I go out on Sundays, have some drinks and eat crappy but so delicious bar food and still lose weight. Would I lose more if I only ate at home? I'm sure I would but my social life is important and one meal once a week isn't going to screw up all my efforts.

samlosesit

I haven't read through this but what I do when we go out is A. try and look up he menu before so I know what might be the best choice and B. immediately ask for a box and half my meal. Even if I get something very calorie rich I only ate half. Usually I save the other half for the next day. Also if you eat somewhere that doesn't tell you the caloric intake of their meals, email them and ask for it or just let them know.

fatfrost

At restaurants, I will often ask the server to confirm the portion size with the chef so that I am at least accurate on the basics. You will not know exactly how it is prepared, but I would argue that it is less about precision and more about just being vigilant about keeping track. Anyways, good luck. I'm living proof that it can be done. I was really fat (~245) and have gotten to a weight that I haven't seen since puberty (169) today. I've been at this for almost a year--it takes time but it's totally worth it.

bearwith

AGree, the problem with eating out is that they entice you into having much more than you need.

Not worth it - limit yourself to one meal out a month. We in the west eat out too much it is no longer a treat to go out. It is a treat to cook indoors if anything because we never have time.

RoadsterGirlie

"Barcode scanner in your mouth."

That one made me LOL.

I agree - I also saved a ton of $$$ when I started counting calories. While I still eat out occasionally, 90% of my meals are cooked at home. Whoever says eating healthy is expensive is just plain wrong...

stubbysticks

The idea of being scared to eat because of not knowing the calorie count is saddening to me. Yes, it's easier to log food when you can look up the restaurant or the ingredients in the database. But if you're trying to lose more than 5 lbs, then it's just not realistic to think that you can finish losing weight before you have to go to another work lunch or birthday party or baby shower etc etc etc. Just because you're trying to lose weight, that doesn't mean you're not allowed to enjoy food at all until you hit your goal. Life still happens no matter what you're trying to do.

So maybe you do have work lunches several days in a row. You have several options:
- freak out because you can't accurately log every morsel then end up paralyzed with fear of eating anything, very likely being so anxious about the food that you can't focus properly on anything else
- bring your own food that you CAN log more accurately. You might get some weird looks, but if you don't care about that, then do it.
- make the best choices you can based on what you do know about healthier options, eyeball the portions, quickly log your food based on entries in the database that seem close, & move on. It's not a big deal unless you make it one. Do what you can, then spend the rest of your time relaxing or networking or listening to the presenters or whatever. If it bothers you that much then plan for some extra exercise over the next few days to offset. It's not that big a deal.

asizesix

Eating at home is a big plus. When I do go out, I look up the menu before I go so I can find the healthier choices.

This!! I find it super helpful to know what's on the menu beforehand and research the calories if possible.

At least if you see the menu you can go in knowing what you want, or knowing what you DON'T want (ie. if you see the burger you want comes with mayo, bacon, two kinds of cheeses etc.. you will know when you get there to tell the waitress to exclude those ingredients...it'll be the same burger but it might save you 200+ calories!)
If you're sitting there looking at the menu for the first time it's SO much more tempting to order whatever looks the best and not be picky.

GiGiBeans

I order in lunch 3 days a week. I tell them grilled, no oil or butter. Or order a salad with fresh roast turkey and veggies. I have dinner out once or twice a week, same thing grilled meat with veg, unless it's a high calorie splurge day with pizza or enchiladas.

Since I weigh all my food at home I can approximate very well. The more ya do something the easier it gets.

lessertess

It's certainly easier and you have more control at home but it's also possible to eat out and still lose weight. You just have to make good choices. Or make a bad choice and know how to recover and keep moving forward. I eat at home for most meals but I do socialize over a meal with my friends and I frequently have business obligations or have to travel for business. Unless you plan to never eat out again, you'll need to develop the knowledge and will power to be able to maintan your lifestyle. That means going to restaurants, family picnics, weddings, business lunches, church socials, the county fair, birthday parties....whatever you do. You can't hide in your house. Or, I guess you could but then, what's the point of wanting to get in better shape and be healthy?

And, I agree it's certainly best if you can research and plan, sometimes you just can't. Life is full of surprises. I think it's better to have a strategy that you can apply to any situation rather than a plan for every incident.

asizesix

ALSO! ALWAYS ask if you can order a half portion of the meal you want, or if you can get them to give you half and then put the other half in a take-away container for the next day!

Especially pasta-based meals... I went to the Olive Garden the other day with a friend and we ordered the Baked 4 Cheese Ziti to share and we each got a starter salad....it turned out to be the perfect amount for us to eat..when normally if you put that whole pasta dish in front of you, you would eat the whole thing and feel STUFFED and icky.

serenapitala

It's easier at home, but eating out can still be done. If you have a decent calorie deficit built into your goal, then going over your goal can still have major weight loss. Guess the best you can and enter it. Then stick to your goal. If you have a 500 calorie deficit and you are off by a hundred calories, you're still fine. I haven't had any big problems when I eat out a bunch.
Don't stress it. If you're working out and eating right the rest of the time, you'll do great

ldrosophila

I'm afraid unless I cook at home that constantly eating out will sabotage me. I wish I had better control but a menu is like food porn to me. Sigh, but on the plus side my cooking gets better everyday and my bank account loves me and I'm eating triple the veggies I used to eat.