Going out to eat

kelcro40 · January 2013

For those of you who are either just starting to loose, or for those who have been at it. How do you handle going out to eat? My husband wants to go several times a week which makes me feel less in control. At home, I can measure and hop right on to the website and see what's what. I do have an android and can check through there, but how tedious when you are sitting in a restaraunt. I will try to check before we go out but often don't have a lot of notice.

lilpoindexter · January 2013

Some people will tell you you can box 1/2 the meal right away, or make healthy choices or whatever, but the bottom line is that eating out so frequently is probably one of the habits you will have to change to see fat loss.

When I used to eat fast food, I justified it in my head by saying "Hey...I don't eat fast food THAT often..." But if I went one time in a week, it was super easy to go a second or third time, or maybe get two or three breakfast value meals...and that's why I was 50 lbs heavier.

kelcro40 · January 2013

Some people will tell you you can box 1/2 the meal right away, or make healthy choices or whatever, but the bottom line is that eating out so frequently is probably one of the habits you will have to change to see fat loss.

I actually did good the other night. His brother called last minute to go out to eat but I'd spent all day making a copycat recipe of Olive Garden's minestrone soup for dinner, so I ate my soup and salad and just had a bottle of water at the restaraunt. I already put a stop to going out to eat in the mornings. I know I know, not my idea to do all this going out to eat- but with his job he is on the road and used to this. I only recently started coming with him.

I am down 4.8 lbs in 9 days just changing diet and using the "food" tab up there really keeps things in perspective.

demilade · January 2013

We rarely eat out. He had to suffer through my cooking experiments instead. It's just as fast and easy to cook simple healthy meals, and costs less. When we do eat out I have a starter or small entre.

amnsetie · January 2013

Do you go to the same places all the time? If so you can research them all at any time.
If there are better choices of places to go then see if he will take you there instead.
Places where the food is as good as home cooked.

dacotam · January 2013

We eat out about twice a week. I usually look up the menu online to make a healthier choices. I drink a large glass of water right before arriving at the restaurant (this keeps me from eating tortilla chips or bread). I also make sure that I exercise that day and burn 500-600 calories. Good luck!

Hyzaarc · January 2013

My dad and I usually go out one night a week and then one breakfast on a weekend.
I find that drinking a bit and eating a protein bar help cut back my tendency to binge eat or over eat my calories.

However I'm willing to give my self a bit of a wobble on my calorie limit that night, usually by no more than 400.

tsh0ck · January 2013

many places now have low-cal options listed right on the menu. and it's pretty fast to look up on the phone if it isn't on there. the database here is pretty big.

and if you know ahead of time, look it up and figure out a few options.

the other option is to give yourself a free meal. just enjoy yourself -- one meal, one day ... isn't going to destroy what you did the other 6 that week.

sarabeth120 · January 2013

I go out to eat with my boyfriend every Saturday when I see him and I have a few suggestions for you that help me keep within my calorie goals:

First, know where you're going to go before you even leave the house. Once you know where you're going, plan your meal ahead; that way you go into the restaurant knowing EXACTLY what you're going to eat. I've found that when I have a plan it is pretty unlikely that I will waiver from it!

It's easier to plan ahead if it's a chain restaurant though since most of them post their nutrition information on their website. But, if you're not going to a chain restaurant, you can always check their website and see if they at least have a menu on there and you can always ask if they have a nutritional menu (some do, some don't you just have to ask) when you get there, but here are some suggestions if they don't:

1. Pick something that is grilled or blackened (those are two ways to cook that have FAR less calories, but still have a lot of flavor!). Poached and broiled are good too, but I don't think they're as flavorful as the other two.

2. Avoid anything that is fried, smothered or stuffed.

3. If you get a salad, make sure the dressing comes on the side and if you're like me, and have to have a calorie rich dressing like ranch or something, dip the salad pieces into it as opposed to drenching the entire bowl. This will easily save you 50 -100 calories depending on the type of dressing used.

4. Always choose vegetables as your sides (most places will let you substitute sides). So, even if the meal comes with fries you can swap those out for something healthier.

5. If bread comes before the meal, avoid it or better yet, ask them not to bring it. But, if your husband wants bread so badly then have them bring only enough for him, so you won't be tempted!

. This will not work at Red Lobster because the biscuits are just too addicting!

6. Make sure you ask for the lunch portion of a meal; some places give you the dinner portion unless you ask otherwise.

I know most of my tips are probably no brainers for you, but that's kind of the rules I go by when I eat out.

FutureSkinnyMama03 · January 2013

I usually look up the places when we're headed there if my husband is driving. Or, if I know the restaurant has a healthy section, I'll just order from that area sometimes. Example of tonight is that we ate out at Cottonpatch. I ordered their Norwegian Grilled Salmon meal which was a little over 300 calories total (316 I think). I ended up really disliking their veggies though -wayyyy over cooked & nasty. I also added a side salad which is around 111 calories and used very very little dressing. Some restaurants will also list their calories on the menu or give you a range for the healthier section. I know that Chili's gives a range for their healthier meals. I was suprised to see the actual calorie amount on the menu at Cottonpatch. I wish all places would do that! It'd sure make our lives all easier.

kristinlc88 · January 2013

Tonight I went out to eat with my boyfriend, we usually do that every Friday and when he asked where I wanted to go, the first thing I said was "well, I have to be able to track it!"

We ended up going to Red Robin, I asked for the nutritional menu (which was kind of horrifying actually) and chose from that. Later I was trying to figure out how you would figure out adjusted nutritional fact if you took off things like mayo or pickles, etc, and then I found the best app I've ever seen.

Red Robin actually has an iPhone app where can customize any item from their menu and then it gives you the adjusted facts. It even allows you to save these customized meals for later use.

If you you go Red Robin at all, I would highly recommend this app.
So helpful!

juliekaiser1988 · January 2013

Know where you're going in advance. Check out their website. Majority have lighter choices. Choose what you're going to order, log it into MFP, then follow it through. Order exactly what you've committed yourself to. I did it the other night. Knew we were going to Olive Garden. Jumped on their website, picked out the Venetian Apricot Chicken with asparagus and broccoli. Ordered it, packaged half (because I snarfed a bunch of salad that I had pre-chosen, ask for it with dressing on the side!!) and walked out at 350 calories. Badda Bing.

And I had my lunch for the next day ret' to go...

I know what I'm eating at most places well in advance, log it, and stick to it. Eating out isn't nearly as scary as it seems- unless you really aren't that committed to this lifestyle. Then it'll be a disaster.

juliekaiser1988 · January 2013

Tonight I went out to eat with my boyfriend, we usually do that every Friday and when he asked where I wanted to go, the first thing I said was "well, I have to be able to track it!"

We ended up going to Red Robin, I asked for the nutritional menu (which was kind of horrifying actually) and chose from that. Later I was trying to figure out how you would figure out adjusted nutritional fact if you took off things like mayo or pickles, etc, and then I found the best app I've ever seen.

Red Robin actually has an iPhone app where can customize any item from their menu and then it gives you the adjusted facts. It even allows you to save these customized meals for later use.

If you you go Red Robin at all, I would highly recommend this app.
So helpful!

We went to Red Robin tonight, too!! I have the Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad, no dressing (I use salsa instead). It's still high in calories, due to avocado, cheese, and those delicious fried jalapenos- but I was well within my calories. Using salsa instead of dressing saves 350 calories!!

ahallen83 · January 2013

If I eat out I either consider it my free meal for the week, or I stick to the meal that I know I can almost always make work for me, which is a small to medium sized steak dinner. Almost every place (that I go to, at least) has a steak dinner that comes with seasonal vegetables and rice/potato/fries, so I just ask for them to bring me a double order of veggies instead of the starch. It's never made a huge impact on my loss for the week, even though I might retain a bit of water for a day or so because restaurant food is pretty heavy on the salt.

If I'm some place that doesn't have that as an option, I'll probably just decide not to sweat it, use this meal as my free meal instead of what I had planned/scheduled before, and stick to my plan as usual for the rest of the week.

kristinlc88 · January 2013

Tonight I went out to eat with my boyfriend, we usually do that every Friday and when he asked where I wanted to go, the first thing I said was "well, I have to be able to track it!"

We ended up going to Red Robin, I asked for the nutritional menu (which was kind of horrifying actually) and chose from that. Later I was trying to figure out how you would figure out adjusted nutritional fact if you took off things like mayo or pickles, etc, and then I found the best app I've ever seen.

Red Robin actually has an iPhone app where can customize any item from their menu and then it gives you the adjusted facts. It even allows you to save these customized meals for later use.

If you you go Red Robin at all, I would highly recommend this app.
So helpful!

We went to Red Robin tonight, too!! I have the Southwest Grilled Chicken Salad, no dressing (I use salsa instead). It's still high in calories, due to avocado, cheese, and those delicious fried jalapenos- but I was well within my calories. Using salsa instead of dressing saves 350 calories!!

Yep, it's all about switching things out. I did salad instead of fries with balsamic vinegar and probably saved myself about 250 calories.
I sat there for a good 10 minutes going through that giant nutrition menu trying to decide what I could eat that would fit the amount of calories I had left. It was pretty intimidating since it was the first time I've gone out since starting this, but I was pretty proud of myself for taking the time to do it, and I didn't go over my calories!

FutureSkinnyMama03 · January 2013

I will have to remember this for Red Robin! We don't have one around her (insert a very sad face!) but I usually get a meal or 2 from them during the year when we're traveling. I love that place!

kristinlc88 · January 2013

Check out nutritionix.com also. I found this tonight, and so far it seems like it'll be a pretty handy resource.

Going out to eat

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