I messed up today eating a salad at Dibella's

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casi_ann
casi_ann Posts: 423 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
I went to dibella's today and got a Cesar salad with grilled chicken. I didn't use the cesar salad and instead used fat free Italian dressing. I looked up the salad at the Dibella's site and it said 610 calories. I find that hard to believe because it was a very small salad, didn't have much stuff in it other than a little cheese (less than 1/4 cup) and a little bacon (less than one piece) . There was about 3 to 4 oz of chicken at the most and it didn't taste like it was cooked in a fattening way. That is so confusing. I thought I made good choices and may have messed up for a first time since I started Myfitnesspal about 3 weeks ago.

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  • srp2011
    srp2011 Posts: 1,829 Member
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    Try entering all of the ingredients individually. maybe the website was including the dressing.
  • blu_meanie_ca
    blu_meanie_ca Posts: 352 Member
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    a) fat free does not equal calorie free
    b) a serving of chicken breast is 3oz, and dressing is 1 oz... Most likely you ate 3x the amount of each
    c) bacon is high in cals

    600 calories isn't a big deal. 6000 yes, 600 no. Your body won't even skip a beat.
  • casi_ann
    casi_ann Posts: 423 Member
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    I'm going to go back and try to be honest with myself and add it up individually. I just can't believe it would be 600 calories. That is as much as a sandwich. It just shows these restaurants don't care about people trying to eat healthy.
  • MizTerry
    MizTerry Posts: 3,763 Member
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    a) fat free does not equal calorie free
    b) a serving of chicken breast is 3oz, and dressing is 1 oz... Most likely you ate 3x the amount of each
    c) bacon is high in cals

    600 calories isn't a big deal. 6000 yes, 600 no. Your body won't even skip a beat.

    Wow! Can I totally "like" your post?
  • casi_ann
    casi_ann Posts: 423 Member
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    No, I din't eat 3 x that amount. I was very careful when i put it in my salad. I ate less than they gave me of the dressing. And, there was very little chicken. It was almost all lettuce. I'm guessing the most fattening part was the cheese which was about 1/4 cup.
  • PennStateChick
    PennStateChick Posts: 327 Member
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    Take this as a lesson learned: Salads aren't always the best choice on the menu. There are a lot of salads at popular restaurants for over 1000 calories.
  • kayla554
    kayla554 Posts: 99 Member
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    Then go to the gym and burn some of those calories...? On a treadmill a 4.0 (speed) no incline you can burn 600 calories in 55 minutes. Also a variety of things you can do to burn some of the calories :) If you don't feel like working out then don't worry, there is always tomorrow so don't let it bother you too much. And yea restaurant food always has alot of calories, that's why it tastes so good.
  • casi_ann
    casi_ann Posts: 423 Member
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    You are all right. I'll take it as a lesson learned not to eat at any restruant unless i know exactly how many calories. And, I should know not to trust that restaurant. They are always high in calories. I just thought a salad with fat free dressing was a good choice. Those bas&^@ds
  • xxnellie146xx
    xxnellie146xx Posts: 996 Member
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    Take this as a lesson learned: Salads aren't always the best choice on the menu. There are a lot of salads at popular restaurants for over 1000 calories.

    ^^ This.

    If you have the app on your phone, try checking out different foods before placing your order. Sometimes you will be surprised.
  • devrinator
    devrinator Posts: 79 Member
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    You need to eat. Just remember it takes 3500 calories to gain a pound and that much to lose one. If you ate a 600 calorie salad, chances are you assumed it had calories to start. Maybe you were thinking 200 or so? If that's the case, than the worst case scenario is that you over-ate 400 calories today. Did you meet your calorie goal for the day or did you go over? If you went over, it's only a few hundred calories in ONE day, which means you'll probably have a decent deficit at the end of the week. If you were aiming for a 2 lb weight loss, than you'll probably still lose just under 2 lbs. If you're aiming for a slower weight loss, this will totally not affect you too highly.

    A few higher calorie days that are less than what you're used to eating still equates to success. It's about average and the long term.
  • 30ismyyear
    30ismyyear Posts: 145 Member
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    Don't let this one thing ruin your mood. Try looking at the menu/nutrients before you go next time? And if you happen to go over calories today....it's just one day! You can try better tomorrow or do exercise to balance it out.
  • PennStateChick
    PennStateChick Posts: 327 Member
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    Don't let it scare you away from all restaurants. Just do a little research first.
  • cschumer22
    cschumer22 Posts: 2
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    They are probably including the Caesar dressing as part of the total of 650 calories. The last page of their nutrition information says 2 Tbsp of Caesar dressing is 150 calories. If you subtract that out, you could then add back the appropriate amount for the dressing that you used instead.
  • devrinator
    devrinator Posts: 79 Member
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    Also, focus on weekly caloric averages vs. daily consumption. Keep aiming for your daily goal and you'll have some days that are under and some days above, but it will average out, and you'll get used to have smaller meals of high calorie foods.
  • DispatcherLangmaid
    DispatcherLangmaid Posts: 403
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    I'm going to go back and try to be honest with myself and add it up individually. I just can't believe it would be 600 calories. That is as much as a sandwich. It just shows these restaurants don't care about people trying to eat healthy.

    I had to do that today with my sandwich and it was much lower. My husband thinks the first one I logged had sauce added which the one I ate didn't. Don't beat up self up either way just push yourself harder tomorrow because it is a new day!
  • casi_ann
    casi_ann Posts: 423 Member
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    Thanks everyone. You are all so right, I do have to look at it as how much more i ate than i thought i ate instead of the entire number. I ate about 400 calories too much. I did think i was eating about 200 calories. That doesn't sound quite as bad. Plus, this is a learning process to change the way i take care of myself the rest of my life. Next time i'll prepare more, maybe check into getting the app on my phone (if my husband can help me) and remember 3500 calories equals one pound, I didn't go that much over when I look at it that way. I feel so much better. :)
  • devrinator
    devrinator Posts: 79 Member
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    You're doing well! Since you are aware and concerned is a sign that you're in this for the finish line.

    I did it with fried chicken. I feel silly for not realizing fried chicken has THAT many calories, but, well it does. I lost weight recently (and gained it back after not logging, so that's why I'm here), and in that first time, I think I actually cried when my husband decided to cook dinner one day--a big giant pan of cheeeeesy mac and cheese. The lesson I learned, looking back, is that there will be days when we can't help but eat a few more calories than we plan to eat. It just happens, but I won't let it spoil the fact that I'm on the right path. In fact, I just kind of enjoy it now!!
  • hdlb
    hdlb Posts: 333 Member
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    They probably included the ceasar dressing in their calorie count online, since it was meant to be with the salad. And you don't know how the chicken was cooked. Yes, it was grilled, but odds are there are oils added to the grill so it doesn't stick, that will up the calories too.
  • vixgs
    vixgs Posts: 1
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    I agree that the calorie/nutrition for this salad is wrong. I've been trying to eat low carb, and there's no way this has 47g of carbs. I passed on the croutons, so that has to help, but even the calorie content seems extreme. Most of my eating experience was straight romaine...

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