North Carolina (southern food as a special challenge)

I find the opposite...Not sure where you are in NC. I live in Charlotte. Though in other parts of the country there are more vegetarian/vegan options/restaurants. Though Boone and Asheville are VERY veggie friendly.

Yes, the south likes to put a ton of butter in everything!

I go out and find lots of good food (mainly at Mexican restaurants though...or Italian...).

Now I'm hungry! Ha!

I'm in North Carolina too—and I agree, the food options are AMAZING (...ly awful for you...I'm looking at you, chicken and waffles... :noway: ). And, like you, I am a transplant here (from the Midwest). I definitely agree with eating at home as much as possible—I find that if eating out is a treat, then I don't feel as bad about splurging once in a long while. (Trader Joe's does make eating at home a whole lot easier!) For other, less avoidable times, I try to keep healthy out-to-eat options in my head. I have figured out a few restaurants that are nearby that have some healthier options, so that when someone says "Where should we go?" I have a few answers ready. And most towns in the south (including yours...I'm guessing W-S?) have some options. It also helps to know what you're going to order before you walk in the door—this often prevents me from making impulsive decisions. Oh, and skip the sweet tea!! Good luck!!

I've lived in Kentucky all of my life. I've had to learn how to eat all over again. I raise most of my own veggies so I make sure to have a lot in my diet.

Bumping this for the selfish goal of meeting more North Carolinians

Southern girl born and raised.....

Sorry though, I live in NW Florida, close to the Alabama/Ga line. I love Southern food. When I had to live up in Maine for a few months, I had my parents ship me boxes of grits LOL. In my neck of the South, we pretty much grow everything. Our main staple during the Fall are greens: turnips, mustard, and collards. Normally they are cooked and seasoned with bacon grease, but I can eat them other ways. I find that is true of a lot of southern dishes and while they may not taste as great as their bad counterparts, they are still good.

My town has a lot of Northern transplants and they've opened a few restaurants around town trying to blend the difference in cuisine. Amusingly enough though, give or take a few years, they start serving more southern food or go out of business.

I second that low carb/paleo is easy to follow in the South. I live in redneck central and can stay stocked in venison and wild boar all year if I want LOL. (Not really a fan of gamey meat though.) And there is plenty of year round fresh produce. I also agree that most restaurants have a lighter menu. i'm not on a low carb diet currently, but have tried them in the past.

I understand what you mean though about the differences here and the rest of the country, especially out west. I spent half a year in Washington State/Oregon, and wow....... The mental difference in the way we look at food is pretty eye opening.

I am with you on this and then im not with you on it. Im from South Carolina and here around Charleston it has become the tourist destination of the world. With that said our hot food tax has risen to 11% tax. Add that to the other hand full of taxes and dinner out can quickly add up. There is literally food on every street or corner. I was just pointing it out to my husband the other day. Its a restaurant explosion around here. Southern food is Mmmm Mmmm Delicious and like you said can be horrible for you. You did really only mention the fast food joints though. Perhaps where you are that's all that's around, but here there are restaurants of all kinds. They offer foods of all kinds and tastes. Seafood is a biggie here as we are a coastal state. Perhaps eat smaller portions or ask for them to leave the butter off or out of your food. Even if it is a fast food joint of sorts. Look for baked not fried foods on the menu. A lot of places around here have added healthy menu items to the menu and they taste just fine to me. Some places if its a bbq restaurant ask them for the sauce on the side if they don't offer it in a bottle ready to use for the customers. A few places around here are like that also. Like Dukes or Bessingers BBQ buffet. They offer up the meat and the different signature sauces are in containers on the tables. You put as much or as little as you like. Like I said though I completely understand where you are coming from. I've traveled to a few other states and they don't compare to here. There may be 5 or 6 restaurants per town compared to the hundred or more per town around here. It all comes down to choosing to go there or not and choosing healthy menu option versus the not soo.

Hi There another "Carolina Guy". Grew up thinking that all Hamburgers had cole slaw, chili, onions, and mustard on them! :drinker:

Trying to get fitter and healthier down here in the South. Trader Joe's is great and there are Panera Breads all over the place (I travel a lot)

Feel free to friend!

Kentucky girl here! There is nothing as awesome as Southern food, lol. Unfortunately, that awesomeness comes with a lot of calories. Biscuits and gravy is one of my favorite foods. One way to make it a little less calorific is to use skim milk, turkey sausage, and tomato slices instead of biscuits.

I'm a transplant from NY who now lives in Greensboro and have no trouble finding any type of food with a wide variety on the healthiness scale. I eat at bbq joints and get fries, hushpuppies, and chicken or hot dogs all the way once every week or two, but I always find ways to fit it into my calorie goal. Most of the restaurants here have very good options for healthy dishes, unless you're only eating at fast food joints.

But I really don't understand the issue. Back in NY we also had a ton of unhealthy food available. I was addicted to pizza and Buffalo wings, which I'd eat at least twice a week. I loved chicken tender subs and wraps swimming in ranch peppercorn dressing. And back home we even had something called a garbage plate, which is typically a plate with a base of mac salad and home fries, and topped with hot dogs and/or burgers (and sometimes chicken fingers or other creative things), with hot meat sauce spread over the whole thing.



You can see why I gained weight! Unhealthy choices are available pretty much everywhere you go, not just the south. It's more about self control and planning. If you know you're going to have to eat out, look up restaurants and pick ones that have good reviews and yummy options on the menu. If you eat something unhealthy, shift some calories around so it fits within your goal. If you get it into your head that you're eating unhealthy just because you're in the south and there are unhealthy choices, then you're already defeated. It's really just an excuse.

Track your calories and fit your daily intake within your goals.
Allow for some unhealthy meals occasionally, but in moderation (I find that only eating half and saving the other half when I eat out teaches me self-control, gives me a second meal, and allows the tastiness to last longer than scarfing it down in one sitting).

I just moved to NC from Alaska... Gotta say I am loving the amount of actual fresh produce! By the time veggies got to the stores up there they went bad in a day or two. I just restared my logging on here but have tried to maintain my activity when I wasn't on here. I'm looking forward to being able to run, walk and jog all year round.