Indulging in restaurant food too much

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Making_changes7
Making_changes7 Posts: 194 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Hi!

So I really enjoy going out to eat for the social aspect, especially because it's getting so cold and there isn't much else to do. I just feel so guilty lately because of the frequency I've been eating out. I try to make healthy decisions but then dessert time comes and I can't resist it. And I don't always make healthy main course decisions. So I don't really know what to do.. I'm almost in the mindset of 'if it's fun you should do it!' which hurts me in the end because I double my daily calories and feel so guilty.

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  • Dabank70
    Dabank70 Posts: 4 Member
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    I find it helps me if I find out what's on the menu ahead of time, pick what I am going to eat before I get to the restaurant, TRACK IT (once again, before I go), then stick to it. I don't get to go out too often so it's easy to think that the desert is fine since it's so rare, but I only do it if I plan for it. Hope it helps! There should be no guilt associated with getting together with friends - concentrate on that part ;)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    I eat out 3 times a month but never get dessert. Maybe share it with someone and just have a couple bites?
  • debbynoelle
    debbynoelle Posts: 27
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    I have the same problem! As a college student all people my age want to do is go out, I don't want to feel left out so I end up eating out three or four times a week. I don't know what to do, I don't want to lose my social life. So I feel you, it is really hard to say no.
  • Cedura
    Cedura Posts: 184 Member
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    My boyfriend and I eat out 3 or 4 times a week. I also always log food before I order so that I can track it ahead of time. If I KNOW we are going out to Olive Garden for dinner, I log what I want in the morning, and then plan breakfast and lunch accordingly. If its spur of the moment, I always ask restaurant staff for a nutrition menu. They usually have one, and if they do not, its often easy to find one online.

    Also ask about smaller portion platters. Many restaurants offer these or "Lite Option" menus.

    The last option I use is take home. I was at Hard Rock a few weeks ago and had ordered a 1400 calorie burger. So I ate half there and loaded the rest in a box for the next day. My boyfriend and I also split desserts and larger main courses because he also is using MFP. So far neither of us has had to give up our dinner date nights and we both are losing.

    Good luck!
  • howardheilweil
    howardheilweil Posts: 604 Member
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    Unfortunately, eating out and tracking calories do not mix well. While so e restaurants do make nutritional information available, most don't, and those that do tend to be chains, I.e.: Olive Garden, etc... That said, it's fine to eat out occasionally, but ultimately you need to decide what is more important to you. Good luck!
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,718 Member
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    I love to eat out, and do it maybe 3 times a week. I also throw dinner parties every 3 weeks or so, which can be quite indulgent. My strategy is to include massive cardio workouts in my daily routine, where I burn at least 500 cals to make room for all that social eating. It's a lucky thing that the hubby tolerates getting dinner around 21:00 on weeknights, so I can fit in a big cardio session after work.
  • pavrg
    pavrg Posts: 277 Member
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    Divide your meal in half.

    If you can't stand staring at half a plate of food, ask for a box earlier so you can put it under your chair or something.

    Stay away from soda and beer.

    Also, a lot of restaurants market foods as 'healthy' when they are actually very calorie dense either due to deceptively dense ingredients or the way in which the food is prepared. Panera Bread, for example...it's hard to get a whole sandwich and bag of chips for under 1000 calories there -- the bread is so thick that it drives up the calories in the sandwich. Also, a lot of 'healthy wraps' are high calories because of that humungous tortialla shell stuffed with filling and topped with fatty dressing. Buffalo Wild Wings' boneless wings are calorie dense because they bread them and then fry them in oil, so the breading absorbs all that grease.
  • Brandolin11
    Brandolin11 Posts: 492 Member
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    Hi!

    So I really enjoy going out to eat for the social aspect, especially because it's getting so cold and there isn't much else to do. I just feel so guilty lately because of the frequency I've been eating out. I try to make healthy decisions but then dessert time comes and I can't resist it. And I don't always make healthy main course decisions. So I don't really know what to do.. I'm almost in the mindset of 'if it's fun you should do it!' which hurts me in the end because I double my daily calories and feel so guilty.

    All the suggestions on here are wonderful. I'd like to add an unconventional suggestion as well, and it's one that I think will drive your ultimate success.

    I noted that a couple of the things you said in your initial post demonstrate "passivity" in this issue.

    You say "I can't resist it [dessert]" and "I don't always make healthy main course decisions so I don't really know what to do".

    Both of these statements are passive statements and render you powerless.

    The good news is that you are not either of these things and can stop being both, immediately. :)

    It's time for a mind change. This will take work, just like physical exercise. Start telling yourself things like:

    "I WILL resist dessert". (Or, "I WILL budget in dessert by leaving enough calories for it").
    "I WILL make healthy main course decisions". (Or, again, "I WILL leave enough calories for it so I can enjoy w/out guilt")
    "I WILL sit down and figure out why I keep doing this. There's always a reason, and I am a smart person - I can figure this out and then figure out a strategy to conquer it".
    "I DO know what to do. I've been doing this weight-loss thing for awhile and i know exactly how weight is lost. The formula is 'calories in, calories out'. If I eat over my calories I gain. If I don't plan for my outings, I will eat over. Thus I will gain. I don't want to gain. So I WILL do whatever it takes not to gain. Which means making a plan and a strategy and DECIDING I will do what is right and loving and healthy for myself."

    Be Proactive with yourself. Use the strategies all these folks are suggesting as tools to be Proactive. But ultimately - you have to make the DECISION ahead of time, as a LIFE philosophy as a life-long value.

    You can do this. Don't be passive. Be Proactive!

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