Going out to lunch today

MarKayDee
MarKayDee Posts: 196
in Getting Started
For the first time since I started trying to lose weight I'm eating a full meal outside of my home (salads and fruit at work don't really count as meals in my opinion). My mother in law is taking me out for Mongolian food. I've made it at home a few times and didn't have too much trouble keeping myself under control for my mealtime calorie goal (between 400 and 500 calories for meals and whatever's left over for snacks) but today I don't work where I do most of my walking and I was planning on taking a rest from exercise because my abs (and ribs?) hurt a lot.

Should I just try and sneak in a workout later to make up for the calories I'm not spending at work today, or should I eat below my goal (1420) to make sure I stay on track for losing?

I guess super secret answer C is don't go out to eat and have the fruit I had planned for lunch, but I don't want to deprive myself of something I know I can keep healthy out of fear.

Replies

  • sarafischbach9
    sarafischbach9 Posts: 466 Member
    Hey!

    You can go out to eat when losing weight. It might be hard to stick to your 1400 calories, but going over by a couple hundred really won't keep you from losing weight in the long term.

    If you trust yourself with the portions, I think you should be fine.
  • DeadliftAddict
    DeadliftAddict Posts: 746 Member
    Just eat and enjoy yourself. It isn't going to be the end of the world for you. Use common since on what you get and you will be fine.
  • DaisyGrammy
    DaisyGrammy Posts: 148 Member
    Mongolian is a good choice! Stay away from rice and noodles...LOAD UP on veges and a lean protein. Have them stirfry and enjoy every bite!!:wink:
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 8,005 Member
    I eat out a lot. I like to do extra cardio workouts so I have more calories to enjoy guilt free. If I do 80-90 minutes on the elliptical on the weekend I earn quite a lot of calories according to my HRM. Love the feeling of "Now I can afford to anything I fancy today".
  • sullus
    sullus Posts: 2,839 Member
    Also .. Keep in mind that going a couple hundred calories over 1400 isn't really "going over" what you need to lose weight.

    It's "going less under"
  • rexroars
    rexroars Posts: 131 Member
    If you eat one high calorie meal every couple of weeks, you're still going to lose weight if you're legitimately at a deficit the majority of the time. Like everyone says, one meal won't make you fat just like one salad won't make you thin :) Just enjoy hanging out with your mother in law, and go back to your plan after :)
  • bwogilvie
    bwogilvie Posts: 2,130 Member
    One day fasting won't make you thin, and one day having a big lunch won't make you fat. It's all about the averages.

    If you usually meet your goal, then enjoy your Mongolian barbecue without guilt! If you weigh daily, you might find your weight is higher the next day; that will mostly be due to water retention from the salty food (restaurants almost always use a lot of salt). Don't worry, it will go away soon. In that way, it's like the water retention that often happens when you increase your exercise amount, or start a new kind of workout.

    Also, what sullus said: if you have MFP set to lose 1 lb./week, that's a 500 calorie deficit under maintenance. Say you eat 400 over your goal. You're still 100 calories under maintenance.

    Ultimately, you're in this for the long run. You should learn how to handle meals out while you're losing weight, because you'll have to handle them once you meet your goal--unless you plan to never eat out again.

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