How to stop yourself from eating out!!!

inalandapart · September 2014

Hi everyone!
I really, really need some help. Recently I've been eating out almost everyday. I'm a college student and I'm really busy most of the time with exams/homework overload. I honestly love to cook, but have no inspiration or time to do so. I find myself eating Chinese/ fast food almost everyday and It's getting kind of hard to stop this trend. All my friends/roomates like to eat out so it's really hard not to be influenced by them. How do you guys prevent yourself from turning to fast food or from eating unhealthy food? Do you have any quick and healthy meal suggestions? Any suggestions or ideas will be greatly appreciated!! I really need some help and support so feel free to add me as a friend if you want

Tennouji · September 2014

How about finding one week where you are less busy than usual and cooking 4 different evening meals. Cook enough for 3 people, serve up your portion and then freeze the rest in plastic tubs (do it quickly so you can't have seconds!) The following two weeks you will have 4 days worth of meals that you just need to defrost or cook the part that goes with it such as rice, pasta, couscous, salad etc.

My sister does this and she is juggling part-time work and two children of 5 and 2. I try and do this and I'm juggling a full-time job and studying for my MSc.

Spend some time thinking about healthy food you could eat that doesn't need much preparation: baking a potato and just serving with a filling, scrambling some eggs...

You might find yourself saving money but you will definitely find yourself cutting down on all the salt that is found in Chinese fast food!

k8161819 · September 2014

I totally feel your pain! Its really hard being a student and budgeting time and money to cook healthy meals. Honestly from my experience it is hard to say no to roommates and friends when they want go and get take out, especially when they want to do late night study breaks for food. I found that the best way for me to eat healthy was to cook meals large enough to have left overs for a few days, even though it does get boring after a few days and you want to mix it up. I also found that when I get bored of cooking the same things over and over again, you can find some really awesome healthy recipes that are easy to make online, especially pinterest and you can get healthy versions of pretty much any kind of cuisine.

And in those times when you do go for take out with friends, try and get the healthiest version you can get. Portioning is also a big help. Even you want to go for something, just try and eat a smaller version (or if you have good willpower half) of what you usually get.

you just gotta stick it out. I found that the further I went without getting some foods, the cravings lessened.

chadya07 · September 2014

dont stop yourself if you are too busy to cook, just make better choices. or pick one meal a day you pack, either dinner or lunch, and be choosy about what you eat at restaurants, pick what you will order before you go in using the database, and stick to your plan. have a few favorite places where you know what to always get.

i remember being in college and always running from one class to another, long breaks in between but rarely long enough to go home... you cant change the world around you, just the choices you make in it...

but if you really want to not eat out at all. thats what the universe made sandwiches for...

djc315 · September 2014

What helped me was adding up what I spent every day on fast food and then figured out what I spent a month, and in a year, on unhealthy foods. It was a shock to me. If that doesn't help, why not look at that amount and think of other things you can spend it on. Maybe even physically putting that money into a jar or account and treat yourself to something healthy when you reach a certain amount of money.

SherryTeach · September 2014

I am also a big fan of batch cooking. I pretty much only cook on Sunday afternoons. In my freezer I have individual servings of at least six different meals. Then during the week, all I have to do is steam or roast veggies and have fresh fruit, yogurt, etc. on hand. I'm going to say that the ZipLock screw on lid container is the secret to my maintenance success.

Soggynode · September 2014

Fortunately for me, I have ravenous friends. I take out half of whatever I've ordered for myself and put the rest in the middle of the table for the pack to devour. My friends love my new eating habits. Sometimes I go the other way too, I'll just order a side dish and steal stuff from other people. Depending on what chinese place you're going to you can get pretty healthy food compared to a burger place. I'm busy and I like eating out so I've just made it work around my diet.

For quick make at home stuff I like burritos, wraps and mason jar salads. Mason jar salads are especially versatile. Check them out on Pinterest. I don't use actual mason jars, I got some tall clear plastic cups with lids. The jar salads will keep in the fridge for days and are super simple to make. I use a lot of the same ingredients in my wraps, salads and burritos so I don't buy or waste a lot of food.

ninerbuff · September 2014

Hi everyone!
I really, really need some help. Recently I've been eating out almost everyday. I'm a college student and I'm really busy most of the time with exams/homework overload. I honestly love to cook, but have no inspiration or time to do so. I find myself eating Chinese/ fast food almost everyday and It's getting kind of hard to stop this trend. All my friends/roomates like to eat out so it's really hard not to be influenced by them. How do you guys prevent yourself from turning to fast food or from eating unhealthy food? Do you have any quick and healthy meal suggestions? Any suggestions or ideas will be greatly appreciated!! I really need some help and support so feel free to add me as a friend if you want

Just like going to school and doing your homework you only need to do ONE thing..................................make the decision. Really that's it. If you make the decision and commit to it, then it shouldn't be an issue. If you find yourself hesitant or making up excuses, then you HAVEN'T made the decision.

A.C.E. Certified Personal and Group Fitness Trainer
IDEA Fitness member
Kickboxing Certified Instructor
Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition

jenilla1 · September 2014

...Spend some time thinking about healthy food you could eat that doesn't need much preparation: baking a potato and just serving with a filling, scrambling some eggs...

Great examples. Those are both nutritious, cheap and super easy to make. :drinker:

Myhaloslipped · September 2014

I cook the majority of my meats and vegetables for the entire week on Sundays. It really helps me save time during the week.

raysputin · September 2014

If I find myself tempted to eat out I remind myself of all the nasties that you get free of charge from eating out. Most restaurants put huge amounts of salt in their food - even the expensive ones. Then there are the additives and preservatives - just what is in the food? Lots of luck trying to find a restaurant that serves low carb meals. Then there is the hygeine. My council has a web site where they rank restaurants according to their hygeine standards - only one in the whole council area has five stars. Lots of free faecal matter and bacteria in most of them. That should be enough to keep you at home. If I cook I know just what is in the food, how clean the cooking process was and I can cook to my own serving size.

darkrose20 · September 2014

You don't stop eating out. You either make better choices by planning ahead. What I had to do in the begining, and it was a pain in the but, was to look at the nutrition info online before going out and pick something that would fit in my calories.

If you can't bring yourself to eat the Fit Faire (or whatever that particular restaurant has branded it) type meals, and you feel you need to eat the mega calorie loaded crap, you accommodate accordingly. You could eat half (going from 1200 calories for the gut busting meal on your plate to only 600) and take the rest home for lunch tomorrow. You could exercise a bunch and burn off the extra however many calories you splurged on. You could make it your only meal for the day. Seriously. Some plates at my favorite of the chain restaurants are seriously 1200 calories. MFP only gives me 1300 to play with. That's my WHOLE day plus a tiny snack.

I like to go for a swim or go dancing when I splurge. Oh, and FYI, going to Outback and getting a salad and the add on lobster to my date's steak is FANTASTIC and doesn't cost that many calories. The bread, OTOH, is my weakness.

Hope this helps!
D.

999tigger · September 2014

What ninerbuff said ay 10:58. Make a choice.

1. Do you wnat to lose/ weight or eat healthy v just be a sheep and eating the food that isnt on your current healthy eating agenda becayse its convenient.

2. You need to plan and be more thoughtful. IF you eat well (complex carbs) have breakfast, then you will be less hungry during the day and wont need to eat out. You cna prepare sandwiches and eat thise. Their food schedule is not yours, if you want to lose weight enough. It will be cheaper. Not wanting to cook and go for take out is just an excuse.

3. Alternatively use some of the good advice above, go and eat with friends but exercise portion control and make wiser healthier choices in what you eat. I liked the suggestion of taking what you need and then putting the rest of youir portion for your friends to share.

4. Do exercise and save up those eat back calories, so you cna go out once or twice a week or it will make it easier to incorporate into your diet plan.

Weve all been busy, done exams etc. Still boils down to you making a choice. You dont have to go out all the time with them you wont turn into a pumpkin, you dont have to eat what they eat, nor as much as what they eat. Are you logging your food?

MyChocolateDiet · September 2014

heh

chainess2014 · September 2014

I am having the same dilemma when eating out with family and friends. According to a friend of mine who happens to be a Wellness Coach as well -- its a matter of choosing the right food. Like Sandwiches minus the dressings and stuff - salads with vinaigrette dressing instead of the typical mayo/ranch dressings...it may look like depriving yourself but its more of your choice and most importantly the volume of what you eat. Good Luck!

DawnieB1977 · September 2014

I never got take-away when I was at university. Unless university in the US is incredibly different to in England, I'm not sure why you don't have the time to cook something basic?

For dinner I used to have things like jacket potato and tuna, pasta, egg, salad, fish and veg etc. I studied in France for my third year and all we had was a fridge and a hot plate and I still managed to avoid take-aways. Ok, admittedly I didn't eat much and drank a lot of wine lol.

You could easily make quick things like omelettes, stir fry, chicken salad....

If you have to take lunch out with you, it's easy to make a sandwich/wrap with a piece of fruit and a yogurt. Even if you have to buy something out, I'm sure you can get a salad or sandwich.

I'm on maternity leave right now, but before I left work, sometimes I'd be there until 5, rush home to collect my son from after school club and my daughter from nursery, so I had to do something quick, and would do something like scrambled egg and beans, or pasta and salad, or a piece of fish and microwave some frozen veg.

If you have a blender you could do yourself a smoothie for breakfast.

loribethrice · September 2014

I keep a budget down to the letter and 99% of the time eating out doesn't fit. It helps me keep honest and I lose my desire to want to eat out at all.

DM01234 · September 2014

Get a Crockpot!!! They are cheap and so many things you can cook in it. Easy way to make enough for 4-5 meals each week.

I don't think hot meal options can get simpler to make.

ACanadian22 · September 2014

I agree with DMO. A crockpot will take away any worries for bad foods and when you get back from school, you will have a filling, healthy meal instead of junk.
I think this is the only reason why I love living in the middle of nowhere. There are no fast food places. :ohwell:

Aine8046 · September 2014

Most restaurants put huge amounts of salt in their food - even the expensive ones. Then there are the additives and preservatives - just what is in the food? Lots of luck trying to find a restaurant that serves low carb meals. Then there is the hygeine. My council has a web site where they rank restaurants according to their hygeine standards - only one in the whole council area has five stars. Lots of free faecal matter and bacteria in most of them. That should be enough to keep you at home. If I cook I know just what is in the food, how clean the cooking process was and I can cook to my own serving size.

I've actually seen some cheap cafeteria on many campuses where you can get a decent vegetable bar (and you can add as much salt as you wish to your greens, veggies, eggs, etc). Soups and entrees are usually very salty, agreed.

Soggynode · September 2014

My daughter has a large, inexpensive rice cooker and she can cook almost anything in that thing. It has a slow cook setting so she makes soups, stews, chili, jambalaya and she sometimes even makes rice in the thing. She made a chocolate cake in that thing just because I jokingly said she couldn't. Like the crockpot suggestions above, a large rice cooker might be a good investment.

How to stop yourself from eating out!!!

Replies

Categories