Careful on Misleading Low Cal Foods

mommomlynn
mommomlynn Posts: 35 Member
edited September 25 in Food and Nutrition
Out to lunch today at Applebee's an chose one of the under 550 calorie meals.....plenty of food...very tasty and when I pull it up on my food diary the calorie count was correct...but I had consumed 2,400 mg sodium in that one meal!!! Have high pressure so this was not a good choice that I made!! Drinking tons of water to flush out some of that sodium! Grrrr :cry:

Replies

  • TabiHerbalifeCoach
    TabiHerbalifeCoach Posts: 691 Member
    Yes, i have discovered eat out is "the devil" (in the voice from water boy LOL)
  • greeneyed84
    greeneyed84 Posts: 427 Member
    Wow, that's pretty crazy!! I had a 366 calorie meal today at Friday's. Enough to not make me really hungry anymore but it didn't really fill me up. Had 580g of sodium. Which is one of the reasons why i chose it
  • kayemme
    kayemme Posts: 1,782 Member
    Out to lunch today at Applebee's an chose one of the under 550 calorie meals.....plenty of food...very tasty and when I pull it up on my food diary the calorie count was correct...but I had consumed 2,400 mg sodium in that one meal!!! Have high pressure so this was not a good choice that I made!! Drinking tons of water to flush out some of that sodium! Grrrr :cry:

    almost all "low cal" or "low fat" products have some sort of catch. you're just better off eating whole fat/ whole cal and just less of it. the body can at least process it and it doesn't typically need to be loaded with salt or sugar

    whenever you see a low fat item, check the carbs. it may be low in fat, but it's packed with sugar. almost always!
  • cowlover22
    cowlover22 Posts: 309 Member
    I am to paranoid that they lie about the cals so I wont go out to eat...how dumb is that!:laugh:


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  • Healthyby30
    Healthyby30 Posts: 1,349 Member
    I am to paranoid that they lie about the cals so I wont go out to eat...how dumb is that!:laugh:

    :Lol, I don't think that's dumb but I am paranoid that the people making it aren't preparing it the low cal/low fat way haha
  • mommomlynn
    mommomlynn Posts: 35 Member
    I have heard to be careful of this before...I think the suggestion of eating a meal that I enjoy (that is also healthy) but just eat less of is the way to go!!! This was a good wake up call though...since I am just starting this journey.

    P.S. Just love the dialogs and suggestions...glad I joined this site. Thanks all!!
  • jenn_18
    jenn_18 Posts: 32
    discovered this the other day too when looking up restaurant nutrition info, its crazy!! caution: chilis and many others are just as bad in the sodium department!
  • merzback
    merzback Posts: 453 Member
    my suggestion is to order from the regular menu- they charge more for less food- and just maybe eat 1/3 of it- ask for a to go box right away and pack it up so it's not sitting there calling your name.
    There's a TON of salt in restaurant foods unfortunately.
  • Tamstar1985
    Tamstar1985 Posts: 334 Member
    i am super paranoid.

    i won't eat out (if i somehow find myself in a restaurant-social-setting, i just drink water) and i won't eat anyone's cooking but my own.

    ummmm makes things awkward sometimes, and is definitely a hanger-on from my teenage years when i had a full-blown eating disorder, but all things considered, it's probably healthier :P
  • merzback
    merzback Posts: 453 Member
    i am super paranoid.

    i won't eat out (if i somehow find myself in a restaurant-social-setting, i just drink water) and i won't eat anyone's cooking but my own.

    ummmm makes things awkward sometimes, and is definitely a hanger-on from my teenage years when i had a full-blown eating disorder, but all things considered, it's probably healthier :P

    Honestly , this is a shame- because it's not really living your life too. If you eat dinner out occasionally, or at someone's house, and watch portions, it won't kill you.
  • Sixalicious
    Sixalicious Posts: 283 Member
    That does suck and although water does help with flushing out the sodium, don't forget to eat a diet high in potassium. You need that to help rid your body of excess sodium. Hope you had a good time eating out though.
  • pretentiouskate
    pretentiouskate Posts: 186
    I'm a recovering restaurant addict and I was really shocked to realize just how bad the foods I was eating were for me. We went out Friday night and all in all I'd say we were pretty successful. Here's what we did:

    -Water to drink!
    -Split an entree (roasted veggie ravioli in a tomato and Parmesan sauce
    -Ordered a humus/pita/veggie appetizer as my meal and split that between us.

    We even had left-overs!

    This is what I would have ordered at the same place a month ago:
    - BEER. I will drink beer again, someday, but at the moment I just can't justify the calories!
    - A burger with cheese, mayo, veggies, and probably some bacon - split with the BF
    -"potato nachos" to split - fried potatoes smothered in cheddar, sour cream, salsa, olives, etc...

    The key for us has always been making healthy choices - we've always split meals - but making good choices on what to split is another thing entirely. I came away feeling pretty good, rather than sick and bloated, and we saved money because we didn't get drinks! Nothing that we ordered was labeled as low-cal, but eating decent portions and getting something involving veggies evened it out - and I just have to have cheese sometimes!
  • dave4d
    dave4d Posts: 1,155 Member
    discovered this the other day too when looking up restaurant nutrition info, its crazy!! caution: chilis and many others are just as bad in the sodium department!

    I noticed that the other night. My girlfriend has extremely high blood pressure. We were looking for low sodium options. There were very few. She is still paying for what she had. Her blood pressure yesterday was 203/128.
  • mommomlynn
    mommomlynn Posts: 35 Member
    Great idea....plus you get more meals for your money!:smile:
  • mommomlynn
    mommomlynn Posts: 35 Member
    my suggestion is to order from the regular menu- they charge more for less food- and just maybe eat 1/3 of it- ask for a to go box right away and pack it up so it's not sitting there calling your name.
    There's a TON of salt in restaurant foods unfortunately.
  • mommomlynn
    mommomlynn Posts: 35 Member
    Great idea...and you will get more meals for the money...win,win!!:smile: Thanks
  • merimeaux
    merimeaux Posts: 304 Member
    A LOT of those chain restaurants (Applebee's, Chili's, Friday's, Olive Garden, Red Lobster...I could go on) serve meals with sodium contents that are through the ROOF. This is a known fact; you have been warned. I mean, seriously...one serving of Olive Garden's salad--a seemingly healthy option--contains 350 calories, 26g total fat, and 1,930 sodium! That's insane! If you order it without the dressing the values drop to 120 calories, 3.5g total fat, and 550 sodium, which is a bit more manageable. I have been known to take my own salad dressing along to restaurants like that. Sure, I get odd looks, but at least I know exactly what and how much is going on it.
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