McDonalds

Options
thetrishwarp
thetrishwarp Posts: 838 Member
in Food and Nutrition
A couple days ago, I was out with a friend and we caved and decided to have McDonalds for dinner. I chose to eat a cheeseburger happy meal, and to my surprise when I logged it afterwards it wasn't that bad. Although I only eat fast food about twice a year (with the exception of Subway...mmm), I was pleased to see that with the reduced portion sizes of a kid's meal, I was still able to stay within my daily goals.

:)
«1

Replies

  • 30tips
    30tips Posts: 132
    Options
    Good idea--a kid´s meal... It´s a good option for once in a while...how is the sodium for the kid´s meal? I guess it also depends on what else you eat in the day. I had chicken nuggets, and while it has a lot of sodium, since I didn´t eat anything else with sodium in the day, I didn´t even do half of my daily sodium allotment.
  • Jenn421
    Jenn421 Posts: 56
    Options
    there is a few things you can work at mcds that really isnt that bad for you (Im a manager there) if you get value picks too there not bad eather.
  • Pandorian
    Pandorian Posts: 2,055 MFP Moderator
    Options
    Funnest part of that is a kids meal is most likely a proper portion size of everything for an adult, eating one of those is a satisfying meal (quantity not quality) haven't done it in ages as I'm trying to avoid the processed heavy sodium foods as part of this trip
  • WashingtonGrown
    WashingtonGrown Posts: 97
    Options
    Funnest part of that is a kids meal is most likely a proper portion size of everything for an adult, eating one of those is a satisfying meal (quantity not quality) haven't done it in ages as I'm trying to avoid the processed heavy sodium foods as part of this trip

    Me too on the avoiding heavily processed foods IE Fast food...,the not so funny part is that the portion size is proper for adults YET its given to younger kids. That's kind of sad, and part of the reason why there are heavy kids now than there use to be!
  • gazbo1986
    gazbo1986 Posts: 52
    Options
    i eat those bacon and egg mcmuffin things for breakfast sometimes if i'm in a rush. I'm a firm believer that calories are calories. You can still lose weight eating 1200 calories of McDonalds a day, it's just you're not going to feel as good doing your daily routines as you would if those 1200 cals came from healthier foods.
  • steph5565
    steph5565 Posts: 36
    Options
    I have a story to tell that may make you change your mind. A few years back my sister did a scavenger hunt and one of the items was "somthing from McDonalds". Someone bought a plain burger to fulfill that requirement. When the hunt was over my sister collected everything, threw all of the items in a bag, threw that in her trunk and then promptly forgot about it when she went off to college.

    Fast-forward three months.

    We're cleaning out the trunk and find the burger. Looks BRAND NEW. No mold, no rotting. Nothing. Like you could have put it back under the heat lamp and sold it.

    And just check out the list of ingredients in their "100% Beef Patty. Ummm.... doesn't that mean it's all beef? Nope, not a chance:

    Salt, sugar, onion powder, natural (botanical source) and artificial flavors, maltodextrin, natural beef flavor [beef broth, yeast extract, maltodextrin, salt, lactic acid, natural flavor (plant source), beef fat, citric acid], spice, dextrose, autolyzed yeast extract, garlic powder, dried beef extract, sunflower oil, caramel color, worcestershire sauce powder [distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, salt, caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor (fruit source)], spice extractives, annatto and turmeric (color), calcium silicate and soybean oil added to prevent caking.


    A good rule is that if a food has more than five ingredients (the patty alone has 36!!!), don't eat it. Ditto for if you can't pronounce the ingredients or don't know what they are (do you have any shakers filled with calcium silicate just sitting around the kitchen?). And umm... I actually don't see "beef" as an ingredient (sure, there's "natural beef flavor" and "dried beef extract", but where's the beef?)

    Moral of the story is that calories alone is not the only measure you should be looking at when you make your food choices.
  • mirenner
    mirenner Posts: 205
    Options
    i eat those bacon and egg mcmuffin things for breakfast sometimes if i'm in a rush. I'm a firm believer that calories are calories. You can still lose weight eating 1200 calories of McDonalds a day, it's just you're not going to feel as good doing your daily routines as you would if those 1200 cals came from healthier foods.

    this is true... a professor at university put himself on a snack cake diet of 1200 a day and lost about 30lbs... in the end it is about calorie deficits, but the kind of calories you put into your body can lead to other problems, like high cholesterol, high sugars, narrowing arteries, etc.

    Still, kudos for finding a good portion size for your fast food fix...
  • thetrishwarp
    thetrishwarp Posts: 838 Member
    Options
    I think the sodium was around 900mg. and steph5565 - those are the precisely the reasons why I HARDLY eat fast food - ever. I was just pointing out that in a bind, a kid's meal is a reasonable option that a lot of people don't think of. I would much prefer to make my own healthy food, but it can't happen all the time!
  • B2BB
    B2BB Posts: 222 Member
    Options
    ALL CALS R NOT CREATED EQUAL
    Example:
    *Whole Avocado 289 cals/27g sat fat/3.1g poly fat/17g mono fat
    Most of the fat in an avocado is monounsaturated -- the "good" kind that actually lowers cholesterol levels.

    *Jack n the box small natural cut fries
    290cals/15g fat/4.5 trans fat
    diet high is trans fat can cause Coronary Heart Disease (Raise bad cholesterol AND lower good cholesterol),Stroke&Diabetes!!
    *We need quality fuel people!!

    The problem with these fast food places they use trans fat (cheapest, worst fat, man made) is not listed on posted nutrition facts inside:-/)

    Check out my page Facebook.com/burns2bbeautiful for more tips :)
  • steph5565
    steph5565 Posts: 36
    Options
    I completely agree with you. Didn't mean to sound combative, so I hope I didn't come off that way :smile: . However, I do think that sometimes people don't realize exactly what they're putting in their bodies because of the marketing machine that backs big fast food corporations. If I hear "100% Beef Patty" I take it at face value and think it's 100% Beef.
  • fullofhope
    fullofhope Posts: 78 Member
    Options
    I only like the toyyyysssss......
  • fullofhope
    fullofhope Posts: 78 Member
    Options
    I only like the toyyyysssss......
  • tanniew78
    tanniew78 Posts: 602 Member
    Options
    Well, I always did say when I was working there that it may be 100% beef, but they dont say what PART of the beef it was.... Just saying.... :sick:

    I usually stick with grilled chicken snack wrap or two. Honey mustard is the bomb and not too bad calorie wise. At least it LOOKS like is relatively unprocessed. I know, I know... Marinade... But Im talking the actual chicken itself. Flakes like a chicken breast so... maybe.... Then again with McDs you never know...
  • Pandorian
    Pandorian Posts: 2,055 MFP Moderator
    Options
    And just check out the list of ingredients in their "100% Beef Patty. Ummm.... doesn't that mean it's all beef? Nope, not a chance:

    Salt, sugar, onion powder, natural (botanical source) and artificial flavors, maltodextrin, natural beef flavor [beef broth, yeast extract, maltodextrin, salt, lactic acid, natural flavor (plant source), beef fat, citric acid], spice, dextrose, autolyzed yeast extract, garlic powder, dried beef extract, sunflower oil, caramel color, worcestershire sauce powder [distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, salt, caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor (fruit source)], spice extractives, annatto and turmeric (color), calcium silicate and soybean oil added to prevent caking.


    To be fair you listed the ingredients for their angus seasoning is what you posted for ingredients
    the actual start to your ingredient list as posted is

    Prepared with Grill Seasoning (salt, black pepper) and Angus Burger Seasoning:
    Salt, sugar, onion powder, natural (botanical source) and artificial flavors, maltodextrin, natural beef flavor [beef broth, yeast extract, maltodextrin, salt, lactic acid, natural flavor (plant source), beef fat, citric acid], spice, dextrose, autolyzed yeast extract, garlic powder, dried beef extract, sunflower oil, caramel color, worcestershire sauce powder [distilled vinegar, molasses, corn syrup, salt, caramel color, garlic powder, sugar, spices, tamarind, natural flavor (fruit source)], spice extractives, annatto and turmeric (color), calcium silicate and soybean oil added to prevent caking.

    with that ingredient list being the contents of the burger seasoning.


    and the actual beef part is
    100% Angus beef
    or 100% Beef Patty pure USDA inspected beef; no fillers, no extenders. Prepared with grill seasoning (salt, black pepper).

    sourced from the pdf downloadable from ingredients list at
    http://www.mcdonalds.com/us/en/food/food_quality/nutrition_choices.html
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    Options
    Just get a seared chicken wrap and a water or diet coke. Heaps better than even a happy meal :P And a lot more filling.
  • Sherri71
    Sherri71 Posts: 208 Member
    Options
    When I was successful at losing 30lbs in the past, I followed the kid's meal rule as well. I didn't completely ban anything and if my hubby or a friend wanted to go to McD, I would always just order a kids meal. It is a great idea, so you don't feel like you are missing out. As of late, I haven't done, it so thanks for the reminder.
  • spennato
    spennato Posts: 360 Member
    Options
    I tend to eat pretty much anything I want (Although I have not had Fast Food or soda in 5 months) I just do much better with portion control. Instead of 2 bowls of cereal I have 1, instead of 2 bowls of pasta I have 1, and my portion sizes are normal sizes where 5 months ago 1 bowl would be 3 servings and having 2 bowls would be 6 servings. Any how after reading through some comments I think I may enjoy a Happy meal sometime in the near future!!! Keep up the good work......:smile:
  • Tiggermummy
    Tiggermummy Posts: 312 Member
    Options
    I have quarterpounder with no bun, certainly here in uk, I will ask for my fries and my kids ones with
    No added salt. They should wipe out the scoop and fry tray and give you fresh hot salt free fries!

    I always do a grill order as I detest ketchup, so have it plain.

    Moderation is the key, yes we all know what is ideal, but occasionally it won't hurt over your
    Lifetime.
  • BunnybeeJG
    BunnybeeJG Posts: 344 Member
    Options
    i eat those bacon and egg mcmuffin things for breakfast sometimes if i'm in a rush. I'm a firm believer that calories are calories. You can still lose weight eating 1200 calories of McDonalds a day, it's just you're not going to feel as good doing your daily routines as you would if those 1200 cals came from healthier foods.

    uh.. seriously? i think.. not.
  • chrisdavey
    chrisdavey Posts: 9,834 Member
    Options
    I have quarterpounder with no bun,

    I have thought about doing this (and heard others do) but how do you physically eat it? I haven't seen a maccas with cutlery yet? That's why I stick to my grilled chicken wraps.

Categories