What do you do when you go out to eat?
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It depends how often you go out to eat... or how much you workout.
But in my case, since I don't eat out as often as I used to, I enjoy whatever I feel like eating on the menu. I log it, and move on to the next day. Most of the time I don't even eat it all so I get a box for my leftovers.0 -
I eat out at least 2x a week. I'm neither fat- nor have I ever been- I work out 3 times a week and attend at least 3-4 dance classes a week and I work 3 jobs.
Good for you, doesn't mean other people can just dance, eat out and not be fat. You are not the common denominator for everyone else.
Typical sit-down restaurants (Applebee's, Chili's, Outback) do not serve what constitutes nutritional food if you are trying to be healthy. It doesn't mean you can't find some way to make it work, it just means there are overwhelmingly more unhealthy choices on their menus than nutritionally balanced. If you are trying to be situationally aware of how you eat, eating at places like this are situationally ignorant.
If you eat out at some health-vegan joint where everything is gluten-absolved and organically grown and raised with a college education, then obviously its not all too bad, and you'll probably be fine.If you eat out once or twice a month- It's easy to save 50-200 calories a day up in advance for a few days and give yourself some buffer room in terms of deficit.
You can't bank calories from one day to save for another, that's not how the body works. It's not like money, you don't place unspent calories in the piggy-bank to be spent a few days later.My BF is only here 2x a week- 9/10 we go out to eat at LEAST once- and often times it's to high end- steak/allyou can eat Brazillian places- we are steak snobs- I'm not going to be picky when I'm there.
Sounds like you're just a snob in general, if anything has lost some weight its your boyfriend's wallet. Keep up the gold-digging, should work out well.just saying don't eat out b/c it is unhealthy is rubbish.
Actually its brilliant, even if it was misleading, it would be misleading in a beneficial way. Meals prepared by hand from scratch ingredients is a general way to avoid unhealthy eating. Obviously if you prepare and eat an entire apple pie by hand it doesn't make it healthy. Use your head people.
You must be new here.
I was merely pointing out that I'm healthy and fit- not that I expect people to do what I do.
Secondly- what I do is count calories- it's a common denominator for EVERYONE on this site. I am no more usual or unsual than ANYONE else in this site. Thirdly I TDEE_ so I don't even eat back my calories- so it's not like "I'm working off so much more than anyone else"
I eat at all many types of places- none of which are some voodoo healthy vegan wanna be organic grass fed paleo bull crap. I eat sushi- brazillian- chili's- mexican- chili's and applebees. I eat rotesseri chicken from the grocery store too!!! GASP. I just happen to like nice food.
And you ABSOLUTELY can bank calories- you're body works on averages- not daily fixed numbers. That's EXACTLY how that works. The reason why we suggest doing a small deficit daily is because is sustainable and manageable. You could absolutely lose weight if you chose to not eat 2 days out of the week- but that's just NOT sustainable- but it's perfectly reasonable to bank calories- it's why the app has a handy dandy average feature on it for the week.
Fourthly- please don't personally attack me. 100% unnecessary and also incorrect. We go out to eat when he is here because we don't live together- we have backwards schedules and live apart- that's our time together and it's something we enjoy- at no point did I say he paid. He typically does- because he likes to- but I buy and I treat.
I live on my own, I'm an engineer for the state. I pay my own bills- I own a nice car and a motorcycle that I pay for myself. I worked construction for 5 years and crawled my way up- I'm not entitled- but I know my own self worth and I am confident in what I like and what I do and who I am. if I have "privilege" or a sense of entitlement it's because I"ve earned ever second and cent of it.
This doesn't make me a snob- but it makes me confident- and if you can't deal with that- tought!tties.
on the other hand- I will freely admit I'm a steak snob- I don't eat crappy steaks. I like good food.
And when we go out- we like to eat at nice places- it's something we have in common and enjoy doing. Many people enjoy that- doesn't make us snobs.
So take a step back and check yourself because you are flat out wrong on all accounts.0 -
All that to say- it's perfectly fine- and normal to eat out with a balanced approach to life.0
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All that to say- it's perfectly fine- and normal to eat out with a balanced approach to life.
Actually when I made the 1000 pound club for lifting stats. I was thinking of what would be the club for strong women. Then I though of you and was like I am sure women can 100% get to 1000 pounds on lifting. You were one of the strong people I thought of on MFP.
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It depends how often you go out to eat. If it's only once a week, then make it a cheat meal and have at it. If it's several times per week, then you should probably assume the worst about the food and try to work it into your daily calories via exercise or eating light at other times.
For example, when I go to cheesecake factory for dinner I will just eat light (or fast) all day before hand and then order whatever I want. It's not hard to fend off hunger cravings when you know you have cheesecake coming in a few hours.0 -
BrittTomoreBenn wrote: »What things are safe to order at restaurants?
The safe thing to do is not go out to restaurants, because they generally do not serve healthy food. Case in point, a typical lunch at Chili's added up to 1,400 calories, which is worse than McDonalds considering I was choosing what appeared to be healthy foods (baked chicken).
My point is don't go out eating at restaurants if you're trying to be healthy.
When I think about eating out, it's sushi or pizza. But I rarely do that.
LOL, Chili's? Terrible example. Their calorie counts are definitely large and in charge, however, that does not make the food un-healthy. When I go to a sit down restaurant I try to stick with either fish or chicken, try to have veggie sides or a sweet potato. I also do not order appetizers, if someone else does I try to exercise self control and only have a few bites. I usually screw the whole thing if I get dessert so this is another important area personally where I must exercise self control.
Restaurant food is not evil or un-healthy, however, if losing weight is your goal, pay attention to your calorie balance.
Same rule applies to eating ice cream at home. I guess it's healthy since it's not at a restaurant.
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Eating out was one of the reasons I gained 100+ pounds. I stopped eating out and it helped a LOT. Now I'm too poor to afford to eat out often (That's what I keep telling myself!) and we don't eat out except when we are celebrating or as a treat. I always look up the resturants before we go there. I usually look for resturants that have the "low calorie" options and choose the best off those menu. If they don't have that I make sure to find out the nutritional value of the meal I am going to eat and plan my day around it. This not only helps me stick to my diet but it cuts down my order time (Because I will spend an hour deciding!).0
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BrittTomoreBenn wrote: »What things are safe to order at restaurants?
The safe thing to do is not go out to restaurants, because they generally do not serve healthy food. Case in point, a typical lunch at Chili's added up to 1,400 calories, which is worse than McDonalds considering I was choosing what appeared to be healthy foods (baked chicken).
My point is don't go out eating at restaurants if you're trying to be healthy.
When I think about eating out, it's sushi or pizza. But I rarely do that.
So don't get the 'typical' lunch. I'm not sure why that's not a perfectly reasonable option.
Get a burger and eat half and take the rest home. Or don't eat the bun. You can skip the cheese if you like, and/or the mayo. Ask the waiter to leave the fries off of the plate so you're not tempted to have a few. Have them put the salad dressing on the side. All kinds of ways for you to eat sensibly at a restaurant. Or, you can compensate by eating more lightly for other meals.
Frankly, it's ridiculous to plan on eating properly for the rest of your life and not have a plan for how to deal with eating out. It happens. You can do it and still enjoy good food and company without turning yourself into knots. Even at places like Chili's and Red Robin.0 -
Thank you everyone! This really helped a lot. I really like the whole pre planning idea. I run about 6 miles 2-3 days a week and 4 miles 3 days a week so I think that I'll just make sure when we eat out it is a 6 mile day. Thanks again everyone! x0
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When I go out for dinner, which is usually with my boyfriend for special occasions like anniversaries and birthdays, I just eat whatever I want. Same for wine. We easily have 2 bottles of red at a nice night out. But most of these nights are planned at least a week or so in advance so I just increase my workouts in the week before and the week after, assuming that I at least consumed an extra 1000-1500 calories that night.0
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BrittTomoreBenn wrote: »What things are safe to order at restaurants?
The safe thing to do is not go out to restaurants, because they generally do not serve healthy food. Case in point, a typical lunch at Chili's added up to 1,400 calories, which is worse than McDonalds considering I was choosing what appeared to be healthy foods (baked chicken).
My point is don't go out eating at restaurants if you're trying to be healthy.
When I think about eating out, it's sushi or pizza. But I rarely do that.
calories don't really have anything to do with whether a meal was "healthy" or not. There are tons of nutritious foods that are also calorie bombs...
Also, Chilies is fairly well known for being high calorie...but they do also have a pretty decent 500 calorie menu as well.
Personally, when I eat out I prefer local establishments that prepare more fresh food than institutionalized franchise foodz.
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yopeeps025 wrote: »All that to say- it's perfectly fine- and normal to eat out with a balanced approach to life.
Actually when I made the 1000 pound club for lifting stats. I was thinking of what would be the club for strong women. Then I though of you and was like I am sure women can 100% get to 1000 pounds on lifting. You were one of the strong people I thought of on MFP.
I am confident one day I will get there. I have faith I can hit at least 900.
My long term goals
400 lb DL
215 Bench
300 Squat.
I know it can be done- and long term that's where I'm aiming- that puts me damn close- and I would be happy with 900. Shoot for the stars and all
and thanks for the warm fuzzies on strong people lifting. I do appreciate it- I'm not the strongest for sure- we have some serious beasts on this site- which makes me REALLY happy.0 -
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Eating out isn't bad. You just have to know where in downtown to go0
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A lot of places have a "light" menu where they have the calories listed. I wish they all listed cals for everything, but at least there are a few safe meals. I was surprised when I went with co-workers to Cracker Barrel (a completely fatty and carb-laden southern restaurant chain). Even they had a light menu. I got some pretty tasty baked chicken and a salad that was under 400 calories for lunch.
You have to be careful because sometimes what seems "light" really isn't. Restaurant salads are the worst. They pack them with dressing, croutons, nuts and dried fruit to the point where by the time you're done you might as well have had a burger. Assume double the calories in everything compared to if you made it at home. They want it to be tasty, not low-calorie.0 -
I eat out at least 2x a week. I'm neither fat- nor have I ever been- I work out 3 times a week and attend at least 3-4 dance classes a week and I work 3 jobs.
Good for you, doesn't mean other people can just dance, eat out and not be fat. You are not the common denominator for everyone else.
Typical sit-down restaurants (Applebee's, Chili's, Outback) do not serve what constitutes nutritional food if you are trying to be healthy. It doesn't mean you can't find some way to make it work, it just means there are overwhelmingly more unhealthy choices on their menus than nutritionally balanced. If you are trying to be situationally aware of how you eat, eating at places like this are situationally ignorant.
If you eat out at some health-vegan joint where everything is gluten-absolved and organically grown and raised with a college education, then obviously its not all too bad, and you'll probably be fine.If you eat out once or twice a month- It's easy to save 50-200 calories a day up in advance for a few days and give yourself some buffer room in terms of deficit.
You can't bank calories from one day to save for another, that's not how the body works. It's not like money, you don't place unspent calories in the piggy-bank to be spent a few days later.My BF is only here 2x a week- 9/10 we go out to eat at LEAST once- and often times it's to high end- steak/allyou can eat Brazillian places- we are steak snobs- I'm not going to be picky when I'm there.
Sounds like you're just a snob in general, if anything has lost some weight its your boyfriend's wallet. Keep up the gold-digging, should work out well.just saying don't eat out b/c it is unhealthy is rubbish.
Actually its brilliant, even if it was misleading, it would be misleading in a beneficial way. Meals prepared by hand from scratch ingredients is a general way to avoid unhealthy eating. Obviously if you prepare and eat an entire apple pie by hand it doesn't make it healthy. Use your head people.
Are you crazy? Vegan restaurants serve just as high calorie food as any other.0 -
Doggie bags (and the dogs don't get the leftovers).0
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I'm a picky eater, so I always am asking for special considerations. Luckily in NYC restaurants are used to this. I remember when asking delis to scoop out a bagel was strange, now it's a non issue. The worst time I had was in California, where I thought anything goes, but they were not at all at ease with changing how things were prepared.
Also, almost every place here has calorie counts on the menu.
The one thing I don't understand is why senior residences (where my mom was) serve half and half with their coffee. It's almost universal.0
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