How often do you go out to eat and does it effect your weight?

ItalianChick90
ItalianChick90 Posts: 34 Member
edited November 17 in Health and Weight Loss
My boyfriend wants to go out to eat (at Red Lobster), not today but in a day or two. He's going to treat me to it. But the thing is we went out to eat at a Thai restaurant 2 weeks ago. Is it safe to go out again or is once every two weeks too much?

ps- I'm NOT trying to lose weight but I'm not trying to gain. I lost weight and don't want it back.
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Replies

  • Ready2Rock206
    Ready2Rock206 Posts: 9,487 Member
    Look at the nutrition info online - make it fit in your calories. Red Lobster has a lot of low calorie options.
  • hncary
    hncary Posts: 176 Member
    You can go out as often as you want. You just look up the nutrition ahead of time and fit it into your calories. If you go out and eat blindly and as much as you want then you can definitely gain weight if that's what you're asking. There isn't a magic number though for how often you should or shouldn't go out. Red Lobster will have all of their nutrition facts on their website so you could plan your meal out and see what kind of calories you would be looking at.
  • Laurend224
    Laurend224 Posts: 1,748 Member
    I usually get Chinese takeout once a week. It puts me up 5 lbs of water weight every single time. Still gonna eat it. :)
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
    As long as it's in your calories and you make good choices, sure. Red Lobster has a light menu, just don't go nuts on the biscuits beforehand... or eat lightly the rest of the day to make room for more calories. They have their nutrition information online I believe, so you can plan ahead.

    The only thing with eating out too much is water retention from all the sodium and being able to stick to better options without eating all the bread and desserts (for me).
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    if you eat at maintenance then you won't gain …where you eat has nothing to do with it. check the nutritional information and pre log it into MFP and then build the rest of your day around that….
  • eileensofianmushinfine
    eileensofianmushinfine Posts: 303 Member
    i have found that we eat out very little now. there are SO many hidden calories as well as sodium. I still feel bloated from my dinner out on Saturday night. Also, if you're like me, there are so many triggers -- another piece of bread, having an appetizer or dessert -- and it all adds up. I think we go out about 1-2 times per month now. For the rest of the week I work hard at staying close to my calories and macros.
  • sherbear702
    sherbear702 Posts: 650 Member
    ItalianChick90 wrote: »
    My boyfriend wants to go out to eat (at Red Lobster), not today but in a day or two. He's going to treat me to it. But the thing is we went out to eat at a Thai restaurant 2 weeks ago. Is it safe to go out again or is once every two weeks too much?

    ps- I'm NOT trying to lose weight but I'm not trying to gain. I lost weight and don't want it back.

    AKA, you're in maintenance. Exercise extra hard today, tomorrow and the next day. Don't eat all day and binge at dinner...you've got several options. Pick the one that works best for you.
  • hncary
    hncary Posts: 176 Member
    Some people also find that its better for them to look at their calories as a weekly goal as opposed to a daily thing. I've heard of a lot of people who maintain eating at a deficit throughout the week so that on the weekends they can eat more. There are definitely ways to make it work for you if going out is something you enjoy doing
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    I go out to eat 3-4 times a week. It does not adversely affect my weight.

    Red Lobster has plenty of low-cal dishes if that's what you're after. Plain old grilled fish is a great calorie bargain.
  • Jiggle_all_the_way
    Jiggle_all_the_way Posts: 32 Member
    I don't eat out a lot. Everyone is giving great advise for how to eat out healthily. But, I usually have a weight gain. It's not from eating too much or going over my calories, it's from most restaurants loading everything with way too much salt. But it's not fat gain, it's total water weight. Just a few days later and it's gone.
  • ItalianChick90
    ItalianChick90 Posts: 34 Member
    edited April 2015
    Thanks all! :) Do you know how many calories is in a Red Lobster biscuit by the way? I haven't been there since I was a kid lol I would eat like 5 biscuits when I was young (I won't this time).
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    jemhh wrote: »
    I go out to eat 3-4 times a week. It does not adversely affect my weight.

    Red Lobster has plenty of low-cal dishes if that's what you're after. Plain old grilled fish is a great calorie bargain.

    if OP is going to go out to eat, at least get something a little more interesting than plain old grilled fish …blackened maybe or something???
  • blossomingbutterfly
    blossomingbutterfly Posts: 743 Member
    I eat out twice a week! Haha. I make it fit into my calorie goals, I make sure my macros are fine, and I make sure that I enjoy the foods I want. You can totally do that. Choose the foods you want that fit with what you want. It hasn't prevented me from losing weight, and it hasn't made me gain weight either. Do what works for you!!!
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    i eat out all the time. As long as you are within your calorie limits, dont worry about it!

    and if you go over on occasion, its not a big deal....
  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    ItalianChick90 wrote: »
    Thanks all! :) Do you know how many calories is in a Red Lobster biscuit by the way? I haven't been there since I was a kid lol I would eat like 5 biscuits when I was young (I won't this time).

    150 calories for one biscuit…not bad ...
  • Lasmartchika
    Lasmartchika Posts: 3,440 Member
    I go out at least once at week... and I enjoy going out, without worrying whether I'll gain or die or something... Savor every bite of whatever you want to order. :yum:
  • ItalianChick90
    ItalianChick90 Posts: 34 Member
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    ItalianChick90 wrote: »
    Thanks all! :) Do you know how many calories is in a Red Lobster biscuit by the way? I haven't been there since I was a kid lol I would eat like 5 biscuits when I was young (I won't this time).

    150 calories for one biscuit…not bad ...
    Thanks

  • ndj1979
    ndj1979 Posts: 29,136 Member
    the menu is actually pretty reasonable, calorie wise..looks like they only have one option over 1000 cals and that is 1500 ..

    http://www.redlobster.com/health/nutrition/Nutrition_Facts.pdf
  • ROBOTFOOD
    ROBOTFOOD Posts: 5,527 Member
    A lot lol. 5-7x/week. I don't diet/restrict foods though. Just look at the nutrition info and try to keep the cals low. And keep an eye on the sodium if you're worried about water gains.
  • jemhh
    jemhh Posts: 14,261 Member
    ndj1979 wrote: »
    jemhh wrote: »
    I go out to eat 3-4 times a week. It does not adversely affect my weight.

    Red Lobster has plenty of low-cal dishes if that's what you're after. Plain old grilled fish is a great calorie bargain.

    if OP is going to go out to eat, at least get something a little more interesting than plain old grilled fish …blackened maybe or something???

    Ha. Well she seemed worried about calories so I just picked something low cal. I, personally, would get shrimp, shrimp, and shrimp. Plus shrimp on top of my salad.
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
    edited April 2015
    160 calories per biscuit ETA oops already answered
  • ItalianChick90
    ItalianChick90 Posts: 34 Member

    ndj1979 wrote: »
    the menu is actually pretty reasonable, calorie wise..looks like they only have one option over 1000 cals and that is 1500 ..

    http://www.redlobster.com/health/nutrition/Nutrition_Facts.pdf

    Ooooh thank you for this! The Parmesan-Crusted Tilapia looks interesting (and only 370 calories).
  • Lounmoun
    Lounmoun Posts: 8,423 Member
    Prior to this month, I would eat out once a week.
    Just plan in advance and it'll be fine.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    If you're eating at maintenance, then you get more calories for allotment and there should be no problem. It doesn't matter what you eat, just how much.
  • Machka9
    Machka9 Posts: 25,690 Member
    Normally, my husband and I rarely eat out. So that possibility didn't really enter my head when I signed up here in mid-Feb. And then the unexpected happened and we went out for my birthday, we had friends from out of town visit and we went out with them, we travelled at Easter and visited friends and of course went out to dinner ...

    All of a sudden we were social butterflies! :lol:

    I kept losing weight through it all by doing the following:

    -- looking up the restaurants ahead of time. Some had nutrition data on the food choices so I made my selection in advance.

    -- selecting the vegetarian dishes. I'm not vegetarian, but when I was reading through the nutrition data of restaurant meals, I discovered that the vegetarian dishes tended to be lower calorie.

    -- selecting sides of salad and veg, without dressing, instead of chips.

    -- sharing a portion of my meal with my husband.

    -- exercising ... a lot. I'd go out for a good 3-4 hour bicycle ride before going out to dinner in the hopes of burning off whatever I ate.
  • bonneboo
    bonneboo Posts: 27 Member
    I like the comment about getting boring grilled fish. That is the "old School" way of eating when you go out. No way - blackened sounds wonderful!! I plan for mine to be breaded and fried, its like doing my homework before I leave
  • cresyluna
    cresyluna Posts: 48 Member
    I eat out a good bit, probably 2-3x a week for dinner for once (rarely more) a week for lunch. My husband and I go out for breakfast maybe 1-2x a month. A lot of times we eat places that don't have menus available before hand, so I try to exercise a bit more ahead of time and go for the lighter options if possible, and not infrequently take half of the meal home - a lot of portions are gigantic!
  • LessthanKris
    LessthanKris Posts: 607 Member
    We eat out about once a week. I actually have no problem not gaining from but it does make it harder for me to lose. I have slacked a bit lately and have been maintaining the last few weeks but when I was losing I just saved up calories on other days so I could just go out and eat whatever I wanted. It also works out better for me if it is dinner since I typically eat the most calories during that meal anyway. My breakfasts and lunches are usually pretty low cal.
  • rosebette
    rosebette Posts: 1,660 Member
    If you're smaller and older like I am and have a low calorie limit to even keep a deficit, I wouldn't advise eating out more than once a week. Basically, I can undo all my progress for the week in one day. Even the lower calorie options are at least 500+ calories for a meal, and of course, let's not talk about alcohol. On a 1200 calorie plan, you have to give up breakfast or lunch to eat well at night. I'm active on the days I work -- walking 6000 steps or more just on campus -- and I can't starve myself all day so I can eat out at night. I personally believe my weekly "cheat meal" out is responsible for my plateau, but I can't bear to give it up. If I eat out more than once a week, I gain. We had some birthdays over the last couple weeks, and I'm 2-3 lbs. heavier than I should be. I'm still trying to figure out what I want more -- to weigh 115 lbs. or less -- or to enjoy my life.
  • TheVirgoddess
    TheVirgoddess Posts: 4,535 Member
    We eat out way too much (4-5 times a week). It hasn't prevented me from losing a relatively high amount of weight. I just make sure to fit whatever I eat into my budget for the day. That usually means eating a light breakfast and lunch - I'm okay with that.
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