Does anyone else feel guilty when eating out?

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2

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  • JeromeBarry1
    JeromeBarry1 Posts: 10,182 Member
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    Dining out, for my weight loss effort, is not an occasion of despair. Use it as a time to demonstrate your mastery over their offerings.
  • born_of_fire74
    born_of_fire74 Posts: 776 Member
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    Not guilty but generally a little regretful because the fast food calorie bomb has used up so much of budget for the day that I really have to skimp on everything else to make it fit. It's analogous to being house poor or car poor. I can afford it in that I can make the payments, strictly speaking, but so little is left over for the rest of my life that it's not really worth it.
  • dhiammarath
    dhiammarath Posts: 834 Member
    edited February 2019
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    I eat out more times than I eat in. If I am choosing to do something, it is under full knowledge that either I will be going over calories that day, staying at my goal, or somewhere in between. I don't sweat it so long as my general trend is going in the right direction.

    I can't eat fast food much anymore (most places aren't friendly to my allergies), but if I COULD, I would. I lost the bulk of my weight eating lots of delicious tacos from Taco Bell. XD (I miss soft tacos so much. Flour tortillas... I am not a huge food person but I think I'd stuff a tortilla in my mouth right now if it didn't make me ill... ahem, I digress).

    My tastes have changed (yay more options for me!) and I'm slightly LESS picky than I was, so now I have more food options but less "going out" options. Still, we make do because both my husband and I are not into cooking at home all the time. >.> So I do what's sustainable for me and don't subscribe to guilt over food.
  • kami3006
    kami3006 Posts: 4,978 Member
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    I eat it, I log it, I hit my calorie and macro goals with it and I call it a day. Nothing to be guilty about.
  • AnilAnhirode
    AnilAnhirode Posts: 20 Member
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    Thanks for the responses guys.

    I definitely don't enjoy fast food as much as I used to. Some of you shared the same mind set as me, I would agree going to a restaurant trumps fast food. I love me my fried chicken wings!

    When I see the calories in a McChicken I think of the quantity of food I can eat at home and be more satisfied.
  • whatalazyidiot
    whatalazyidiot Posts: 343 Member
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    Yes and no, but not because I'm eating out. It's more that I have become picky about where I use my calories if I'm not eating at home. I will save calories for something I absolutely LOVE, but 500+ calorie crappy fast food burgers are no longer worth it to me. Unless it's more of a convenience thing, like that's all I can choose from.
  • Fflpnari
    Fflpnari Posts: 975 Member
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    I do a iifym approach to weight loss so nothing is off limits.
    I used to love take out food, and now Ive lost the appeal for it. I thinks its the 1500 calorie in one setting of heavier/fattier food that doesn't go well with me. Plus the sodium. It take good but I feel so crappy from it that I just don't want it anymore
  • hazeleni
    hazeleni Posts: 87 Member
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    Yeah I do feel guilty.. But I ve gotten used to guestimating calories so I am still within a deficit.. If that burger was good I have a beer and call it maintenance day..
    Think of it thjs way.. When you were larger and tried to eat healthy or less just one day, did it make a difference? No, it was just one day, it was not possible to make a difference in your overall physique. Now work it the other way around.. Same thing..
  • skykyo
    skykyo Posts: 3 Member
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    I eat clean mon-fri and Sunday Saturday is saved for if I fancy something which actually helps me put it off if I want it say wed
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,130 Member
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    I got fat, then obese, rarely eating fast food (handful of times a year, maybe, when traveling with friends who liked it). I got fat, then obese, eating lots (lots!) of whole grains, veggies, etc. Then I became very active, even competing as a masters athlete, for over a decade . . . while staying obese.

    Nutrition is important, but I'm pretty clear that it isn't which foods one chooses that causes obesity, it's how much of them one eats. And it isn't how much exercise one does that creates a sure counterbalance to any achievable level of intake.

    Food isn't sin. It's just food. Guilt is optional.

    And, for my taste, fast food still is mostly pretty awful.
  • try2again
    try2again Posts: 3,562 Member
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    Didn't read the thread, so I'm guessing others have said this. I don't feel guilty at all, but I'm usually disappointed afterward and wish I'd used the calories for something else (usually only go because the kids want to occasionally). I'm never disappointed with a Whopper, though ;)
  • lindasuedue
    lindasuedue Posts: 7 Member
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    Not guilty, just aware that I will be logging whatever I eat in my daily food journal. Ate with friends at Taco Bell yesterday, had a lot of fun - still came in under my calorie budget by adjusting breakfast (none) and dinner (veggie pizza, salad with red wine vinegar dressing) and hitting the exercise bike for a nice spin. No reason to not enjoy food and friends, how much fun would that be?
  • aimjolie
    aimjolie Posts: 60 Member
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    I don’t feel guilty when I eat out. But I do try moderation. I’ll order the hamburger, forget the chocolate shake, and try to avoid the fries or go half on fries with a friend. Guilt serves no purpose except to make you feel bad. The only time I feel guilty if I mindlessly pick on junk food snacks late at night. And to solve that problem, I don’t buy it so it’s not there to tempt me. I think basically, you can eat everything but just in moderation. I can have that 1 or 2 cookie but not half the package. Really no food should be off limits. We need to find a lifestyle that we can live with and still be a normal weight. Deprivation is certainly not the answer because it leads to binges. At times, it’s difficult to eat in moderation. But it’s worth it. There is no greater feeling than having those pants fit well or going to the store and buying something you really like that fits and shows off that new slim figure to perfection.
  • kimny72
    kimny72 Posts: 16,013 Member
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    To my critics.. just try giving up fast food and see if you reach your weight loss or maintenance goals more easily. I predict.. you will.

    I already did reach my weight loss goals and have been maintaining with little effort for 2 years. In between veggies, fruits, whole grains, fish, eggs, chicken etc I did and do regularly eat Wendy's, Taco Bell, pizza, Dunkin Donuts, frozen dinners, convenience snacks. Moderation has already worked for lots of us. If someone doesn't feel those foods are worth the calories, or has a mindset where they are unable to moderate those foods, then they might need to avoid some of them I guess. I'm personally thrilled I learned to moderate them, because I enjoy them.
  • Jackie9003
    Jackie9003 Posts: 1,106 Member
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    I never feel guilty about eating something I like or want, I log it and move on.
    I do find I make different choices now though, whereas in the past I would eat out and have 3 courses but now generally have 2 or I'll have 3 courses but opt for one of them being a "light" option.
  • AnnPT77
    AnnPT77 Posts: 32,130 Member
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    To my critics.. just try giving up fast food and see if you reach your weight loss or maintenance goals more easily. I predict.. you will.

    LOL, very questionable crystal ball you've got there.

    I eat the same amount of fast food I always did (possibly a tiny bit more, but still very little). At the fast food joints I occasionally visit (most often to socialize with friends who enjoy them), I've found meals that give me sound nutrition that contributes to my daily goals (including vegetarian protein), are filling, and come in at reasonable calories. Other than the occasional Subway salad, I wouldn't eat any of those fast foods purely for taste, though.

    In year 3 of maintenance at a healthy weight, doing just fine, thanks.

    Glad to hear you're doing fine with your preferred ways of eating for weight loss and maintenance, too - sincerely. :flowerforyou: