Eating Out

I eat out rarely, but I do it as much because of cost as I do for nutrition. I think if you're still having success, and your estimations aren't taking you off track, keep doing you. You want to build the habits that will work for you the rest of your life, and if eating out is a part of that, then it's a good time to learn how to keep weight off while still eating out.

I dine out at least once a week, I love it and would never give it up! I usually try to choose the lowest calorie stuff on the menu and make it work in my calorie allocation, but if it's something like pizza or fried food, I try to get a workout in to counterbalance.

It sounds like your arrangement is working for you since your weightloss so far has been great (congrats!), but if your frustrated by the slowing down of your progress you could try cutting back for a week or two I guess.

I don't eat out often. When I do, I go for food items that are in the MFP databases. Since it's only chain restaurants that need to list calories, and no kosher restaurant in Toronto has more than 2 locations, I can't know THEIR calories. But I feel safe in taking the calories from a large slice of cheese pizza from Pizza Pizza and assuming that I got roughly that much from a large slice of cheese pizza from Tov Li or Slice N Bites (2 kosher pizza places near me). Shakshuka (poached eggs in tomato sauce) is something you really have to "work" at to make high calorie; it's basically poached eggs in a chunky tomato sauce of varying levels of spicy. Felafel's high-calorie, but again, it's listed and I can make up my mind whether it's worth it.

I try to avoid obvious calorie bombs, unless it's a special occasion and I decide to go for it. The pasta in sauce that comes in a salad bowl for a single serving? The salads that have extras like toasted seeds, candied nuts, diced up avocado, and dried fruit, all tossed together so I can't eyeball and guesstimate amounts? Ordering it with dressing on the side won't save me. Burekas, saabich (a full-to-bursting wrap containing a whole assortment of Middle-Eastern salads, many on the oily side if not fried)... kind of not happening. But grilled veggies in a pita with either hummus or feta is workable.

I've messaged restaurants on their facebook pages asking them if they have a ballpark for the calories or what their lower-cal options are. So far, I haven't gotten a positive answer on the first question but I generally get tips for the second. And suggestions like, "Our shakshuka comes with a bread bowl, but you can request it in a pan instead. The grilled eggplant has tehina sauce drizzled over it, but you can get it on the side if you ask." I prefer asking in advance, since I get an answer from someone who isn't bustling around between 4-5 tables taking orders and trying to catch the chef at a non-hectic moment in the middle of a rush who's tempted to just say something, true or not, so I'll order already.

I don't eat out as often as I'd like, but that is largely because it is a waste of money when it is so easy to cook quick easy meals myself. I also have the problem that I always end up eating too many calories when I eat out. I see no point in having chicken breast and brocolli at a restaurant when I can make it myself a lot cheaper. Bread and beer add a lot to even a healthy meal. If I'm seriously training, I don't care, but when I'm running less, it adds up quickly and isn't really worth it. When we are travelling, and I eat out more, I always gain weight.

During my active weight loss phase I ate out usually 2-4 times a week. It didn't hinder my weight loss at all.

Now, 6 years into maintenance, we usually eat out once every weekend (usually pizza). Sometimes it might be twice a week, just depends on our schedules.

every friday because screw cooking on the last day of the work week!

When I was losing weight, I ate out pretty rarely. I continue that in maintenance. We order in pizza once or twice per month and eat out maybe 3-4 times per month at the most.

We have a family pizza night weekly, where I usually eat a slice and make myself a salad too. Easily fits in my calories. Other than that we might eat out once a month. I don’t order low calorie when we go out. If I’m going to spend the money, I want something that really tastes good and that I wouldn’t make at home. But I’ll usually only eat half of it (husband gladly takes the leftovers!). If we ate out more I might need a different plan, but I’m pretty cheap.

I used to eat out twice a week; now I go once a week.