Going out

Estimate based on similar dishes/meals from restaurants that publish calorie counts; from similar meals/dishes in the MFP database (if there are multiples, pick a medium to high one); or by mentally deconstructing the food and estimating the parts (such as logging sandwich as 2 slices bread, 1 tablespoon mayo, 30g cheese, etc).

Don't agonize over it, just make your best guess and go on with life: That'll work fine.

+1 to Ann's advice, she is wise.

It's not clear if you're going to a restaurant of some kind or to someone's home for this planned meal out. If there's a way to see a menu beforehand, that's a good way to strategize and decide in advance what you're going to eat. When I know in advance I'm going out to a restaurant, I look up their menu and decide what I'm going to order, then log that as best I can; if they have calorie counts on the menu I may just Quick Add it, if not I'll make a best guess and err on the side of overestimating, as Ann describes.

If it's more a situation of going to someone's home and eating food they have prepared, that gets a little dicier. For a one-off gathering, do your best; maybe sneakily take a pic of your plate so you can log later, if you don't want to be the person scrolling through your phone at table. If it's a standing invitation, like if you do this weekly or whatever, then it's a little easier to wheedle the menu out of the host in advance and ballpark the calories; my husband and I have dinner with his folks on Sundays and have done for almost 10 years, so at this point it's not hard or awkward to find out what the plan is.

goal06082021 wrote: »

+1 to Ann's advice, she is wise.

It's not clear if you're going to a restaurant of some kind or to someone's home for this planned meal out. If there's a way to see a menu beforehand, that's a good way to strategize and decide in advance what you're going to eat. When I know in advance I'm going out to a restaurant, I look up their menu and decide what I'm going to order, then log that as best I can; if they have calorie counts on the menu I may just Quick Add it, if not I'll make a best guess and err on the side of overestimating, as Ann describes.

If it's more a situation of going to someone's home and eating food they have prepared, that gets a little dicier. For a one-off gathering, do your best; maybe sneakily take a pic of your plate so you can log later, if you don't want to be the person scrolling through your phone at table. If it's a standing invitation, like if you do this weekly or whatever, then it's a little easier to wheedle the menu out of the host in advance and ballpark the calories; my husband and I have dinner with his folks on Sundays and have done for almost 10 years, so at this point it's not hard or awkward to find out what the plan is.

Good advice there, too.

For the bolded scenario, another tactic in your toolkit - if you're sincere, and can keep it polite - is the "this is so delicious, how do you make it, can I have the recipe, does it have (XYZ potential ingredient it would be helpful to know about for calorie estimating purposes)?" kind of social conversation. Examples of the latter: "So yummy rich, lots of butter?" or "I love the cheese in this, what kind is it?"

Be careful, though - in the right context, it'll come across as nice to be interested, but rude to pry or badger, and social history with the host really matters. Light touch! 😉

paubarc wrote: »

Hi, it's not a restaurant it's a harvest supper at church, I will be good during the day a day just best guess.

That's sounds like it could be very enjoyable, if your church folks are good cooks!

Estimate as best you can, using tricks/tips above, enjoy it, try to be reasonable (as much as possible within the context of enjoyment) estimate it and log it, don't worry if you're over your normal goal a bit.

The majority of our days determine the majority of our progress.

Sometimes, folks over-focus on the rare case, become anxious about social connection via food, ruin their enjoyment, short-change the social connections of appreciating others company and cooking. It's an opportunity to work on learning the life skills you'll need in happy maintenance: Enjoyment, moderation, and chiefly *balance*.

Just my opinion, of course.

If I'm going out, I jist fast for that entire day and make that my one meal. Dont even count calories. Chances are I'll be full by the time I reach my calorie limit for the day