DINING OUT TIPS!
Happy_Harlow
Posts: 50
When you dine out at a restaurant what are some things you do in order to make sure you enjoy dinner and not starve, but also eat haelthy and stay within your calorie range? So many places have an ABSURD amount of calories in their dishes that it seems so challenging! My boyfriend and I really enjoy going out once a week on a date, but I always feel challenged when I go!
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Replies
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what about fish? or any thing grilled with a jacket/baked potato and salad?0
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salad, lean meats... stay away from breads and pastas and even some rice. actually even bread buns can be bad and can be like 300 calories by themselves. sides of veggies that are roasted or steamed. soups can be bad... but not always.
check the online menu for nutrition information. sometimes some options aren't too bad.0 -
oh and ask for sauces to be on the side so you can control how much you are having.0
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If I know in advance that I'm going, I check out nutritional info before hand and do comparisons. For instance, I learned that at Coltons Steakhouse, I can have a cup of baked potato soup for considerably less calories than their dinner salad and fat free dressing. I stay away from appetizers and desserts obviously and try to keep the meal sensible, yet yummy! I'm a big fan of grilled shrimp! And you can request your steamed veggies with no butter.
Happy Eating!0 -
If I know I'm going out, I try to plan around it. Eat lighter that day, or for a couple of days before and make sure I get my workouts (and maybe an extra one) in. Then I go and enjoy myself. You don't have to deprive yourself, or stop eating out all together to lose weight and keep it off. Just be mindful and make it work into your meal and work out plans.0
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Depends on the quality of the service provided, but usually from 10-20% of the total bill.0
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I always look up where we are going before i go so i can pick what i want within my cals from the get go.0
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I don't restrict myself - except with portion size. So many restaurant portions are crazy-oversized.
But as for foods - if I want it, I'll eat it. Including breadsticks, or dessert - any of that. I just eat less of them.
Also, if I really want to treat myself, or if I know that wherever we're going is higher-calorie in general, I'll make sure to juggle my calories in the hours/days surrounding eating out. I'll eat very light for breakfast and lunch that day, leaving quite a few calories for dinner, and maybe I'll even eat lighter the day before and day after, going under my calories by one or two hundred. If the weekly calories even out, then I'm set.
I don't like depriving myself. :-)0 -
Watch for salad dressings... and be careful of any "big salads".. insane amounts of calories! I also try to drink a few glasses of water before I go out.. and sometimes eat an apple or something.. just so that I don't arrive at the restaurant absolutely starving and my "big eyes" get the best of me!0
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If I know where I am going I try to plan ahead by looking at the menu online or looking up certain dishes on MFP. Grilled chicken is a good safe choice, or fish. Basically lean meats. Salads can be good and bad, watch the dressing and the topping closely. For Mexican, the wife and I will split chicken fajitas and stay away from the rice and beans. It is tough eating out, plain and simple. In the last 6 months we've gone from eating out 4-5 times a week down to 1-2 times a week. Its just too many calories!!0
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1. Sharing a dish can be romantic or cost effective (in terms of money and calories). Whichever way you want to look at that
2. Ask for a doggie bag with your food and immediately pack half away for lunch.
3. Share dessert or eat part of it and take home the rest.
4. Order off of the the diet or skinny menu (Cheesecake Factory, Applebees, Ruby Tuesday).
5. The salad bar can be a full meal. Figure out what you are actually hungry for instead of just grabbing stuff and opt to add your own oil and vinegar. Switch the classic oil to vinegar ratio--2 parts vinegar to 1 part oil instead of the other way around.
6. Say no to rolls or just have one and save the rest for your doggie bag.0 -
If it's a big chain restaurant...I always look up nutrition info before I go. Applebees has really good low calorie meals and also if you want to have a few drinks...they have skinny margaritas and mojitos. Chili's has a few low calorie meals.0
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1. Sharing a dish can be romantic or cost effective (in terms of money and calories). Whichever way you want to look at that
2. Ask for a doggie bag with your food and immediately pack half away for lunch.
3. Share dessert or eat part of it and take home the rest.
4. Order off of the the diet or skinny menu (Cheesecake Factory, Applebees, Ruby Tuesday).
5. The salad bar can be a full meal. Figure out what you are actually hungry for instead of just grabbing stuff and opt to add your own oil and vinegar. Switch the classic oil to vinegar ratio--2 parts vinegar to 1 part oil instead of the other way around.
6. Say no to rolls or just have one and save the rest for your doggie bag.0 -
Also, order the lower calorie versions of cocktails like the Skinny Mojito.0
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Plan, Plan, Plan!!! Figure out where you are going in advance and try to choose somewhere that offers nutrition info online. IHOP has an amazing spinach egg white omelet and fruit on their lite menu that I love. At a steakhouse, a petite steak, sweet potato (with cinnamon & brown sugar on the side, no buter) and fresh veggies or mushrooms is a good choice. Just pick what you will have in advance, log it and stick to it. If you need to, "earn" extra calories with exercise before you go!0
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Applebees and Ruby Tuesdays are two places you can go that tell you the amount of calories in your meals if you order their fit & trim or weight watchers meals.0
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i dont go out to restaurants that often so i would eat whatever i like (within reason), and make up for this by doing some extra exercise or having only a small lunch on that day.
try and look up the menu before you go then you can work out what will work best for you, whether you decide to indulge slightly or go for low cal options. most restaurant portions are much larger than a standard 'serving', so be aware of this if you are trying to work out the cals for your meal.
some good things to look out for:
avoid pre-meal munchies such as the bread basket / breadsticks / poppadoms
dont be afraid to ask for your food to be cooked how you want it
avoid things that are deep fried / sauteed / cooked in oil / butter
go for tomato based sauces rather than creamy / cheesy sauces
watch out for dressing on salad, some caesar salads can have over 1000 calories with the dressing, cheese and croutons, get dressing on the side then you can control how much of it you eat
if you choose something higher cal, ask for a half portion and get salad / veggies on the side.
share dessert with your BF.0 -
My family used to dine out all the time. It's what lead me to over 200 lbs. BUT, by using the tips below, I was able to lose 80lbs (with work out of course) still dining out many times per week!
1 - Check the menu out before you go. Know what you want to order and order first, so that other people's tempting choices won't change your mind!
2 - Don't completely deprive yourself! Allow yourself 1 bread roll. Allow a plain baked potato instead of fries. Let the people you're with know...there's no shame in that! This way you'll keep yourself in check because you know everyone's watching.
3 - Most menus now of days have a "healthy" section. Go straight there. Do not pass appetizers. Do no pick up additional sides
4 - Drink lots of water! Before, during and after your meal.
5 - If there are big portions, ask for a box as soon as you get your food and put half away, this way you're not tempted to eat the whole thing!
6 - If possible, always order the "lunch" portion.
7 - Don't go starving! I know it sounds crazy, but have a healthy snack before you go. Some carrots, or a piece of multigrain break with peanut butter. You'll be less likely to be overly tempted by buttery dishes when you're not ravenous.
8 - Skip the cocktail. I know, it sucks, but alcohol is just liquid calories.
9 - Sauces/dressings on the side always helps. Dip your fork in the dress/sauce and then into the food. You get a hint of flavor from the dressing without the overload of calories!
10 - Don't be afraid to treat yourself to something SMALL. Sometimes just a bite of cake, or a spoonful of ice cream is all you need for that sweet craving. If you're ordering dessert, split it with one or more people.
GOOD LUCK!!
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Try to decide on a place before hand and go online to look at their menu to choose what you will eat and log your calories. If this is not possible, ask for grilled chicken salad or grilled chicken with steamed broccoli. Most places can provide this even if it's not on the menu. (Best to skip the cheese on the broccoli, however.)0
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I go online and look at nutrition info and pick what I'm going to eat before I go, then I enter it in for the day and plan the rest of what I eat that day around dinner ( or whatever meal I'm eating out at) and then try and burn off the difference with however much exercise is needed! If the place I'm going disn't have nutrition info, I just make an educated guess and go from there. I lost 60 pounds (before I got pregnant) and I never refused an invitaion out with the hubbs or friends!0
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While waiting to order check the foods info on the MFP app if you have a smartphone. I normally eat the same meal at certain resturants but do like to change it up once in a while. The MFP app helps with that. We eat at Logans Steakhouse about once a month. The app tells me how many rolls I can eat. 0
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I follow the same rules when eating out as I do at home, nothing fried or slathered in butter. Sauces and dressings on the side. No bacon or croutons (or other extremely high cal/fat additions) on my salad. I make healthier choices when available and limit my portion sizes. If there is something I really want I have it in moderation.
I tend to go to the same restaurants so I know what my choices are and have a good idea of the calorie content of what I'm eating. If it's a special occasion or a new place I try to check out their nutrition guide before going or ask to see it when I get there.0 -
It is a very hard thing to do.
1) If you know ahead of time that you are going out save as many calories as possible. Eat smaller breakfast and lunch or skip one. If possible work out as much if not more than normal.
2) If it is a chain see if the calorie counts are online. Then you can have a reasonable expectation of how much you can eat.
3) Try not to eat out too much. Save it for the weekends. You should reward yourself. If you work hard all week watching what you eat and exercising there is nothing wrong with having one night where you have appetizers, entree's and dessert or drink more than you should. But if you eat out 3-4 times a week it becomes very difficult to continue losing weight unless you starve yourself the rest of those days.
4) If calories are not listed on the web use what is in Myfitness database as a guide even if for a different restaurant and always overestimate what you ate.0 -
I sometimes just order al a carte.
Or no fried foods, no buns, tortillas etc. Anything grilled, like fish/chicken.
Watch the dressings/sauces.
Don't be afraid to ask how they cook something or what the weight of it is. They usually have a set serving size.
Or ask them to make it light, by not using oils or butter, cheese etc.0 -
I always go for the salmon0
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Usually I....
1.) Scope out the menu before I go so I can make reasonable choices and don't feel so overwhelmed once I'm there.
2.) Put in an extra workout so I have a litle room to splurge and enjoy myself - within reason of course.
3.) Some of my local favorites are... steak or salmon with a side of broccoli (make sure it's not steamed or topped with butter) OR pasta with a red sauce of some kind OR a big dinner salad like a steak salad or grilled chicken salad with balsamic vinegar dressing.
4.) Depending on what I get I may ask for a to go box right away. If I put part of the meal in the to go box first - I still have that feeling of getting to eat every last yummy bite off my plate.
5.) Drink water or unsweetened icetea. Then you don't lose any calories on your beverage and have more to spare for food or for a small glass of wine.
6.) If I'm hungry for a burger I'll go for it but usually I ask for no or light mayo and I will ask for a side of fruit vs. fries.
Good Luck!0 -
Every single one of these is a great tip! We eat out a lot also and I follow all of these.My family used to dine out all the time. It's what lead me to over 200 lbs. BUT, by using the tips below, I was able to lose 80lbs (with work out of course) still dining out many times per week!
1 - Check the menu out before you go. Know what you want to order and order first, so that other people's tempting choices won't change your mind!
2 - Don't completely deprive yourself! Allow yourself 1 bread roll. Allow a plain baked potato instead of fries. Let the people you're with know...there's no shame in that! This way you'll keep yourself in check because you know everyone's watching.
3 - Most menus now of days have a "healthy" section. Go straight there. Do not pass appetizers. Do no pick up additional sides
4 - Drink lots of water! Before, during and after your meal.
5 - If there are big portions, ask for a box as soon as you get your food and put half away, this way you're not tempted to eat the whole thing!
6 - If possible, always order the "lunch" portion.
7 - Don't go starving! I know it sounds crazy, but have a healthy snack before you go. Some carrots, or a piece of multigrain break with peanut butter. You'll be less likely to be overly tempted by buttery dishes when you're not ravenous.
8 - Skip the cocktail. I know, it sucks, but alcohol is just liquid calories.
9 - Sauces/dressings on the side always helps. Dip your fork in the dress/sauce and then into the food. You get a hint of flavor from the dressing without the overload of calories!
10 - Don't be afraid to treat yourself to something SMALL. Sometimes just a bite of cake, or a spoonful of ice cream is all you need for that sweet craving. If you're ordering dessert, split it with one or more people.
GOOD LUCK!!0 -
When ordering grilled items, ask to have them dry grilled (without any extra oil or fat). There is generally enough residual oil on the grill top from other items to sufficiently lubricate the grill and prevent burning that excess oil isn't needed; its just added fat. Also, be aware of the 'light' or 'diet' items. For example, the Applebee's Weight Watchers Approved Fiesta Lime Chicken has around 4995mg of sodium! That is twice the RDA for sodium. Many lower fat items are riddled with salt. Sometimes the extra fat is better because your body will burn it however the excess sodium can be very dangerous to some, especially for those with hypertension. Do yourself a favor, plan ahead. Look up the restaurant menu and nutrition facts online and plan out your meal before you go. When the server brings the menu, don't open it. Just order what you have planned. If you open it, you can change your mind because you can be attracted to other foods. Good Luck!!0
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All these tips are really good, but don't forget you can always order a la carte. I went to an Italian restaurant where they served TWO chicken breats with goat cheese and sundried tomatoes with pasta (or another side) AND a soup or salad. SO much food that I didn't need. I just asked if I could just get the chicken with the cheese and tomatoes. After explaining I didn't want the pasta OR the soup/salad, the waiter brought me exactly what I asked for..and it was DELICIOUS. I probably wouldn't have enjoyed it so much if I had all the other junk with it. Plus, I allowed myself enough calories to have one piece of bread with their delicious herbs and oil. And I'm still dreaming about that chicken!0
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I order a to go container with my meal and when my meal comes I transfer half of the plate into the to go box.
I order my burger with extra lettuce and no bun. I also ask what sides they have, and order something that is better for me than french fries.
I look up the nutritional information on line, decide what I am going to order, and then don't even look at the menu when I get there.
I only drink water with lemon.
If I want cocktails... I will order vodka or rum and diet soda, or light beer.
Eat slowly, this is good for you on so many levels. Chew your food thoroughly, this also aides in digestion.
enjoy the company you are with by putting down your fork between bites and socializing a little bit.
Definitely order sauce on the side. dip your fork in and then get the salad on it.
These are tips I use.0
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