Appalling!

kinkyslinky16
kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
edited November 11 in Health and Weight Loss
My husband and I grabbed lunch at Taco Bueno today just because we were helping my in-laws paint one of their rent houses. It was quick and nearby.. Can't even tell you the last time I had fast food.. I try to avoid fast food as much as possible usually.. Typically I look at restaurants nutrition information before I go somewhere so I can pick out the most calorie-efficient dish... I didn't get a chance to do that today.. My cell phone was dead at the time.

So I did what any calorie-counter would do.. I picked what I thought might be 800 or so calories.. Sure, it's a high calorie meal but nothing I couldn't work off later if I went over my calories (I was thinking 300 or so calories over maybe?).. I logged my calories on my phone after lunch and it was nearly 2000 calories.. I thought that couldn't be right, so I decided to double check it when I got home.. It was an appalling 2000 calorie lunch after all.. I am horrified!!! I got a bean burrito, muchaco, and taco (#5)... I also helped my husband with his beef enchilada =(

I am so disappointed... How can a bean burrito be over 600 calories!?!??!?! What the hell is it made with?! Lard?!?!

I tried to make up for it by having grilled salmon and veggies for dinner... But even still, I am a whopping 1440 calories over.. I'm about to go jump on the elliptical to try to recoup as many calories as I can lol..

Anyway, my whole point is that I would have had a meal like this prior to MFP and never once would calorie content come to mind... It's no wonder I gained all of my pregnancy weight back and then some!! After being here for a few months, I can see why I am so overweight... It's a real eye opener... Even still, it's disappointing when you thought you were choosing something that was work-out-able lol.. but in reality, you couldn't have been more wrong!

Anyone else have a similar experience?
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Replies

  • Jennisin1
    Jennisin1 Posts: 574 Member
    That is NUTS... who would have thought it could even be close to that!!! I have only gone out to eat once since I started really using this site correctly. I went to a restaurant that has weight watcher meals under 500 calories so I didn't have to think to hard.

    I miss eating out.... and I LOVE Mexican
  • hapoo100
    hapoo100 Posts: 926 Member
    In NY its a state law that they have to put the calorie count on all food. I was shocked by the calorie counts in food. Very rarely is something under 1000 calories.
  • kinkyslinky16
    kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
    In NY its a state law that they have to put the calorie count on all food. I was shocked by the calorie counts in food. Very rarely is something under 1000 calories.

    Wow!!! I live in TX so we're too red for that to ever happen lol.. But my husband and I were just talking about how that should be required so people are able to make better decisions..
  • brandie_lou
    brandie_lou Posts: 46
    I'm so glad I read this and thank you for venting because I was so upset after I saw my dinner yesterday. There is a cafe here where I live, Tropical Smoothie Cafe & their slogan is "Eat better, feel better". I got a low cal kiwi smoothie & a chicken salad sandwhich. Yeah......the sandwhich alone was over 700 calories & the smoothie was over 400. I looked online at their nutrition menu & I could have eaten a McDonald's DOUBLE quarter pounder for around the same calories, fat and carbs as compared to the chicken salad. That's just comparing sandwhich to sandwhich.

    I feel your frustration, it is a lot of time and effort into looking online at all these food places and it is such a shocker because some of us don't have the time to cook for every meal. And even when you cook for every meal you have to calculate everything you add into your meal.
  • Usbornegal
    Usbornegal Posts: 601 Member
    We are all in a Health Recovery program here. Part of it is that sometimes we have a bad day even with the best of intentions. But the next morning we get up, forgive ourselves, and start right back on recovering our health.
  • kinkyslinky16
    kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
    That is NUTS... who would have thought it could even be close to that!!! I have only gone out to eat once since I started really using this site correctly. I went to a restaurant that has weight watcher meals under 500 calories so I didn't have to think to hard.

    I miss eating out.... and I LOVE Mexican

    I love Mexican too!! My in-laws took us to dinner tonight, and we went to a hole in the wall kinda Mexican place... I decided to get grilled salmon and veggies.. But my husband got mashed potato enchiladas topped with brisket.................. I bet they were delicious but I would not want to count the calories in those!!!
  • myogibbs
    myogibbs Posts: 182
    Yeah, I am finding out that there are very few foods that are actually worth it...my big realization came on Superbowl Sunday when I got wings and fries. GEEZ...don't even bother to look it up...I can't even eat them anymore. Now if I get the craving, I grill a chicken breast on the George Foreman with wing sauce and fat free ranch dressing and I don't obsess anymore. You were trying to do the best in that situation, so don't beat yourself up over it....besides, painting is hard work! Tomorrow is another day :)
  • Chagama
    Chagama Posts: 543 Member
    It is unbelievable how many calories are in restaurant food. I went out for a business lunch a couple of weeks ago, and even with the "small lunch sized portions" nearly everything on the menu was over 1000 calories. I was shocked
  • joyous504
    joyous504 Posts: 72
    My sister wanted Panda Express last weekend and before we went we looked up the calories. One side serving of lo mein was 2000, with a meal added up to like 3000-4000 calories. We went to Starbucks instead and I had an 80 calorie latte and she had a 300 cinnamon coffee cake. Thank God for the ability to look up nutritional values prior to consumation. INSANITY!!!
  • jhardenbergh
    jhardenbergh Posts: 1,035 Member
    beans can have a lot of calories especially when your mixing it with the burrito shell and cheese. Was there rice in that too. If so you're probably looking at about 70 grams of carbs in just the burrito. Was it refried beans or black beans? Refried beans could really spike that number.
  • L2M1D52
    L2M1D52 Posts: 616 Member
    Yup, when I first started mfp I was shocked at what I would be eating and I would wonder how I gained weight? LoL. Just last week same thing happened to me. I went on an unplanned trip with my friend to pick up her son 2 hours away, we ate at a place I've never been and I didn't get to look up the meals before we went. I ate over a 1,000 calories just with that one meal. You're not alone. lol
  • jhyan
    jhyan Posts: 59 Member
    I am so disappointed... How can a bean burrito be over 600 calories!?!??!?! What the hell is it made with?! Lard?!?!

    Ummm, yeah. Refried beans are very commonly, and traditionally made with exactly that... lard.

    I live in TX so we're too red for that to ever happen

    New Federal law is that any company with more than 20 units has to post calorie counts in the same size font as the menu item. Nothing to do with the state you are in. I believe Taco Bueno is big enough to have to conform to that law.
  • xraychick77
    xraychick77 Posts: 1,775 Member
    um..ya most refriend beans are made with lard
  • Aerohead21
    Aerohead21 Posts: 333 Member
    I love Taco Bueno but had to stop cold turkey because I read their nutrition facts online. A lot of my favorite places have been nixed because of how "bad" it is. Ultimately, I don't feel like working that many calories off. So far on my infrequent list: Chipotle, Panera, Taco Bueno, among other things. Surprisingly on my list: McDonald's (salad, not a preferred choice but good in a pinch), Mimi's Cafe, Applebee's, Panda Express (kid's meals, they offer veggies instead of rice/noodles), and others I can't think of right now.

    Ultimately, if I can't see their nutrition facts online, I try to avoid them if possible.
  • bjohs
    bjohs Posts: 1,225 Member
    This is a learning process. People who have been on MFP for a long time have come to realize that eating out is very challenging. I try to find the nutritional information online and pre-log the food I plan to eat so I'm prepared. No worries... chalk this up as a lesson learned for next time. :)
  • kinkyslinky16
    kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
    beans can have a lot of calories especially when your mixing it with the burrito shell and cheese. Was there rice in that too. If so you're probably looking at about 70 grams of carbs in just the burrito. Was it refried beans or black beans? Refried beans could really spike that number.

    Yes, it was refried beans unfortunately =(

    I've definitely learned my lesson with the beans LOL
  • skinnylove00
    skinnylove00 Posts: 662 Member
    the same thing happened to me one time over the summer...i went to deangelos and got a greek salad wrapped up in a wrap. i thought i was okay, right?

    780 CALORIES FOR A SALAD.

    it was the dressings fault but omfg i wanted to tear my stomach out
  • 12skipafew99100
    12skipafew99100 Posts: 1,669 Member
    We are all in a Health Recovery program here. Part of it is that sometimes we have a bad day even with the best of intentions. But the next morning we get up, forgive ourselves, and start right back on recovering our health.


    like :o)
  • brandie_lou
    brandie_lou Posts: 46
    One side serving of lo mein was 2000, with a meal added up to like 3000-4000 calories.

    O...M...G!!! I hate to know how much the sodium content was!
  • UpEarly
    UpEarly Posts: 2,555 Member
    I ate at Taco Bell tonight, too! I had three regular crunchy tacos and an unsweetened ice tea. It came in at 510 calories. Taco Bell is one of the easier fast food places to find a lighter meal, you just have to know what you're getting.

    Next time, you'll do better. :-) Also... one day over isn't going to hurt you over the long haul. Tomorrow is another day!
  • tcpowell25
    tcpowell25 Posts: 292
    The same thing happened to me when I ate a sandwich at McAlister's Deli. I had a southwest pannini and it was about 900 calories for my meal. To make it so bad, it didn't even fill me up LOL.
  • maletac
    maletac Posts: 767 Member
    one full place of carne asada fries is 1600 calories nothing shocks me anymore
  • emily356
    emily356 Posts: 318 Member
    It is soooo frustrating. I think we have all been there and done that before!! I will tell you that by law, every restaurant has to have the nutritional info available. I ask at the counter. It is kinda embarrassing? Yes, but I do it anyway:) As for tropical smoothie, I love that place!!! I get the Baja Chicken flatbreat for around 430 cals. No smoothie.:( But man that thing is good!!
  • loombeav
    loombeav Posts: 391 Member
    That is NUTS... who would have thought it could even be close to that!!! I have only gone out to eat once since I started really using this site correctly. I went to a restaurant that has weight watcher meals under 500 calories so I didn't have to think to hard.

    I miss eating out.... and I LOVE Mexican
    I still eat out 3-4 times a week. If this was something I had to give up I wouldn't have been able to stick with it. I go to restaurants that I know what my options are and choose wisely. I have made the OP's mistake before and now if I go somewhere new I check it out before hand to avoid doing it again.
    And I still have Mexican about once a month :)
    ETA: I don't do fast food anylonger, never was a huge fan of it so it's been easy for me to cut it out.
  • annabellj
    annabellj Posts: 1,337 Member
    My sister wanted Panda Express last weekend and before we went we looked up the calories. One side serving of lo mein was 2000, with a meal added up to like 3000-4000 calories. We went to Starbucks instead and I had an 80 calorie latte and she had a 300 cinnamon coffee cake. Thank God for the ability to look up nutritional values prior to consumation. INSANITY!!!
    it is shocking when you realize you cant eat like you used to. but the upside is you will feel bette eating better. panda has string bean chicken and broccoli beef and i get it with the extra veggies not the rice or lo mein and it is like under 700 cals for all of it. and i love taco bell as they have their fresca menu to choose from. most places have nutrition fliers that you can look at even if you dont have an iphone. if you dont have an iphone, i would suggest you get one! it was worth the upgrade for me and the extra 30 bucks a month just to have the mfp app on there!i used to be a ww member and the mtgs cost more than that.
  • kinkyslinky16
    kinkyslinky16 Posts: 1,469 Member
    Ummm, yeah. Refried beans are very commonly, and traditionally made with exactly that... lard.

    New Federal law is that any company with more than 20 units has to post calorie counts in the same size font as the menu item. Nothing to do with the state you are in. I believe Taco Bueno is big enough to have to conform to that law.

    I have never made refried beans and didn't know much about them other than the name lol.. I've most definitely learned my lesson... Avoiding those like the plague now lol

    I haven't heard about this law.. but I don't think I've seen any restaurants that are big enough list calorie counts at all.. Interesting.. I'll research this.. Thanks for letting me know!!
  • kriggs1976
    kriggs1976 Posts: 117
    In NY its a state law that they have to put the calorie count on all food. I was shocked by the calorie counts in food. Very rarely is something under 1000 calories.

    Wow!!! I live in TX so we're too red for that to ever happen lol.. But my husband and I were just talking about how that should be required so people are able to make better decisions..

    I live in Texas too. ANd just the other day I looked up what my favorite before MFP meal would be calorie wise. It was over 1800 calories! I was stunned and so thankful I have been off of fast food since mid-December. I realize it happens once in a while and that is what you need to realize too. It only happens once in a while. That lunch will not determine your success or failure, because you do not eat like that all the time. Do not be so hard on yourself. You are doing wonderfully, keep it up :)
  • DakotaKeogh
    DakotaKeogh Posts: 693 Member
    I've had it sneak up on me like that when I first started this. It takes a while before you start to really get what can be high cal despite seemingly having harmless ingredients. I know how you feel. But, tomorrow you're back on it and, like every day, you're one day smarter about food and your health. Don't let it get you down. =)
  • shovav91
    shovav91 Posts: 2,335 Member
    This happened to me with a lot of the things I used to eat. I used to eat an entire tray of nachos from baja fresh every week (I think it's around 2000 calories). I would also get Chipotle a few times a week, an entire burrito and chips clocked in at well over 2000. It disgusts me that restaurants feel ok serving things like this to their loyal customers.
  • brich11280
    brich11280 Posts: 4
    Have you ever been to Chipotle? You would think that a burrito there would be healthy...grilled meat, onions, green pepper, beans, rice...little sour cream and cheese....Do you know a Chipotle burrito with that stuff is a little over 1,000 calories????!!!!! I couldn't believe it when I saw it...and I LOVE the burrito. I haven't gotten one since then, but if I do end up craving it, I'll just get the bowl...no tortilla for me!!
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