Uk Pals!! eating out!!?? HELP!!!!!

Definitely do some exercise before AND after - you'll feel much better...and remember you CAN say no to pudding!

Every now and again in pubs, they'll actually tell you the calorie count...some even have a 'less than 700 calories' menu - I love that.
But yes, order something without sauce, lots of veggies, maybe go for the veggi option...NO CHIPS!

Harvester put the calories on the menu which helps and you the salad bar is free.

If you know where you are going can you look up the menu online. You may be able to find calories online as well. You can decide what you want before you go then don't look at the menu again and be tempted to order something different.

Have fun

Definitely stay away from the fried food they pile it on in pubs.
There are a lot of Hot Sandwiches or tasty vegetarian stuff in the ones I go to.
And I agree to do some exercise before you go you'll probably feel a lot better.

Hope this helps.

I eat under my calories the day before and on the day itself, and exercise. That way I feel I can relax a bit. But there's usually something - last time I went out I had steak with grilled tomatoes and mushrooms, and asked for rice instead of chips. I don't know what the calorie count was but it can't have been too bad. There's usually a fish option, which as long as it isn't fried should be OK. Basically if you skip fried stuff, melted cheese toppings, crwamy sauces, and puddings it won't be a major problem. Just relax and enjoy the night out, company and fun are part of being healthy just as much as your calorie count...

She even listed the contents of the bag, which were totally bizarre; pitta bread, beef jerky, peanuts... she did say that the last time she did it one of the waiters looked at her like she was doing something strange! If I was brave enough I'd try it in a UK restaurant just to see what reaction I got!

If we are eating out a a pub or somewhere like the beef eater Or whetherspoons try to avoid anything fried and swap them for salad or veggies, I stay clear of bread and thing like that... You will find there are a fair few places that put the calorie count on their menus and some places even have a healthy lifestyle section on the menus just keep an eye open for it and remember creamy sauces and thing like that are often high in calories. If your really worried about going over try and cut you calories from other meals in the day.

Ok, I was going to reply on your other thread, but I'm a UK pal!

I had a pub meal out a few weeks ago. It was somewhere I was familiar with (but even if it's somewhere you haven't been before, I bet you can guess what meals will be on offer). I thought of some options of what I might choose and looked up things in the food database that seemed to be similar. It's never going to be an exact science when you don't have the nutritional info, but it helps you have a general idea before you go, so you can plan what to have so as not to go overboard. I had a starter and main, (fishcakes and chips), and it worked out about 1200 calories not including drinks. After I logged it all, I noticed the sneakiest calories came from dips and mayo type things. If you're not going to have chips, that'll save a good chunk. You might get lucky and find they have a lower cal section of the menu, some pubs do these days.

Since you don't want to fast beforehand, what I tend to do is try to shave a small amount of calories off the previous day and/or following day. Not so much that I feel deprived, but just maybe 100 or so, and do some extra exercise at some point. It sounds like you're going to be sensible though and chances are you'll still be well under your TDEE, and maybe even your daily calorie goal. Most importantly, just have fun!

And don't forget, even the lower cal stuff will probably be full of sodium, so you might see a temporary gain due to water weight, but it'll soon come off again.

I order steak with plenty vegetables or fish you have loads of options and if they do unhealthy sides like onion rings i say no thanks and they usually give me more veg! most places are really helpful

I order steak with plenty vegetables or fish you have loads of options and if they do unhealthy sides like onion rings i say no thanks and they usually give me more veg! most places are really helpful

^^^^^ This works for me. If you order some sort of lean meat (steak or chicken) and say you don't want chips or potato they will usually offer extra veg or salad. Also I ask them not to put any dressing on the salad. If everyone is having dessert and I don't want to feel left out I'll have ice cream or sorbet of they have it.

Grilled salmon, new potatoes and veg, and I think that's from a Brewsters (if you've not already been for the meal by now lol)

ETA: I lied - it's a Beefeater!!

Lots of chain restaurants have their menu & nutritional info online so you can have a look & plan before you go.