Making good choices while eating out

meYes, I eat out!  This is me at Applebees.  But just because you are eating at a restaurant it doesn’t mean you have to forgo your dietary discipline.  Sure, it’s a little trickier but it’s not impossible.

There are a few things to watch out for.  First, don’t go crazy and start ordering more food than you know you can eat.  Overeating even healthy foods will still lead to weight gain and feeling sick the next day.  If you are not very hungry, stick to a salad based meal.  And always be careful with appetizers.  Most likely they are loaded with salt and/or deep fried.

Break down your meal into three essentials – protein, carbs and fats.  Most restaurants have a “Lighter Side” section and calorie count.  Choose steamed or baked over fried, and avoid anything that describes the food as “crispy”.  That’s usually deep fried and that’s not what you want to eat if you are trying to stick to a healthy regiment.  Choose lean proteins like chicken, fish or eggs.  Pair them with baked potato or wild rice and a vegetable side.

Drinks at a restaurant can also sabotage your healthy diet.  It’s easy to lose track of how many beers or wines you’ve consumed but it could mean hundreds of unnecessary calories.  It will require some discipline.  Stick to one or maximum two drinks and then switch to water.

When leading a healthy lifestyle, you can never lose your head and just eat mindlessly.  This is, after all, a lifestyle and not a temporary gimmick, so practice self control and revel in the fact that you are taking care of your body.  Food is fuel and we eat to perform!

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