Tips for Eating Out

Today is my Birthday! Happy Birthday to me!

As most people, I went out to eat tonight to celebrate. Eating out has been the biggest issue in my weight loss. However, I have some tips of what to do to eat out and still lose weight!

- As many people have mentioned before, Plan ahead! If you have a smart phone, it's so so easy to do this. Simply look up the menu before you go, even plan the drink. I've learned that sometimes it helps to write it down (I text it to myself) or tell someone what you are planning to have. That way you will be less likely to change your mind and choose something less healthy.

Sometime even healthy looking options are calorie bombs.

-Stick with lean meats. This means grilled chicken and fish. If you want a steak then get it! BUT make sure it's not the whole cow. Learn your portions. Don't want anything much bigger than the palm of your hand, 4 oz.

-Watch the extras. Try to avoid items such as extra dressings, bacon, cheese (especially if it has cheese in it and on top, ask for one or the other or neither and save a ton of calories!). Or easily get something on the side like we all hear to do.

-Do not be afraid to be picky. More than likely they won't spit in your food ;)

-And just because you eat out does not mean you need to binge all night or eat until your stomach hurts. Leave extra food on your plate. If this is hard for you, pick out how much you want to eat probably half, and either put it in a to-go box or separate it on your plate so that you are less likely to eat it.

-(This one is hard for me, but I'm getting better at it) Get WATER when you eat out. This will save you lots of calories and will fill you up faster.

-(This one is also extra hard for me) Don't let your friends or whoever you're eating with persuade how you eat. Planning definitely helps in this! Keep a positive mindset that you are there for the company, not really the food. And if you are there just for food, there are always healthy options that are just as yummy if not yummier (especially since you won't feel gross after eating it!).

You don't have to eat salad every time you go out to eat, but be aware that most restaurant food is going to have more sodium so your weight might spike up the next day. Drink extra water to counter this. Also I try to eat extra healthy if I know I'm going out that night for dinner. Losing weight by eating at home is definitely easier, make no mistake. However, you won't spend the rest of your life eating at home. So learning how to eat out is essential for long term success.

Have a healthy and happy evening everyone.