Weighing In on Eating Out

Congrats to the winner of the St. Patrick’s Irish Cream almonds and coffee giveaway. It is: Nanette; timestamp March 1st at 4:23 pm. Send me your mailing address at [email protected] and let me know if you want the coffee in whole bean or ground. Happy St. Patrick’s Day!!

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Welcome Weight Loss Wednesday gals!!!

Today, let’s weigh in on eating out.

Pop quiz time!

You are in a hurry and have to swing by a restaurant to get supper on your way to watch your kid’s ballgame. Which of the following would be the best choice when eating out:

  1. A bean burrito from Taco Bell
  2. A McDonald’s chicken sandwich from the dollar menu
  3. A small bowl of Wendy’s chili
  4. An oven roasted chicken breast sub on whole wheat with no cheese and only veggies and mustard from Subway

Most people would select the Subway sub. (Jared lost so much weight after all!)

Well, it weighs in at 330 calories and 5 grams of fat.

Perhaps you should choose Mexican instead?

Think again! That bean burrito is 370 calories and 10 grams of fat.

Save money and go for the white-meat chicken perhaps?

Not so fast! That cheap chicken sandwich is a whopping 510 calories and 26 grams of fat.

However, the Wendy’s chili is only 200 calories and 5 grams of fat! And it is also the best choice if you are watching carbs as well.

Well— WLW gals. Today I want you to talk amongst yourselves. What do you order when eating out? Fast food, nice sit-down or even your favorite coffee house drinks. And let us know how your week was too.

Struggles, victories, etc…

I stayed off my scale as planned for the remainder of February. When I hopped back on I had stayed the same. Now that includes the couple pounds I’d gained back so I still feel as if I am in restart mode.

How about you and what do you eat when eating out?

I just love our accountability group! Have a wonderful week everyone!

Sweet Blessings,

22 Comments

  1. Hi, I can relate to times in the past when I stepped on a scale and thought what was the use. Right now I have been walking 1 1/2 miles to 2 miles each morning weather permitting. I have been doing this for about 3 weeks now. I have taken as much sugar out of my diet as possible. I was a big sweet eater.
    My problem right now is bread. I try to eat smaller amounts. I do not know what the scale says because I dont have one right now. But I feel better because I am exercising. I have not had an anxiety attack since I started walking. I hope when I get on the scale I will have lost something anyways.

  2. I know all about the starvation mode…i was there and didn’t know it. I”m trying to eat bigger breakfasts, to jump start my metabolism for the day, fruit snacks in between meals, lighter lunch and much lighter supper, maybe a cup of yogurt with a warm cup of chai tea at night…I have found that drinking warm things helps me to feel full again.

  3. Regarding the 6 small meals a day; I find that when I eat 6x per day with a definite plan, it is easier to stay on track and lose weight. Three of those “meals” are one piece of fresh fruit or a serving of fresh vegetables. I HAVE to follow a plan and count the calories or grazing turns into exactly that, grazing & grazing & grazing all day long….Cows graze (on nice, green, healthy grass, w/o butter or dressing!!) all day long too. Since I AM genetically programmed to be the human equivelant of a cow…I have to be careful.
    That being said- After a major weight loss success, I have let 7 pounds creep back on as of this morning and it has to stop. I do not think it was just a coincidence I found this sight THIS morning.

  4. Still not seeing much progress on the scale, but I am also not working hard at it. Am not drinking enough water. Signed up with others @ work for a fitness team, so that will help accountability there.

    I can remember the years that I used to eat kids’ fast food meals for the convenience and the toys. Collect a whole set of something I didn’t need anyway. Now I rarely eat fast food.

    We get Wendy’s chili to make taco salads at home. Add lots of veggies, some olives and beans to mixed greens, heat up the chili and dump some on top. Add cheese or fat free sour cream if desired.

    If I’m out and hungry and didn’t plan ahead, I may eat a McDonald’s Yogurt Parfait for a snack. Or, rarely, a double burger w/ extra lettuce, tomato, mustard and pickle with NO bun, mayo or cheese. Our local McDonald’s serves it with a knife and fork.

    I wasn’t eating Subway for years but lately have ordered the Chicken Breast Salad w/ lots of veggies, using either no dressing or a small amount.

    Take care, all. Keep on trying!

  5. Crystal,

    I, too, have heard of the body going into starving mode and that it is better to eat 5 or 6 little tiny meals throughout the day. Obviously I don’t do it and haven’t even tried it but “they” say that’s the best way (whoever “they” is). To me, it seems like you would just be grazing all day long and never get a real meal.

  6. We seem to go in cycles with eating out. May not eat out for months at a time, but then stress rises and/or we’re “on the road” a lot and then we’ll eat out several times in a week. I knew about the chili – and in fact did that one day last week. Went to Olive Garden for a special occasion, and I asked for half of my meal in a to-go box. Ate the half with my family for the occasion, and then split the half in half again for two lunches. It still seemed like a lot to me – probably is, but I’m calling that water under the bridge. If we are “on the road” the best thing for me is to plan ahead and pack a lunch, or even just healthy snacks to hold me over till I get home. Here is a question – can anyone answer this? Is it true that if we don’t eat a little something every 3 hours that our body thinks it is starving and decreases our metabolism so that when we do eat a normal amount later we are more likely to gain? I read that somewhere, but wonder if it’s true. I did that for a while, and it seemed like it was easier to lose and also to control my eating when it was mealtime if I had a healthy snack. But the past month has been really hard for me time wise, and I have given up the snacking and just sticking with meals only. But then I am so famished! I don’t think I have lost anything in a month, and some weeks gone up. I weighed myself on Tuesday b/c I knew I had to be out of town yesterday, and was down a pound from the previous week, but weighed myself today and am back up a pound. Frustrating. I should not weigh myself that frequently, I guess. That’s all for today. Oh, Kimberlee – I am glad to hear that your morning sickness is easing. I think about you often, and was trying to figure out in my mind the other day about when it should be dissipating. Take care of yourself and your unborn little one!

  7. I’m gonna join in. or at least try… I haven’t weighed in in Feb at all…a little rebellion. We don’t eat out at all – it’s simply not in the budget at this time.
    I had lost 13 pounds before the end of Jan – weight loss goal is to loose another 29 pounds.

  8. Kimberlee, keep your chin up girl!! It will get better. Personnally, I think pregnancy is one of the hardest things we do as women (well, with the exception of birth!!) Thank the Lord birthing is only a matter of hours!! Good luck, you are in my prayers. Just look to the Lord and do the best you can for the next few months and then you can get back on track after your new bundle of joy arrives. :)

  9. Vicki, you made me weak in the knees at the mention of coconut mocha! I haven’t had one in soooo long. And iced banana mochas are extinct, but were my other weakness. Almond mochas are a good sub for the places that don’t have coconut. But I have my own bottle of coconut. Hardly ever use it. Especially now since coffee still makes me sick. But I’m coming round!
    I didn’t check in last week because we got that awful stomach bug! OMG it was THE WORSE! I am so happy to say I haven’t gained any weight probably bc of ms during the entire month of Feb. And I feel delivered from the ms, PTL!, but I feel it traded in for obsessive food thoughts and exhaustion. I only exercised 4x last month. :( And have yet to this month, I really need to get back to toning & cardio. I get out of breath pretty easily. But I have a plan to tackle 2 separate 15 min Leslie Sansone walks.
    Well, we did too much fast food this past month bc I was too sick to cook and unfortunately the only thing that sounded good sometimes was fast food. :( I have a thing for Subway turkey. I go for light mayo when I should go for none. And I go for cheese when I should go for none, but I double my veggies. Mmmm! And McD’s bacon ranch grilled chicken salads really hit the spot lately. I use to not use the ranch dressing that comes with it, so high in calories!! But I’ve gotten pretty lazy. :( I like Aldi’s Fit&Active or whatever it’s called Ranch dressing alot.
    I love Wendy’s chili & have craved it but was sensitive to tomato based food for a while. It’s easing up. I also like a baked potato, I even eat the skin. I wish they offered reduced fat sour cream.
    I really think I’m in for it now that the food obsessed thoughts have started. When I go to bed I think about food. And obviously they aren’t the healthiest things I think of. I struggle with any form of control in this pregnancy, I recently observed. And I’m sure God is teaching me something through it. So I guess if I could have control with only 1 thing about this pregnancy it would be over my cravings. But I don’t think God is into bartering.

  10. My first choice for takeaways would be sushi! I am happy to eat it while my hubby and kids eat McDonalds or KFC.
    I am down 700 grams this week and have finally broken the 70 kg mark!!!! by 100 grams. (-: O well, I’ll take it! After talking to my weight watchers leader last week and finding that I am actually eating too many of my exercise points, I have cut down my eating and don’t actually feel like I am missing out on much. I didn’t think I my body could handle it but it turns out that it can!
    Have a good week all, I hope that the dramatic weather that we are seeing pictures of over here in New Zealand improves for you all.

  11. For fast food I eat Subway 6″ roast beef 310 calories 4.5g fat with lots of veggies. I also like Taco Bell’s Fresco menu. Crunchy taco 150 calories 7g fat, grilled steak soft taco 160 calories 4.5g fat, or Ranchero chicken soft taco 170 calories 4g fat. We eat out at nice restaurants for special occasions and I always eat steak, baked potato and salad. I try to plan for these extra calories. I did not weigh in last week and am down 1.4 lbs for two weeks. Going down is always good. I need to exercise more. There just seems to be so many other things to do-I need to make exercise a priority. I look forward to WLW’s. Thank you for all of your sharing-it keeps me motivated. Til next week, God bless.

  12. Rebbeca Thanks for your honesty. I wasn’t sure if we were supposed to say our weight so I didn’t. I weighed in at 171.8 this morning. My goal is around 138. We will see when I get closer.

    Elizabeth-
    I did weight watchers on line the first time and lost 21 pounds. It works great if you are honest with posting your foods and can hold yourself accountable. I am doing the dual monthly pass program now that I can attend meetings and do it on line. I think now that I’m on a roll again I could do just online but in the beginning I needed a little help getting motivated. After I lost my 21 pounds I had 3 tragic things happen in my life and I gained 48 pounds putting me at almost 100 pounds more than I had weighed most of my life. Until I was 30 years old I weighed 98 pounds. At my altime high I got up to 197. I had started back up with Weight Watchers and had already lost 5 pounds when the doctor said “Did you know you weighed this much?” That was a real downer. So even though it is going slow, I have lost 22 pounds and am not stopping until I get to a healthy weight.

  13. I take my boys to McDonald’s a couple times a month and I always get a Carmel Iced Coffee for myself and then they usually have 1/4 to 1/2 of their sandwich left that I eat. Now, if we do go out to a nicer restaurant I will splurge because I typically haven’t eaten much during the day. I guess I try to save my calories if we get to go out to eat. It truly is a treat since we don’t get to go out to eat much with the economy and two little ones. Sometimes my husband and I will split an entree if we know they have larger portions or I will order an appetizer as my meal.

    I am down a pound this week. It might now seem like much, but for me it’s been awhile since I’ve seen the scale move!!! I will take what I can get! I’ve been considering joining Weight Watchers Online program. Has anyone had any experience with that????

  14. We just did a quick drive thru Wendy’s last night and I opted for the small chili. I was curious to know how many calories it had and now I know!

    I weighed in at 146 today. Goal is 130 (but probably 135 is more realistic? Won’t know until I get there.)

  15. Like Vicki F. and Deb V. wrote, I too try to look online at the restaurant’s website for nutritional info. Chili’s has a great black bean burger (and it’s really big!); I also love McDonald’s ‘Fruit and Walnut Salad’, although that’s not really a meal. So again, my BEST advice is to look online whenever possible to ready yourself ahead of time. That way you won’t have to look at the menu and drool over those ribs or nachos that you’d like. :)

    I’m still not weighing myself, but based on my clothes I’m staying the same.

    Vicki F.–I think it’s important to have “me time” and to enjoy a treat. I have some form of a treat every day and still manage to maintain/lose weight. It’s all about balance, so enjoy your mocha!! :)

  16. I was down 2 1/2 pounds this week. I have been getting a lot more exercise now that my knee is feeling better.

    We eat out about once a week but we hardly eat fast food. I try to go online and check out the calorie counts on my favorite foods or what I thought I would eat at the restaraunt we will be going to. Boy is that a shocker sometimes. I recommend that everyone should try this at least once or twice. Sometimes the things you think would be good for you, or not so bad, turn out to be disasters for eating healthy.

    I hope everyone has a good week!

  17. I’ve been AWOL for several weeks. While I was reading, I wasn’t posting. I didn’t gain any weight for the first few weeks but then this week I gained a whopping 5 pounds. It shocked me back into reality. I got back out my food journal and am writing things down again.

    Since it’s just my husband and I, we eat out more than we should simply because we both work and it’s easier to stop somewhere on the way home. That will stop now.

    Everyone have a good week.

  18. I usually try to plan ahead and look online to see what I’m looking at calorie wise so that I have my mind made up before I go, then order whatever fits into my calories for the day! I love Wendy’s Grilled Chicken Go-Wraps as well. 250 calories, although you do have more fat than the chili. I don’t go to sit down restaurants very often, so I kind of try to do better during the day then order what I want. I’m afraid I’m not a deprive myself forever kind of person, so I’m trying to find a balance that I can stick to and still lose. I’m down 1 pound this week. Was hoping for more, but the weekends are still killing me. So, I’m just going to be happy for downward progress!! I have a coconut mocha at a local coffee house every Saturday morning. I’ve cut it back by asking for 1/2 the chocolate and skim milk. I don’t see every giving that up!! It’s my big treat. Plus it’s “girl time” for me and one of my friends.

    Well, hope everyone has a blessed week. Looking forward to hearing about your week.

  19. I posted on last weeks Weight loss Wednesday that I would be joining in. To start my Wednesday anchor weight I will use what I have gone down from from my Sunday Weight Watchers weigh in and then use today’s weight as the Wednesday Weight Loss Beginning weight.
    Okay with that all out, I am down .8 pounds. (I have already lost 22 pounds and need to go another 35 to goal.) Being on WW for so long I did recognize the chili being the best. We have a ton of fast food restaurants around us and frequent them way too often. I usually have one item and a side salad with no dressing or the lite vinegar one. We usually get the food and take it home so I can add my 25 calorie dressing there. Thanks for the support and accountability.

  20. Well ladies, I’m with Tera. We don’t eat out much because of our income. However when I eat out I cheat a bit. We have two little kids and they usually share a meal. So, I order a kids meal for myself. With two people usually don’t question too much! I know, not super honest but hey, I’m still paying for it and it’s the right portion size for me. (most of the time!) I did have a small victory yesterday actually! The circus was in town and we all know that means popcorn, snow cones, and cotton candy! I am a fanatic with cotton candy and snow cones!!!! However, as of Monday I had given up refined sugar and so I did not get any! We went with friends and they shared the popcorn and cotton candy with my DD and DS so I didn’t feel the pressure of eating because I had spent the money! Chalk one up in the plus catagory!!! Good luck ladies this week and I can’t wait to hear from you next time!

  21. Like many families today we are watching our pennies so we really don’t eat out much. If we do I try to make the best choice available or have something small to hold me over. It has been “nice” here in Michigan the last couple days so I got some outdoor walking in and that was so nice. Sounds like a decent weather report for the rest of the week and weekend. I am down about three pounds this week.

  22. Karen,
    So glad to hear that you are on track. I am still maintaining. I have actually lost another pound, but I’m trying to figure out slowly how to eat and stay where I’m at. I just got a new job and so that has made things a little more complicated working out, but so far so good. When we go out to a sit down meal, I take my time studying the menu. If they have baked fish, I ususally go for that with some steamed veggies. If it is something like a mexican place, then I try to find the best deal for the calories, and then I ask for a take out box and cut everything in half and put the other half away. Out of sight, out of mind. For fast food, I pretty much have the menus down pat and usually do not every stray off. I just order it and I’m done with it. Thankfully, I’m from a rural area, and we don’t have fast food places down every street. But I order a salad, watch the dressing!, or a grilled sandwhich, hold the mayo! depending on how hungry I am. I am trying to eat mindfully, and moderately. I hope everyone has a wonderful weight watching week!

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