Ive been thinking about some of the comments made lately about eating out, and struggling with lc. My question is.....if you weren't eating lc, how much easier would it be to eat out? AND....then struggle with the "phantom" hunger after you have eaten a full meal?
My first few weeks of Atkins I don't eat out at all. Once I start adding back my carbs, is the only time I will go out to eat.
But like any diet...its hard to eat out. If your not looking to cut carbs, your looking to cut fat. The cycle never ends.
So, what do you do when you eat out? I eat very much like Kel mentioned in yesterdays daily thread.
What would you rather have, the fat filled ceasar dressing on your ceasar salad, or a lowfat sugar filled dressing with croutons? Thats a no-brainer for me!! I love creamy garlicy ceasar dressing, and I dont miss the croutons at all. Besides, they are usually as hard as little rocks anyway!
Safe to order food....
Burgers w/cheese and bacon minus the bun. You dont have to make a point to ask them to leave it off. Just remove it when it gets to your table. Ask for double serving of veggies instead of fries. (doesnt cost extra that way)
Greek restaurants, I always have the souvlaki, open and give my pita to dh, and always have feta cheese ontop!!
Subway...they have several lc choices if your on the go, same with Wendy's, the chili is a good choice, even with the beans! Its better than the fries!!
Chain restaurants, pretty much anything on the menu (when your NOT on induction) is workable. You dont have to fuss too much with the waitress, remove buns when they get to the table, and ask for extra veggies, or a tossed salad with your meal instead of the starch that is served.
At Appplebee's I usually have the santa fe salad and dont worry too much about the tortilla strips in it. Or I'll have the house salad....its amazing, filled with bacon, eggs, and l/c veggies! Its enough for a full meal!! When I order chicken, I save my side salad for when my meal comes to the table, and eat it together.
I love fish frys, but they all come in batter. Since Im extremely picky about my fish and how its cooked. I have found a few, that will pan fry it, in butter, with a bit of parmesean cheese as a coating.
The fish is so big, Im usually done before I eat anything else....if not I'll munch on the coleslaw thats served with it, and leave the fries.
Eating at friends or family....with the supportive ones its never a problem. BUT, if you have a dil like mine, you need to be prepared. Find out what you are going to be having, as far as the meat is concerned, then just bring a veggie casserole, or huge ceasar salad. That way, you can fill up on the stuff you know is ok and not have to worry. Dont be concerned about hurting the hostess' feelings. If she truly wishes to ignore your attempts at weightloss, then you can ignore her rudeness
I dont know how many times Ive been told...."you cant be on your diet tonight" to which I just smile, and eat my salad. Its your stomach, your fat, your leanness.....dont let someone else control what you want.
I know there is more that I do when I eat out, but I cant think of it right now.....
Who else has ideas on food obstacles out there....
Low Carb Eating anywhere.....
Salads are YUMMY! And I need to make sure to do more of those when out to eat. And when eating at family members houses? I'll just have to bring my own salad (did that once, you'd be amazed at how many people said it looked SO good!) and salad dressing! Time to get OP for me!!
