[Embuhlee]

I am a bit disheartened. xD My first week or so, I did really good, but the last couple ones I haven't really lost anything.

So uh.. has this ever happened to anyone?: I plan out my meals for the day to make sure I get the nutrition/calories/etc I need, but then somehow some weird situation comes up where it would be rude not to eat more. Like... I had a rather filling lunch yesterday because I told myself I'd just grab a light snack for dinner, but then I was invited out to eat by a friend I hadn't seen in a while, and I couldn't really say no, you know? It'd been a bit since we'd last gotten together. I got soup and salad, but it still felt like it was a lot more than I should have had.
Situations similar to that have happened about four times in the past two weeks, which has probably contributed to my plateau.

Blarrr, it's just frustrating. Humph. Mini-rant over now, promise. xD Hahaha. Also, any tips on what exactly to order at restaurants to make even an unexpected meal a light one? Honestly, every salad on the menu at the place I went to was covered in bacon or bleu cheese. :P

[kb11311]

try the restrount tracker on weight watchers.com or you could make modification to make things healthyer. like tonight i went to chillis, i ordered a grilled chicken sandwich, dry with no toppings, and i asked for a side of veggies insted for fries, i also took the break off my sandwitch and just eat the grilled chicken. so ya, thats how i role. good luck.

[juliana77]

My emergency restaurant meal is a house salad, no cheese or croutons, vinaigrette on the side, add chicken breast.

[Thighs Be Gone]

I am with Juliana and stuck to that for months..actually years. I even took a salad spritzer with me in my purse everywhere! I didn't trust what restaurants would bring to my table. LOL.

[zoomwalker]

I keep a little restaurant calorie book with me at all times. You can keep it in the glove compartment of your car and give it a quick check before you go into the impromptu restaurant choice. Sometimes, actually lots of times, the salad has more calories than the steak so be aware. And adult beverages.. well club soda mixed with anything is less calories than mixing it with tonic water, juice or flavored soda's.
When business dinners catch me by surprise I always add an extra hour of cardio to the next day's work out just to be safe.

[abluvion]

I can understand wanting to see your friend - but why did you feel the need to eat a whole dinner? Since she surprised you with her dinner date, you could have very reasonably said you ate beforehand and just had a small side salad or picked at a shared appetizer.

Life is going to get in the way of our best laid plans We all have to learn how to put ourselves first in these situations!

[christine123]

I run into this all the time. I have a lot of social events in the evening during the week, after I've had a full day of eating already. Half of these spring up at the last minute. If it's planned in advance, I save cals to eat some grilled chicken and greens. If not, I will get a cup of coffee or hot tea (both I have learned to drink black) and may pick at steamed veggie plate. That's it. Some friends know I usually don't eat dinners out often (partly to save $) and the ones who don't know, I'll tell them I already ate (which I have) but that I'd love to go for the company. These things happen too frequently that if I didn't set rules and boundaries, I'd either be isolated from friends or I'd never lose the weight.

[twinieten]

This is why I can never live by the "one day a week I will be bad" rule. It would end up being 2 days a week, or 3, or 4! LOL!

I don't know how to adjust for it! you can't starve yourself every lunch time just in case dinner offers a surprise. You can't deny yourself food just in case tomorrow may be bad.... I guess the best you can do is try to make up for it the next day, and be as good as you can during the surprise "event". Which is what you did.

Next week will be a new week. Maybe work out a little more, try to walk a little more, and those small things you can do to correct it.

Sorry, I am of no help. Just wanted to say, "Yup, happens to me all the time!" Seems to come in chunks, though.

[juliastl27]

This is one of my many excuses to eat. "Oh, it's so-and-so's birthday, I'll have some cake", "We're going to a barbecue and I almost never get to eat barbecue", etc etc. Those meals can ruin an entire week. I'm definitely guilty of it, but you have to learn that you're sabotaging yourself. Next time just tell your friend you already ate and have something small, or even nothing at all. It's not rude to not eat when you're not hungry. Next time you're at an event, either eat something healthy beforehand, or keep the rest of the day's food light so you can splurge a little. One meal of calorie gorging really can ruin a lot!

[ERHR]

You don't have to do food at all. Next time a friend wants to get together, suggest a walk. You can talk way better on walk than at a restaurant anyway.

[sontaikle]

First of all, awesome avatar. FMA = awesome!

I live in New York, so luckily calorie counts are mandated on most restaurant menus. However, one failsafe method of staying within my calorie counts has never failed me—not eating the entire meal.

I used to ask for a take out box immediately as I got my meal and put half (or more) away and kept it out of sight. Now I've trained myself enough that I can usually just eat what I feel is necessary and stop. To keep me from picking, I just sip water until everyone else finishes their meals.

I go out to eat a lot. Especially in the summer as the majority of my friends are still in college and are free at this time and it's also one of the only ways my fiancee and I manage to get some alone time. Regardless, I still lose weight because I manage my portions.

[Thighs Be Gone]

Originally Posted by ERHR

You don't have to do food at all. Next time a friend wants to get together, suggest a walk. You can talk way better on walk than at a restaurant anyway.

I love this and totally agree with it. I am much better meeting someone to walk, jog or rock climb even. I also meet out for coffee quite a bit too. It's also a great way to facilitate friendships with those around you who want to support your new lifestyle. Friends that are uncomfortable with my new choices seemed to go by the wayside pretty quick.

[Gale02]

I agree with the other posters, they all gave you great suggestions. I just wanted to ask, you've lost 8 lbs in 3 weeks? That's fantastic and no reason at all to be down! Even with hiccups along the way (rough weeks, etc.) you're doing really well.