With the weather getting nicer, my family likes to go out for ice cream alot on the weekends... Usually Ritas (they have sugar free ice so I'm safe there) or no-chain type icecream parlors that don't have nutrition info. I want to have something and not sit there watching others eat, so what would be least damaging calorie wise to have? Most places have sugar free icecream, fat free icecream, frozen yogurt or should I go for the smallest portion of any flavor?

Personally I would go for the smallest portion of something I really wanted rather than something that might not taste as good just for the sake of having something.

Check Fitday, Spark, Daily Plate, and Calorie Count to look up nearby establishments.

For reference a vanilla cone at McDonald's is about 150 calories and a kid size cone of soft serve at Dairy Queen is about 140 calories. Your average ice cream from the store is about 150-200 calories per half cup.

Just by eyeballing at the grocery store, I noticed that mint chip is usually less calories than the low cal versions I don't know why that is.

I get the edys loaded brownie/mint chip ice cream for 200 cals per .5 cup.

Or you can buy the little 170 cal containers that are a singles.

Or you can buy skinny cow mint ice cream sandwhiches (packs of 6) and they are only 140 cals a piece.

Another fan of the real McCoy. We have a Ben and Jerry's parlor a couple of blocks away (this is Vermont after all...) and every so often I take a walk and get a single scoop (one size larger than the kiddie cup) of Half Baked or Chocolate Therapy. As long as this is not an everyday thing, I allow myself to just enjoy it!

If you have a Cold Stone nearby go there. They have this guiltless stuff that is fat and sugar free as it uses Splenda which is wicked good with berries.

At Dairy Queen, I love the starkisses (sort of like sherbert on a stick). They only have 80 calories.

As for non-chain shops, I often get a small cone, or if available a frozen chocolate covered banana. Or a diet soda float. I'll tell them to only put a couple inches of icecream in the glass, and fill with diet soda (if they don't have diet rootbeer and I want a rootbeer float, I'll ask them to add a splash of rootbeer and fill with diet coke).

For at home treats I love those new mini sundae cones. The vanila are 130 calories and the choclate are 140 and it's got the sugar cone, ice cream, chocolate crinkles and nuts. Very yummy and even though the cone is kind of small it still feels like a treat.

Now we used to have a store that was right near our house that specialized in a frozen desert the owner got hooked on in New York. It was made mostly out of water with just a little milk so the result was smooth and creamy but incredibly low fat and I think low calorie. Unfortunately I was very much not on a diet at the time and didn't see the point to go out of my way to the shop and then they moved to another town.

I love frozen yogurts. They are so good, and low cal. mmm.

Oh me too, another vote for that. I'd rather just drink some water or tea than have diet ice cream.

If they have sorbet or Italian Ice or popsicles, those may be lower (but sugar-y). Most places that just have regular ice-cream also have a few sugar-free flavors, if that is more your thing.

I am planning to get a small portion of 'real' ice cream someone this summer. This is actually an annual summer thing for me as I have never been a big ice-cream person. Usually it's a couple scoops in a waffle cone but this year it'll just have to be a single scoop in a dish. Or actually ... maybe I will have frozen custard instead. Taking a trip to a city where I used to live, that has a great frozen custard shop. It's small and I don't know how to figure the cals, though. Hmm. Have to ruminate on that one.

I say go for the real stuff just smaller portions. My favorite is Marble Slab Creamery, it's like cold stone. I go about once a month. Ice cream is my favorite food!

For at home ice cream, try Blue Bunny Sweet Freedom, they have several different bars. My favorite is the krunchlite bars with little toffee bits. The fudge bars have 70 calories for 2 bars. They are the only no sugar ice cream bars I have eaten that actually taste like they have sugar in them.

Here another vote for having a small portion of something fabulous. Personally, it doesn't get any better than Bluebell Dutch Chocolate.

Same here! Couldn't LIVE without my Blue Bunny bars...I like the Sweet Freedom Fudge Lite bars...35 calories apiece and 70 in a serving of two...can't even tell a difference between these no-sugar bars and full-sugar bars. I haven't tried the Krunch Lite bars though...gotta get those next!!