How to stay on track when eating out!

Most of us enjoy going out for a nice meal every now and then but sometimes it can be challenging when we are trying to lose weight. Here are some simple tips that will help you to stay on track and still have an enjoyable night out.

Ideally, try to be involved in the decision regarding which restaurant to eat in. The choice of restaurant is very important in terms of giving you lots of healthy options to choose from. If you know in advance where you are dining, look at the menu on line before you go, while you have time to consider the healthiest options. Often, when we are out, we are so busy chatting to our friends that we don’t spend too long examining the menu. Then we often make a hasty choice which can be a very bad choice in terms of healthy options. You can also telephone the restaurant in advance to ask for special requests.

We often eat much later when we are going out for a meal so by the time the food arrives we are usually pretty hungry. Make sure you eat something small around 6pm or have a half a smoothie to keep the hunger at bay.

When the waiter arrives with the bread – ask him to take it away before it even hits the table so we are not tempted! How many of us eat lots of bread before our dinner when we are at home? Very few, so why would we eat bread before dinner when we dine out?

Ask for a large jug of water as soon as you sit down. And drink a few glasses while you are waiting. This will help to curb your hunger. Avoid ordering sweet or fizzy drinks. Water with lemon is very cleansing.

If you’re having a starter, have a salad. Its easier to choose something healthy as an appetiser.

When choosing your main course, ask for sauce on the side so you just eat a taster of sauce. As a rule, eat your protein and vegetables first, then you will probably not have much appetite left for any starchy carbohydrates! Avoid fried foods, always ask for your meat or fish steamed, poached, grilled, boiled or baked.

There are generally some healthy options for dessert such as fresh fruit salad or sorbet. By the time you get to dessert, you should not be as hungry and may be better able to resist the temptation. Another option is to order a few desserts for the table – then you can just have a taster without eating a full dessert! Beware of ice cream – as the name suggests it is frozen cream with sugar! Loaded with extra calories!

Beware of the Buffet! As we say in Ireland, Our eyes are bigger than our bellies! When we can choose unlimited from the buffet we tend to eat more. So be very careful and choose wisely!

And then the dreaded alcohol! Think of each unit as the equivalent of eating a doughnut. That should put you off! It is strongly preferred that you avoid alcohol while trying to lose weight (and in general). However, if you really feel you want to drink then try to spread the drink out longer. For example, if you order a vodka also order a sparkling water with your mixer and ask for a second glass with lots of ice. Pour half of the vodka into the second glass, use mainly the sparkling water as your mixer with just a top up of your actual mixer. Then if you can, also have a sparkling water in between the two drinks – if you drink it in the same glass you will still feel as if you are drinking. It works – just try it! Use the same tip with white wine – lots of ice, sparkling water in the wine glass, and a glass of sparkling water in between.

I hope that helps!