For some people, the thought of having to eat out when they're on a diet fills them with dread. After all, food that's eaten out must be full of calories mustn't it? Well, actually, no. It doesn't have to be food that piles on the pounds just by looking at it. Follow these simple tips and you won't be on the road to ruining your diet when you eat out.
1. Check the calorie count
Most chains now include the calorie count on their menu as a matter of course. They may not split it down on the menu beyond a total calorie count but there's a very high chance that the website will tell you the fat, carb, salt, protein, etc content of each of their meals. Which, in turn, means there's almost certainly an app that you can keep on your phone to have all that information instantly available.
2. Watch the sides
A side salad is likely OK. Unless you add the dressing, in which case you may be better off (calorie wise) eating the main course instead. And different side salads will have a different effect on your waistline - a simple green salad won't make any real difference unless you eat umpteen plates of it (and likely not even then). But a coleslaw or other dressed salad will. So be aware and do your research.
3. Watch the drinks
Regular soft drinks are laden with sugar. That goes for the "healthier" options like juice just as much as the regular fizzy culprits. Online estimates vary but somewhere between 4 and 6 apples to make one glass of juice seems the best guess and if you had a pile of 5 apples, chances are you wouldn't even finish all of them let alone get another plateful. But you've probably slurped down one or two glasses of "healthy" juice. The same goes for orange and other juices.
4. Cut down on the carbs
Carbs are cheap food. So restaurants like to use them. Mountains of pasta with enough sauce to make you think you're getting value. Baked potatoes dripping with butter. Fries in almost any shape or form but as a rule, the chunkier the fries (or wedges) the less fat they will have around them.
5. Leave food on your plate
The restaurant won't be offended if you leave food on your plate (in Iceland, they'd actually be offended if you didn't as they assume they haven't given you enough food!) so don't worry about doing this. It's a very easy way to eat less calories when you're eating out and no-one will notice or care.
