Whether you have a specific fitness goal or just want to feel healthier and balanced, going out to restaurants can bring anxiety and seem like a sure fire way to lead you off track for your goals. But I’m excited to tell you it doesn’t have to be! And while the “easy” solution to this may be to just order the “cleanest” thing on the menu aka lean protein and veggies with no sauce…ummm that’s no fun! Food should be enjoyed! And if you’re going out to eat it’s probably with someone and there’s NOTHING WORSE than ordering something like above while your friend or family member gets something you’re drooling after! Trust me when I say that when I thought “eating clean” was the only way to get results and be healthy, I smiled through my envy as I ate my chicken breast and broccoli while my loved ones enjoyed [enter something delicious like a burger, pasta, gyro, tacos, etc.] Or what’s even worse is when I would eat my meal prep before going into restaurants because I thought I could’t eat off plan. Or even worse, skipping an occasion all together because I was too scared of being derailed! Thank God, I became educated and now I know that I can truly enjoy ALL foods like [enter something delicious like a burger, pasta, gyro, tacos, etc.] and they won’t lead to weight gain as long as my portions are within my calorie maintenance. (You can learn more about this by reading my posts on My Journey to Balance and Instagram Post I talk about Flexible Dieting or by signing up for my email list below to get my FREE Macros Explained Guide!)
But back to the topic at hand, how can you eat out without stressing out or feeling like you’re missing out AND not feeling like you overdid it? I add on this last part because sometimes when people eat out they see it as a “cheat meal” (which, side note,I absolutely hate that phrase because it is implying you’re cheating on something and that you should then feel guilty for eating, and I don’t think there should be any guilty associations with food) but treating a meal like a “cheat” can then lead to a huge over indulgence that may not only disrupt your fitness goals but could also have you leaving the meal just feeling very uncomfortably full. So I wanted my Mindful Eating Tips at Restaurants that always leave me feeling not overly full OR deprived but completely satisfied 🙂 These are all also with the basis of having a balanced amount of protein, carbs, and fats at each meal so that they’re not only delicious and satisfying but also satiating 🙂
*Please note that while I think these are tips that I think most can find helpful, everyone has different calorie intakes so certain portions may be too much or too little for some.
Breakfast
Waffles, french toast, and pancakes…are you drooling?! Breakfast food can be SO delicious but also SO high in carbs, fat, and calories. But instead of restricting all of those yummy foods I’d suggest just sharing them with someone and then having a side of egg whites, poached eggs, or an egg white and veggie omelette/scramble. This way you can enjoy the indulgence without feeling like you overdid it.
And of course we can’t not talk about other smaller portioned delicious breakfast pastries like donuts, croissants, danishes, bagels, etc, and for these options that are a bit smaller I would suggest to just totally enjoy them and have the above lean protein options on the side: egg whites, poached eggs, or an egg white and veggie omelette/scramble OR if you’re getting these on the go then having hard boiled eggs or egg whites is great too! And the reason I highly suggest getting this high protein option on the side is to help balance out the macro ratio of the meal of protein, carbs, and fats which will in turn help make the meal more satiating! The problem sometimes with these breakfast options that have quite a bit of carbs and not a lot of protein is that we will burn through the carbs quickly (as it is our bodies main source of energy) and can then lead us to feeling hungry quickly after. Having some lean protein with one of these breakfast options can help with having more steady energy levels throughout the day 🙂
Burgers
My Mindful tip for enjoying burgers/sandwich meals would be to choose whichever carb you’re craving that day. Typically burgers and sandwiches come with fries and I’ve had days that I REALLY wanted fries or onion rings, so I opted to have my burger lettuce wrap style. Other days I really wanted the bun, so I had a side salad! And some days I wanted both! So I would get both bun and fries and maybe just have half of each 🙂
Deli Sandwiches & Gyros
Most Deli Sandwiches or Gyros come with a side option of carbs like chips or rice, so like my tip for burgers above, I’ll opt for a side salad.
Mexican Food
I have 3 meals I go for in regards to Mindful Eating for Mexican Food. First option is getting a lean protein salad and using salsa as the dressing, this means that I’m getting in some lean protein and veggies and not a ton of calories from dressing, and since this meal would then be really low calorie wise then I would enjoy chips or share an appetizer or dessert or maybe even a margarita 🙂
My second meal option I love to get at Mexican Restaurants is fajitas! I’ll ask if they can not cook them in oil or butter to save on fat calories that can then be enjoyed on something like cheese, sour cream, or guacamole 🙂 I’ll normally try to just have either a small portion of each or opt to not have sour cream or guac depending on how I’m feeling that day. Tortillas, rice, and beans typically come with fajitas and like with other meals, I’ll typically just stick to one carb (usually tortillas so I can build tacos 🙂 ) or have a portion of rice, beans, and maybe one tortilla.
My last option I LOVE to get at Mexican Restaurants is tacos or tostadas! Something with delicious meat and toppings! If it normally comes with rice and beans on the side, I will opt for a side salad with salsa as the dressing
Mediterranean Food
Probably my favorite food EVER, but Mediterranean Food can be really high in calories if you’re not mindful. I love to get kabobs because you can typically get a lean protein option like shrimp or chicken. Similar to fajitas, Mediterranean plates typically come with a few carb sources like rice and pita or naan. I will typically have a full naan or pita because I LOVE it and get greens instead of rice! Or will have half rice and half a pita/naan. Whenever I get hummus or babagnoush, I always ask if they top the dip with olive oil (most places do) and if they do then I kindly ask them not to. This can save 1-2 tbsp of oil which can be 250 calories! I also like to use hummus or babaganoush as dressing opposed to the usual all oil dressings.
Salads
Salads….aka the sneakiest fat hoarding food in the macro game! When going out to eat it can be easy to assume that salads are the healthier option because of the greens and veggies, but most salads come with multiple fat sources that make the calories skyrocket! Cheeses, fried/breaded proteins, avocado, bacon, nuts, and high fat dressings can all attribute to making a seemingly low calorie salad have an additional 500+ calories! My Mindful Eating tip to making a salad not too calorically dense is to try to lower the fat options. For example: a cobb salad usually comes with bleu cheese, bacon, avocado, and a high calorie dressing, so I would choose maybe 1 or 2 to keep in and it would vary depending on what I was craving that day OR I would ask to have “light” cheese, bacon, avocado, and dressing to just cut those calories in half. Also getting a low fat/fat free dressing (or using salsa as dressing) is great to lower calories too!
Something else I highly suggest for salads is “The Fork Dip Trick”. This where I suggest ordering dressings on the side if possible and using the “The Fork Dip Trick”, meaning using your fork to add on the dressing to the salad so that you can control that not too much goes on.
Pastas
Enjoying Pasta while trying to lose weight and be healthy may seem absurd! But it’s totally doable! My biggest suggestion to keep the calories lower when ordering a pasta is to get a dish with a tomato base sauce, these will alway just be lower in calories than pastas that have cream based sauces like alfredo or heavy oil based sauces like pesto. I’d also suggest trying to stick with a lean protein option like chicken or fish (I LOVEEE pasta with mussels!!) and enjoying all of the protein in the dish and maybe just half of the pasta.
Another great tip regarding pasta, of maybe just larger portioned meal, you can just “Ask for Half” meaning you ask the server to just serve you half go the dish and box the other half to go. I’ve done this and didn’t have and issues with the servers or chefs. Also, splitting a more indulgent pasta dish and then getting a starter salad or splitting a chicken salad to get in some extra protein is a great option too!
Pizza
There’s no point in trying to lessen the calories on the pizza itself because delicious pizza is just going to be high in carbs and fat…period. And that’s ok! I’ll always enjoy a slice or 2 and then have a chicken salad on the side to get in some veggies in protein!
And at these “build your own pizza” places like Mod, Blaze, Pizza Rev, and Pieology, I will just get a mini with a chicken side salad 🙂
Big Takeaways
Here’s some of the repeated tips I gave that can be great to keep in mind for ALL cuisines!
- Getting sauces and dressing on the side and doing the “Fork Dip Trick”, this means using your fork to add on the dressing or sauce to the salad, taco, sandwich, etc. so that you can control that not too much goes on. Adding a little salt and pepper to any meal can also bring up the flavor for zero calories which can then lead to not feeling the need to add too much sauce.
- “Ask for Half” Half to have now and have to go
- Sharing is caring (for your goals 🙂 ) splitting a more indulgent entree or appetizer or dessert.
- Lighten up the dish calorie wise by reducing carb or fat options.
- Add in veggies/salad or lean protein when possible if needing to make a meal more balanced.
- ENJOY YOURSELF! Enjoy the food! And the company if you’re not alone! And if you feel like maybe you overdid it, it’s ok! Just get back on track on your next meal and maybe check out my 5 Tips to feeling your best after too much indulgence
Did you find this post helpful? Comment below or contact me 🙂
Struggling to meet your fitness goals and want guidance with macros/nutrition and/or personal training from me, a Certified Personal Trainer and Fitness Nutrition Specialist? Check out my coaching services which range from me just setting up macros and training programs to macros with meal ideas to more in-depth one-on-one coaching that involves weekly check-ins with optional phone calls.
*This post was created by Ashley Cates who is not a Registered Dietician or a Medical Professional, nothing said should be taken as medical advice or replace any advice given by a Physician. This information does not in any way intend to diagnose or treat any health condition/disorder. The information provided is based on Ashley’s education and experience.
<!– Begin Constant Contact Inline Form Code –>
<div class=”ctct-inline-form” data-form-id=”b3e2887e-dc67-4b01-ad9c-fab92144f38e”></div>
<!– End Constant Contact Inline Form Code –>