7 Tips for Eliminating Calories from Restaurant Dishes

If you eat out very often (more than three times a week), you will gain weight unless you take steps now to make different choices. Here are seven easy ways to cut calories from restaurant meals.


Keywords :
weight loss, weight loss coach, emotional eating


When I eat out, I want it to be special, which is why I don't eat out often. You may have seen advice on how to cut calories when dining out, but in reality, do you want to pay high prices for unprepared salads and steamed vegetables? If not, how do you solve the dilemma of excess calories when eating out?

Here are seven tips for eliminating calories from restaurant meals while still ordering your favorite meals.

1. Say NO to “super size”. The size you ordered is already too big. Stop oversizing and you'll save money. Better yet, order a meal and ask for an extra plate. Many restaurants do this for a dollar or two, and it's worth it. Then share the meal with your friend and you'll split the cost in half. Another option is to order the so-called “starters” menu. Two people can order three appetizers and a dessert and share it all, which still adds up to a ton of food!

2. Ditch the bread and rolls. Many family restaurants still serve a bread basket with your meal. Unless it's a freshly baked loaf or a really special bread, don't do it. You don't need to gorge on plain bread when you're paying a premium price for a meal. Just ask for it to be taken away if you can't resist, but frankly, you're an adult, you can resist, if you want to. You can simply choose not to put a bun on your plate. Try it, just once, and see if you don't leave the restaurant feeling empowered.

If you can't avoid buns, at least avoid butter. And that’s it. Eat it plain. Wholemeal bread is delicious on its own.

3. Stop ordering drinks. Soft drinks are a huge cash cow for restaurants. For a few cents they sell you a squirt of syrup and sparkling water and act like they are doing you a big favor by only charging you 1.29 euros for a giant 2dl soda. Start saving those dollars. Especially if you order “to go”, avoid the drink. If you eat there, ask for water, or at least opt ​​for diet drinks. Never drink fat pop.

4. Slow down, you're eating too fast! What's the hurry? Take your time, savor the moment, appreciate the flavors. Learning to recognize the subtle signs of hunger is an important part of getting in touch with your hunger cues and learning to eat what truly fills you. You won't know you're close to being satisfied if you've gobbled it all up in five minutes. Take a bite and notice how many times you chew before you start wanting to swallow? Once, twice? Make the effort to chew your food and your body will be much happier. So much of digestion begins in your mouth, not to mention you'll enjoy it a lot more if you let food linger.

5. Remove visible fat and skin. I know, you really like skin - of course it tastes good, it should, it's pure fat. Do you want to get skinnier, or do you want to eat fat? You choose. I never eat the skin of chicken and I never eat the visible fat that hangs from a steak, good taste or not. It's up to you to decide what you want more, the second of pleasure from a delicious taste or a lifetime of carrying extra pounds? I know this goes against the low carb crowd's belief that fat is good and carbs are bad, but I maintained an 80 pound weight loss for 18 years without dieting and I don't eat visible fat or skin. Enough said.

6. Ask for a Doggie Bag at the start of the meal. When the food is served, immediately grab a portion to take home the next day. Most restaurants in the United States serve way too much food. There is no law that requires you to eat everything. Do this often and you'll soon find that this meal earns you an extra lunch.

7. Pick up a copy of Restaurant Confidential by Michael F. Jacobson and Jayne Hurley, and start tracking how many calories you're actually eating. If you eat out a lot and are carrying extra pounds, this is probably the problem. This little book can help you understand why it seems like you're not eating that much and can't seem to lose weight. Hardees recently launched a new burger that contains almost 1,200 calories alone! It's frightening.

If you really want to tackle your weight problem, first look at where you eat, then what you eat, and finally how much you eat. Where, what and how much? Try these steps, one tip at a time, and see how easily you can eliminate some of the calories from restaurant meals.