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You Want To Lose Weight ? Stop Eating Out!!!!!!

I have never seen a population that eats out so much as in the U.S. Try cooking at home you know what goes into each meal, you control the portion size, and you control the caloric intake - hence healthier living, and weight loss.

Thu. May 24, 10:05am

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Or you could just do what a lot of people do when they are watching their weight but enjoy eating out - order sensibly.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 11:37 AM

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Part of losing weight is making lifestyle decisions, exercising, monitoring calorie intake, reducing fat, etc..
When you eat out you have no idea how the food is prepared. Eg: If you order the grilled chicken salad, you don't know what the chicken was grilled with (guarenteed it wasn't heart friendly olive oil). Even asking for salad dressing on the side doesn't help because odds are you will still pour the entire contents onto the salad.
Its interesting because I have been reading all these threads about people wanting to lose weight, they just don't seem to realize that it is not a quick fix.
Eating out really is an epidemic in America, hence so is obesity.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 12:41 PM

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I partially agree with you. Part of my plan is to stop wasting money at fast food places. The inside of my fridge looks very healthy, but I've gained weight because of the junk I buy outside.

The reason I say partially is because a lot of people can gain weight from home cooking as well. fried chicken, tacos, hamburgers, cakes, cookies and all that can be made from home. I recommend that people learn to eat and cook in healthy ways at home. Read books, magazines watch programs.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 12:42 PM

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It worked for Jarad with Subway! Eating out is fine as long as you make the right choices. A grilled chicken salad from a restaurant is still 100 times better than a burger and fries!

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 12:44 PM

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To your point 12:42.
Part of it is educating yourself, but willpower and dicipline is also important.

And as far as the subway sandwiches are concerned, do you have any idea how much sodium is in the veggie sandwich? It still is not a healthy way of managing your life


Thursday, May 24, 2007, 12:52 PM

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Absolutely. That grilled chicken could have been in sitting in a dish of butter or oil before they grilled it. It's been on the news. I just recently read a fitness magazine where a nutritionist caught up with 3 three women who thought they were eating healthy by eating a salad. The nutritionist calculated the calories in each salad and the numbers were like 600, 700-800 calories. If these women were on a calorie counting diet of 1200-1500, that salad would be half their day's worth. And YES sodium is one thing you can't control when you eat out.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 1:26 PM

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This is my achilles heel. I lovelovelove to eat out! i've always hated cooking and simply adore the fact that I can go to one of a number of nice buildings where friendly (mostly) people will ask what I would like to eat, prepare it and bring it to me and then do the dishes afterwards. I also enjoy meeting friends for meals out at least once a week and often 2-3 times a week.

The hardest part of losing weight has been learning to say 'no' to eating out. I just can't do it and lose weight. Oh I can eat out some, but not 2-3x a day and that's what I had been doing. When I look back, the miracle is that I didn't gain more weight! Yes, you *can* chose wisely when eating out which is how I'ven managed to conitnue losing weight while eating out 3-4 times a week, but I no longer eat out for almost every meal.

I had to learn to be a better cook though. If I'm going to eat at home I'm not going to give up gourmet food, lovely place settings and ambiance. So I went online and found/improvised a good set of nice, healthy dishes to prepare that are on par with most restaurants I go to. I take any leftovers for lunch and it hasn't been so bad. And my social life hasn't suffered either - my friends and I now have a new ritual where we regularly potluck at each other's houses and bring healthy entrees and salads. Come to find out we were all feeling the bite and it was a relief to everyone to lighten it up a bit. We still splurge on our fave restaurants from time to time, but now they're a special treat to mark a B-day or a new job or something like that and not a once-a-week thing.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 3:08 PM

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Eating Out is My Favorite Way to Diet!

I eat out for most meals and have found that I eat healthier when I eat out. As a single college student, it's impractical for me to have enough ingrediants on hand to eat healthy and with variety at home; every time I buy produce and fresh foods, they spoil before I can eat them. It's much more practical cost, time, and variety wise for me to just eat out.

The trick is that I only eat at places that publish the nutrition information for their food. An Asian chicken salad from Jack in the box is only 140 calories (without the add ons that I don't eat) and their low fat balsamic dressing is 40 calories for the entire packet. It's filling and has protein, lots of veggies, and fruit and is an entire meal for 180 calories!!! How can you beat that?! If I made that salad myself, I'd have to measure everything and would probably end up with a salad with way more calories.

Eating out can be EXCELLENT for managing calories because food is premeasured with published nutrition information!

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 4:20 PM

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The chicken (or beef, or pork) can sit in a bowl of oil or butter until it goes on the grill.The oil / butter keeps it from sticking to the grill and more oil can be thrown on during cooking. Restaurants are more focused on getting it cooked quickly then measuring out how much oil it takes to cook it. And the oil is usually one of the trans fats (cheaper).

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 4:21 PM

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if you let chicken or beef or pork soak in oil or drench it in oil (or butter), then when you put it on the grill, the oil flames up, smokes and coats the meat with a layer of carbon. you can wipe off the black residue, but it's obvious what happened. this is not a normal or usual way to grill food. you're being a bit too alarmist. by the way, i have worked in restaurant kitchens for over 20 years, so i know what i'm talkling about. if the grill is hot enough, you don't need to use any oil or stick-release spray. it's only when your grill is not hot enough that you run into a problem with meat sticking. any pretty much anyone who works a grill station either knows this or learns it very quickly.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 4:26 PM

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Sorry I Just Can't Buy Into The Idea.

My husband and I eat out maybe twice a month, not due to money, but because we enjoy cooking at home. When we do go out we go to a REALLY nice restaurant and treat ourselves to something that we wouldn't make at home, and if we really enjoy something new we try to figure out how we can cook it ourselves.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 4:26 PM

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Eating out

The prase "going-out-to-eat" is a national epidemic! I am a big offender! I admit it. But I am over it! Going-out-to-eat needs to be a true TREAT;Not because I got through another work week. (Whether you believe in war or not...go to Iraq & fight in a war...then you can celebrate getting through another work week! ) Americans use going-out-to-eat as laziness (ie - in educating themselves about nutruition for prepared foods or the lack of actually preparing) or emotional eater (we are not in touch with our emotions & how to deal with them) or we feel that we are entitled to it. (Similiar to debt; but debt within our bodies.)

Very few people are actually epicureans. Most americans love their fast-foods, Chilis, Pizza Huts & wings. I feel like I was an emotional eater. I wanted a fast, cheap fix. I was like a crack whore. I wasn't being honest with myself or my emotions. If it could get it delivered or I could drive-thru...my emotions were getting covered up, but not confronted. We need to look at ourselves. As why are we eating out. Can I cook a simliar, yet healthier version of that at home & still be social. Reward ourselves with other pleasures. A new outfit, a new book, a new workout video, mani/pedi, massage, share a bottle of wine with friends. In general, as a nation, we need to be more creative with how & why eat what we eat. I do love our country. This is just a generalization.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 6:50 PM

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i think in the time it takes to get in your car, drive somewhere, order, and get your food you can make some sort of meal at home- that is how i try to think of it now.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 6:55 PM

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To 4:16 PM

Before they grill the chicken, it can be in container marinating in oil/butter and all the seasonings that make it taste good and moist. You may not see the oil if they take some with a paper towel. I've seen this quite a few times on the news and in magazines.

Thursday, May 24, 2007, 8:12 PM

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I go out to eat often-probably at least twice a week. However I make healthy choices at home the rest of the week and do my best to choose wisely or eat half my portions (if it's an unhealthy dish!) when I am out, and I have never had it hinder my weight loss. I've managed to lose 70 lbs without deprivation!

I do think the frequency people go out for "fast food" is more of a problem than general restaurant goers. Eating a Big Mac and fries several times a week for lunch and then going out for dinner on top of that is going to make a difference! In a bad way!

Friday, May 25, 2007, 1:34 AM

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I find this thread very interesting. I like to eat at home, but I travel alot as a musician and it becomes difficult to do that. Being an emotional eater doesn't always mean that you need to have fast food...it just means that you are tying up your emotions to whatever food you have at the time. I remember being angry and frustrated and picking up a humongous bag of concord grapes. I ate every single one! Now, just because they are low in calories and fat etc, eating with the purpose of pushing down your feelings is the problem, not the amount of calories you are consuming.

Friday, May 25, 2007, 10:14 PM

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Eating out is less healthy than a home-cooked meal most of the time, unless you have no idea how to cook healthy food. Most restaurants use much more sugar, oils, and fats than you could possibly need. You can make healtheir choices when you eat out, but you're better off just cooking fresh, nutritionally sound food at home. It saves so much money as well.

Friday, August 08, 2008, 9:01 AM

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What I find surprsing is that what you eat is one of the most important factors in your health- and yet as a society, we seem to put a lot of trust in other people to ensure what we eat is healthy... talk about delegating authority...

Friday, August 08, 2008, 10:47 AM

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I guess I"m the exception. I rarely eat out, and I prepare meals for my family of six from scratch. I bake more than half of the bread we eat, I bottle some of the fruit that we eat in the winter, and I grow a garden. I haven't fried chicken in my entire 21-year marriage; I rarely fry anything (as in, less than once a year).

I'm still overweight. :^ )

But I agree that the American style of eating is extremely unhealthy overall. Fast-food meals that contain the entire day's calories and more in a single meal. King-size candy bar (over 300 cals) and a big mug of Coke. Not everyone does it, but it's something you see all the time. We've lost the concept of what constitutes a portion, we eat on the run, we see food as anything but fuel, and we blame the manufacturers and producers for the result, which is absurd.

Friday, August 08, 2008, 10:55 AM

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Funny-I eat out more now since I've lost 75 lbs than I ever did when I was heavy. Sure, restaurant food can be packed heavy w/ fat, calories and sodium, but ultimately you have a choice in what (and how much) you put in your body whether or not you eat at home or out in restaurants.

Educate yourself. Ask your server how something was prepared. Ask for half of your meal to be put in a to go container before it is brought out to you. There are lots of ways to be in control of your eating when you go out. It's silly to blame everyone's weight problem on eating out. I know plenty of fat people who can't afford to eat out or don't like to eat out.

Stop blaming your weight issues on something other than the fact that you eat more than your body needs, and don't move enough. You have choices.

Friday, August 08, 2008, 11:27 AM

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The problem isn't people eating out, the problem is what and how much people eat when they eat out. There are many places that offer healthy options, including main chain and local places. In fact, people often forget about local restaurants. Local restaurants are more apt to serve your needs, whether it be half orders, or even specific instructions. Eating out should be a treat, but those wanting to lose weight or those trying to stay healthy shouldn't be discouraged from eating out because there are options for them.

Friday, August 08, 2008, 11:28 AM

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Don't eat out if you are trying to lose!

You know, last night I ate out at Logan's, a chain family steak house. I ordered a small house salad with balsamic dressing on the side, grilled shrimp & zucchini skewers, and a dry sweet potato. I felt really good about my choices, but not so much when I realized the cheese on my salad was full fat, and my skewers had been drenched in butter. Even though I made healthy choices, it wasn't nearly healthy ENOUGH to achieve my goals. What's more is, I didn't enjoy those extra fat calories. I'd much rather make a yummy treat at home and know exactly what goes into it and go a little overboard there than with hidden ingredients at a restaurant.

That being said, if you are maintaining rather than trying to lose, I think its okay to eat at a restaurant every once and a while and not worry about what you are having too much. When I was maintaining, before I decided to lose more, I would have whatever I wanted, but simply make sure stop when I was full. I never gained any weight back in the six months I was maintaining. But its a fact that those small adjustments aren't enough for the average person to see any significant weight loss. You have to make some serious life changes to lose weight, and one of those is not eating out!

If you want to go out and do something to satisfy your desire to eat out, go to a coffee shop and have a skim sugar-free cappucino with a friend. Coffee shops are cozier anyway and don't rush you out when you're done. Or pack a picnic and go to a park with your family instead of going to a chain restaurant. It takes a little more work but its cheaper, your family gets fresh air & maybe even some exercise if you bring along a frisbee or soccer ball, and it will be a happier family memory than shoving yourself into yet another booth, being served by yet another disinterested waitress.

What I'm saying is- when you do go out, make it a very special treat, pull out all the stops, and don't worry about what you are eating too much. For most people you can only afford to do that while you're maintaining. Don't make eating out the way you feed your body or your body will always be fat.

Friday, August 08, 2008, 5:12 PM

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I used to eat out all the time...I mean ALL the time and hardly ever cooked at home. This was before I was trying to lose weight and during my longer than average days at work. Eating out was just something I did and there was nothing special about it.
Now, since I've stopped eating out all the time, it really does make a difference when I do. I seem to take the time to enjoy it more....and I should considering how much more expensive it is:-)
Same thing goes with meat. I've stopped eating that unless it's a extra special occasion and it does make me appreciate it more.

-buzzard

Friday, August 08, 2008, 6:16 PM

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Another thing to consider when you eat out (especially fast food) is you dont know how long food has been sitting out. My son works at Mickey D's and he said that sometimes someone will order 5 hamburgers, he loses count and makes a 6th or 7th, which ends up sitting there until someone ordersi it. While by law, they have requirements of how long food can sit out before they must toss it (and McD;s tosses a LOT of food) it isnt always done as it is wasteful and employees are lazy.

Friday, August 08, 2008, 9:55 PM

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