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Fast Food/Takeout Go To Restaurants?

Curious as to what everyone's favorite options are to eat at when you do eat out? Since starting this diet I try my best to eat out as little as possible but let's face it, I work behind a desk with an office full of grown men who eat out daily and usually want to bring me food back. I usually stick with healthy options like Subway, Crispers, or Panera Bread. But i've found there is so much sodium everywhere, even at the healthy places. 😞

 

What's your favorites?

 

 

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If you gotta do fast food I recommend getting the steak salad from Chipotle with the fajita veggies and beans only (no rice), with sour cream.  This fills your veggie, protein, carb, and fat without going to much over the limit (ie:  my carb choice is no more than a 3oz portion they serve 4 oz, all other portions are perfect protein is 4, and fat content is not bad at all if you only do sour cream and skip the guac).  Its yummy, its filling, and you can find a chipotle almost anywhere if youre in a pinch!

 

Good luck!

 

 

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hi Ive visited the USA with my family from the UK on many occasions and have been really pleased by the range of salad options but not impressed by the calorie count/fat content/salt content of dressings. However everywhere we went staff were very helpful if I asked for fresh lemon to squeeze on my salad.

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When I go out I tend to stick to salads or a Mediterranean veggie sandwich. I also do an iced tea with no sweetener. I read a good tip is to automatically put half of your portion in a to go container right off the bat so you don't overeat since portions are so huge at restaurants. 

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Kfc 😞 but no more, I have a pic of myself back when I was 236lbs just to remind me about ever eating and wating unhealthy food

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I stopped fast food altogether. Instead, I go to the grocery store. Most have a very lightly dressed power salad - kale, blueberries, nuts, purple cabbage, carrots, peppers, onion at the deli counter.  I get that and 2 oz of the turkey they roast in the store.  If I'm really hungry, I'll add a cheese stick or a  serving of milk.  They I get an orange or other piece of fruit.  The bill comes to under $4.  

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I keep some strawberries and blueberries in the fridge now, for those moments when I need a nibble

 

as bad as it may sound, can't wait for my nephew to start school, means he will come/visit less, meaning less sweets and chocolates in the fridge/living room to tempt me

 

although it does sort of train me to resist the temptation

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I normally buy smoothies, or fresh juices at the bodegas.

I also order vegetarian stuff (Sushi, vegetarian or farm to table options).

I don't eat a lot of fast food as before

but when I go to places like Applebees, I ask for them to give me the menu -- I choose a protein with fresh or steamed veggies to be safe.

No sugary items.

Not a lot of bread and I drink plenty of water/lemon is your friend in this case.

 

Pam O.

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Piecing my memories together, the lowest sodium locations I know of are:

- Bob Evans (Select Meals like Canadian Bacon, Eggs, and Toast)

- Cracker Barrell (Select Meals - Ditto for Bob Evans)

- Silver Diner (Select Meals - Ditto for Bob Evans)

- Cava Grill (If you can put the taste buds to the side)

- Ruby Tuesday (Salad Bar Only)

- Smoothie Bars (Jamba Juice for example)

 

If you're a cook with a big fridge, there's always buying what is known as healthy meals with super low sodium.

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It may have some sodium but a lot of taco joints offer taco salads. I like to skip the meat or choose the leanest one (usually chicken) skip the rice and load up on beans and lettuce and a little cheese. Even a little avocado to promote satiety.

 On a more basic note, subway (like you said) is a good option. But the best secret is that the salads at subway (depending on the meat you select) can be pretty good bang for your buck. The employees have to give you as many veggies as you like. So if you request extra extra spinach, tomatos, cucumbers, green peppers, etc you can get a huge salad for around 5-6$. Much better than a mcdonalds salad!

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Subway is good and if you get the riht sub and eat this as opposed to other Fast food restaurants you will actually drop your weight because eating fresh is healthy and that's what Subway stands for.

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The key to eating out at a regular restaurant, is to not be afraid to special order.  If something is fried, see if they will serve it broiled.  Ask if you could have any sauce on the side.  When you order vegetables ask if they are in a sauce and see if they can be just steamed instead.  Let the waiter or waitress know you are looking for healthy options and ask what they recommend.  They have probably heard menu items ordered in a way that is healthier, but not listed on the menu.  If they serve salads and the serve grilled chicken, you can usually get a salad with a single grille chicken breast on the side.

 

As for fast food, you've read the posts... their crappy salad with your own dressing.  Wendy's used to offer a baked potato.  Carbs have a bad wrap, but a potato is natural, and it is usually the extra stuff on top that makes it bad.  Some lite salad dressings can make a potato taste even better than adding butter.  

 

Try ordering a grilled chicken sandwich without the bun, and a small side salad.  Maybe do the same with a small hamburger, again without the bun, and blot the burger with a napkin to remove excess oils.

 

Now, if you are going to a high end restaurant, just take the calorie hit for the day.  It will most likely be worth it, and you don't want to offend someone like Chef Ramsey.   

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I'm on a low-carb option. I love any fast food with tacos! A lot of places you can order the tacos without the shell. Higher in protein and lower in carb option. Hope this helps 🙂

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i can't justify the garbage ingredients at your typical ff places.  the convenience type places i'd rather go to are like a chipotle or something.  you can choose what goes in or on the plate.  plus mfp lets you add the ingredients individually so it's an easy thing to track as well.  the sodium laden calorie dense food is a thing of the past for me.

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I like Subway or Panera when I can. But if I have to eat out, I focus on eating chicken or fish. And if my chicken happens to be fried or breaded, then I try to cut something out that I would typically eat with my fast food like soda.

 

Another Favorite I have is Amigo's, (pretty sure it is a Nebraska fast food Mexican restaurant only). But they have a healthy menu options where they substitute wheat tortilla's and have taco bowls etc. Similar to Chipotle and Qdoba, which I also love!

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awood08, I just recently discovered Whole Foods and its to-go buffet/pizzeria.  They have so much variety (American, Italian, Asian, etc.), and it is reasonably priced.  Even though I'm keeping track of what I eat in a food diary (thank you, Fitbit!), I'm not quite sure what the sodium content is.

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I was also going to suggest Chipotle (or Qdoba).  It's surprising at how satisfied and full you can feel for the calories.  You can even pre-plan your meal here: Chipotle Nutrition Calculator Yay!

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I'm a newbie on these forums, though I've had my FitBit for about 10 months now.

 

If I had my choice of fast-food restaurant, I'd probably take Wendy's -- grilled chicken sandwich (take off half the bun), side salad, and a bottle of water.  Someone suggested their side salad and a bowl of chili -- will have to try that sometime, thanks!  

 

Normally, I get packets of my own favorite dressing -- Kraft Fat-Free Italian -- and tuck one in my purse. It's rare to find any place with a decent salad dressing. 

 

The most irritating fast-food place is Burger King. It appears that, in at least two BK locations, you really CAN'T "have it your way". At both, I asked for a grilled chicken sandwich, replace the French fries with a side salad, and a cup of Diet Coke.  At both I was told that if I wanted the side salad instead, they could not substitute it. I had to order the sandwich, the salad, and the drink separately, instead of the Value Meal.  Now, the price of the side-fries and the side-salad was exactly the same, so why couldn't I substitute?  My husband argued for me, but I was ready to walk out without buying anything.  They finally gave in after he told them (truthfully) that I have a medical condition that requires me to eat healthy and that French fries were a "no-no".  

 

My favorite sit-down place is Souplantation, known in other places as Sweet Tomatoes. It's a soup and salad bar, with only a few breads available, and the only dessert is fat-free frozen yogurt.  It's also about the only place where I don't feel the need to carry my little packets of salad dressings!

 

At work .... I bring my lunch, every day, even when the boss or someone is bringing in food. I did participate in the Souper Bowl potluck that we all had, and just ensured that my contribution was healthy.  

 

 

Donna 

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I'm not really striving for perfect nutrition yet. I've done that before and it's just too exhausting when combined with adding exercise and calorie counting. I will get to it eventually, just haven't done it yet. 

Honestly, my big hangup is my coffee. I LOVE coffee. I have gotten into habits of drinking black coffee or coffee with skim milk or coffee with almond milk. But, that doesn't bring me joy. Coffee, the way I actually like it, is an experience and one of my favorite parts of my day. I have 3 cups of coffee with a fantastic 4 tbsp of half n half each. That pretty much means that every single day I consume too much fat at the sacrifice of either carbs or protein. I try to switch up which gets sacrificed everyday. 

 

Now, if I had bad lab numbers, like cholesterol or triglycerides were out of whack, I would worry about it. My overall cholesterol is like 203, but, my bad cholesterol is well within normal, it's my 'good' cholesterol that is high. So, I'm not going to worry about that. 

 

Additionally, I have good blood pressure, it's really only my heart rate that is high. It would probably be lower if I dropped the caffeine. Because my blood pressure is well within normal, I don't really worry about sodium yet. 

 

I have fast food for almost every single lunch. At Taco Bell, I get 2 chicken soft tacos for lunch. At McDonald's I usually get a 10 piece nugget with no sauce or one of the bargain menu sandwiches. At Wendy's I get any sandwich off the bargain menu. I never get soda or fries. 

 

I also bring snacking veggies to work. Usually I have a big container of steamed broccoli or a container that's just full of sliced up cucumbers, carrots, tomatoes or whatever else was lying around that I snack on all day. I just leave them on my desk and snack when I want to. 

 

I have an hour lunch at work and if I stay in the building someone will have to ask me a question or I'll need to help with something during my unpaid lunch. So, I really have to leave the building for lunch. I used to be close to a Target before my latest transfer and then I would walk around in the store for half an hour and buy a sandwich from their produce area. Get a half hour walk in air conditioning and get a halfway decent meal. 

 

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Try hard to bring your own lunch.  Aside for the sodium in fast food, it's the hidden sugars and bad-for-you-fats that do the most harm.   If you MUST indulge the mens' desire to bring you fast "food", get a salad.

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Chic fil a - grilled chicken sandwich and a fruit cup

Jason's deli - Nutty mixed up salad in the light portion

Taco Bell- chicken soft taco and black beans

 

Those are a few. Not sure about the sodium content of them though. Calorie and fat wise they are good.

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