Eating healthy at restaurants can be incredibly difficult. Not only do you have the grease to contend with – you also have the high calories. This is one of the main reasons why nutritionists and weight loss specialists recommend that you make healthy meals at home. However, if you enjoy going out to eat, and if you enjoy the restaurant experience, you want to find some creative ways to eat healthy at restaurants. When it comes down to it, there are a lot of ways to make healthy food choices at restaurants – it is all about how you order and what you order. Here are five tips to help you eat healthy at restaurants.
- Find a healthier restaurant – you want to be sure that you do your research online and you may want to ask your friends. There are a lot of restaurants out there, like Bon Ton Caf, that offer healthier items. However, it is up to you to do the research and search for these restaurants. You can use the Internet – by browsing peer review sites – or you can ask your friends for recommendations.
- Be sure to study the menu – you want to order items that aren’t too heavy. When you do find a healthy restaurant, you want to be sure that you study the menu before you order. Some items will be healthier than others. You can study the menu and you can ask your server questions. There is a good chance that your server will know what the lightest menu items are.
- Don’t order seconds – this is a sure fire way to not eat healthy at a restaurant. A lot of people make mistakes at restaurants by ordering seconds. If you have just had a big, unhealthy meal, you definitely don’t want to order seconds. When it comes down to it, this is why you may want to avoid visiting a buffet, because it may tempt you to eat much more than you wanted to eat, which will seriously interrupt your diet.
- Order a light appetizer – when it comes down to it, there are some incredibly fattening appetizers on some restaurant menus. Ideally, you want to stick to only light appetizers, like salad. If you go for anything heavy or greasy, you are not going to be making a healthy decision. If you really want to be healthy, you probably want to stick with one course – the more courses you introduce to the meal, the unhealthier your dining experience will be.
- Stay away from the dessert menu at restaurants – dessert can often be the most fattening item at a dining establishment. On top of everything, you may want to think of eating dessert at home or having a few bites of fruit to cleanse your palate. If you go for heavy chocolate cake or mousse, you will only be packing on the calories. In the end, you may simply want to have a few raspberries and a coffee and call it a night.