You Can Still Eat Out!!

We are all busy in our day to day lives, and sometimes do not have time to cook dinner or pack a healthy lunch.  Life is full of unexpected twists and turns - you go with the flow and you grab something quick to eat.  One of my favorite things to do is enjoying a nice meal out to eat with my husband, it’s way for me to wind down and have some fun!

 

You can still enjoy eating out and make the right decisions to eat healthy, it’s all about making the right choices.  Do not be afraid to ask your server to substitute something on the menu.  If your grilled chicken sandwich comes with fries ask if you can have the vegetable of the day instead.  If your sandwich comes with a dressing, get it on the side.  These small modifications are not only heart healthy but will save you calories as well. 

Additionally, more and more restaurants are adding nutrition facts on the menu or have a nutrition pamphlet available, allowing you to read EXACTLY what is in your food!  If you are able to obtain nutrition facts, look for foods low in fat, calories, and carbohydrates.  Another great thing restaurants are starting to do is to have a particular page or column dedicated to healthier food options, look for titles like "On the Healthier Side" or "Under 500 Calories."  Always choose from these items, sometimes an item may "sound healthy" but restaurants are known to add a ton of fat to their foods!!


Here are some surprising restaurant items that shocked me:
 

Place	Item	Fat	Calories
Panera	Frontega Chicken on Focaccia	38g	860
Panera	Fuji Apple Chicken	34g	560
On the Border	Sizzling Fajita Chicken Salad w/ ranch	71g	940
Applebee’s	Bruschetta Chicken Salad	66g	1110
Applebee’s	Grilled Shrimp n' Spinach Salad	65g	960

After reading this I hope you are very weary as to what you order.  Remember a salad or chicken sandwich is not always healthy.  These items seem healthy but you NEVER know what the restaurant is adding to your food.  

Here are some healthy food substitutions according to the American Heart Association:

Instead of…	Try …
Cream-based soups	Broth-based soups with lots of vegetables
Quiche and salad	Soup and salad
Buffalo chicken wings	Peel-and-eat shrimp
Bread, muffins, croissants	Melba toast, pita bread, whole-grain rolls
Fried chicken sandwich	Grilled chicken sandwich
Chicken fried steak	Veggie burger
French fries	Baked potato, brown rice, steamed vegetables
Potatoes and gravy	Potatoes without gravy, baked potato
Creamy coleslaw	Sautéed vegetables, steamed vegetables or tossed salad
Hot fudge sundae or ice cream Danish Jumbo cheeseburgers Fried chicken Fried chicken pieces French fries	Nonfat yogurt, sherbet or fruit ice Small Bagel Grilled chicken sandwiches, sliced meat sandwiches or even a regular hamburger on a bun with lettuce, tomato and onion Grilled chicken and a side salad Grilled chicken sandwich Baked potato with vegetables and/or low-fat or fat-free sour cream or margarine on the side http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/