Choosing food wisely in a restaurant/eatery when you are on a diet.

If you are following a healthy diet plan then restaurant or fast food joints may not sound a better option to grab a bite. However, sometimes you are left with no choice but to eat out. Well, eating out does not always mean that you are eating unhealthy. Fitness Expert and nutritionist Neeraj Mehta says eating in a restaurant which offers Spa cuisine can be a healthier choice as they will serve you much healthier options. Let’s look at the ways on how to make a healthy choice when eating out.

Explore the menu:

You should take time to read the menu. Most of the menu cards have the ingredients of the dishes printed as well so you can really choose, what matches your eating plan.

·       Read the menu carefully, every food joints/eaterys have some food products which may fit in your daily diet.

·       Go for alternatives such as instead of doughnuts, order toast, green sandwich etc.

·       Eggs may sound a better choice on the menu however, you might want to know the cholesterol content of these. As per the US department of Agriculture there is 186 mg of cholesterol in one large egg (mostly found in Yolk). The daily recommendation of cholesterol is equal or less than 300 mg. Do the math’s now !!!

·       Look for fruits juices in the menu, and have them without adding any extra flavor/sugar.

·       Most of the menu cards have plain salads, sauté green vegetables, fruit platter on their list.

·       There may be plenty of tempting options available for desserts but amongst them there would be some healthier options too such as Fruit yogurt, Fresh fruits. Ask your desert to be prepared in less sugar.

Watch your portions:
You will save a heavy amount of calories if you will watch your portion size while eating out.
·       Don’t get excited by the words like “Deluxe”, “Super”, “mega”, they all are different meanings of big. Bigger the portions, more the calories.
·       Order takers may entice you by lines as “would you like to take fries with this”, you can always say no.
·       “Value meals” are only valuable if you need that extra food. Ordering less will also cost less.
·       Sharing is fun. You can share your food with friend, this way you will half the calories and double the pleasure.

Trim your calories and then fat:

Understanding nutritional value of different food products is a good idea, as it will help you in keeping count of your calories.
·       Learn the nutritional value of high-fat foods, spot them and go easy on them.
·       When ordering salads, be strict with the dressing. You may be getting high amount of calories than the nutritional value.
·       If you have to go for fried food, then order the food which is prepared in vegetable oil. Vegetable oil is cholesterol free and high in polyunsaturated fat. Avoid the oil which is rich in trans and saturated fat.
·       Remove the crispy crust from the fried chicken as that part is empty calories. Grilled, skinless chicken is better option.
·       Ask your food to be prepared with low salt.

Beverages:

When eating out, Beverages can really help you in keeping up with your diet as well as fulfilling the nutritional need.
·       To start with, Fresh fruit juices are always a good choice.
·       Instead of carbonated drinks, complete your meal with milkshake.
·       Smoothies, made with fruits, juices, Yogurt can be handy.
·       When ordering coffee or tea, ask it to be prepared with low fat milk rather than cream. Creams are high on saturated fat.
·       Lemonade is ideal choice for starter drink and it is a thirst quencher.