The Worst Things You Can Order
Okay, so obviously you could go out to eat and consider it a treat meal, like I discussed in my article on cheat meals. Or you could step in and be faced with the bread and still show your willpower, avoiding it all. And then, you opt for a seemingly healthy meal from the menu that is more than you bargained for. Of course, you don’t need me to tell you that the enchiladas slathered in cheese sauce, the fettuccine alfredo, or the stuffed pizza are bad ideas. But check out some of these others than seem innocent enough:
Chipotle Grilled Chicken Burrito
Take a tortilla bigger than your face, fill it with grilled chicken, rice, black beans, guacamole, and salsa and you end up with 1179 calories, 125g carbs, 33g fat, and 52g protein.
Better Bet: Get it as a “Bol” (no tortilla), nix the rice and beans, double the meat, and add double fajita vegetables to save about 82g of carbs and 520 calories. Another trick…wait until they’ve put your vegetables in, then ask them to put a little more. If you ask before they add the veggies, you won’t get much more than normal.
Smoothie King 20oz Angel Food Smoothie
Evocative imagery of angels…really, how bad can it be if it’s for angels?. Check out this genius marketing:
Angels have to be light on their wings—those things are delicate. In that case, they’d have no problem feasting on this fantastic low-fat blend of banana and strawberries. It’s creamy, delicious and fit, well, for an angel.
What I want to know is how they can run this in the “Trim Down” line when 85% of the calories are sugar? 354 calories, 75g sugar (84g carbs total), 0g fat. Just for comparison, 20oz of Coca-Cola only has 68g of sugar.
Better Bet: Don’t go here. All of their drinks are crap. I prefer solid food, but if you want a shake/smoothie, check out 5 Sweet Savory Primal Shakes from Mark’s Daily Apple.
TGI Friday’s Pecan-Crusted Chicken Salad
Seems innocent enough. Pecans? Healthy. Chicken? Healthy. Salad? Who can argue against a bowl of lettuce? But when you fry the chicken and add on a sugary-sweet balsamic vinaigrette, you get 1360 calories with 71g of carbs (38g of it sugar) and 50g of fat. Now, you know I’m not afraid of fat, but considering that it’s mostly the rancid vegetable oils the chicken is fried in and probably soybean oil in the dressing, this one is just bad news all around. I’m still amazed at a salad with 38g of sugar!
Better Bet: Order something grilled with a side of vegetables.
PF Chang’s Chicken Noodle Soup
It doesn’t get more wholesome than chicken noodle soup, does it? Well, except for the processed grains in the noodles. But really, in the grand scheme of things, how bad can a bowl of soup really be? 759 calories, 24g of fat, and 92g of carbohydrates. There’s a snooze waiting to happen. What’s funny is if you view the nutrition info, it seems pretty light at only 120 calories. Until you realize that a serving is 7oz and the bowl it comes in is 32oz. Nice sleight of hand there, Chang’s.
via Day 17: Healthy Eating Out – Fitness Spotlight : Fitness Spotlight.