Eating out: Eat This Not That

I just picked up a new book that seems to be pretty useful. It's called Eat This Not that by David Zinczenko. My big problem is always eating out. I think I'm making healthier decisions and it turns out, I'm chowing down on THOUSANDS of calories and so much salt I could pickle my insides. :( It's like a handy dandy CC website in your pocket that has a lot of really good information on restaurant foods. And it's really surprising too, there's a lot of things I thought would be better for you and calorie wise, you'd just be better off eating a Big Mac.  

I don't know if this is actually going to work, but I'm hoping it might help me get a better idea of what I'm putting in my mouth and maybe some alternatives. I'm crossing my fingers so we'll see if it's actually useful over the next couple of months. Just throwing it out there to see if anyone has had any success with it?

I've looked at those books a couple of times, I find them facinating. I don't have them but I always pick them up and browse through them. Let me know how it works for you :)

I have found lots of good info in my copy of the book. Like the fact that thin people get paid more than HEAVY ONES FOR THE EXACT SAME JOB. And that you should eat something within thirty minutes of a work out so that your muscles wont begin to consume themselves.

It is a great resource for knowing what to eat when going out, but it has a lot more hints and tips than I thought it would. I really enjoy reading through the different foods so i can make appropriate choices at home also.

Here is an interesting article I found thanks to yahoo http://www.menshealth.com/eatthis/The_Best_Fa st_Food_Meals_Under_500_Calories/Less_Than_50 0_Calories_at_Wendy_s.php by the same people that makes the books.

Thanks for the reference.  Eating out is a killer.  I have used the nutrition information provided on the restaurant websites when it is a chain and they provide it.  The calorie, fat, and salt content can be shocking!  Here is another website I sometimes use:http://www.dwlz.com/redblack.html.

That book is very enlightening.  He also has another book that I actually like better, It's still eat this not that but it's the supermarket survival guide.

I think after reading these book they do really help with making better choices.  They open your eyes to all the "hidden" unhealthy things in food that call themselves low fat or reduced fat.

Good luck everyone with your weight loss.

You would have to get it from ebay or half books or something, but Weight Watchers has a very good eating out guide you could most likely buy from someone who has quit.

I have both the original book and the supermarket survival guide and they really do shed some light on some of the hidden unhealthy things.   The problem with these books though is that they just show you the lesser of two evils.  Even the "good" choices really aren't all that great for you.  Sure they may have a few lower calories, or a bit less sodium, but the majority of the stuff in there is still bad. 

For example: 

http://eatthis.menshealth.com/slideshow/top-s waps-weight-loss?slide=1

It's not as if that big mac is ANY better than the whopper.   They both suck, this book justifies this type of eating for people that don't want to change they're diet and nutrition.   While they are informative books on some of the hidden dangers of foods these days,  I do think they miss the mark as a reference for people looking to lose weight.

Melifer09:  

I just want to make a few points on what you said about eating after a work out.   I'm not sure if this information was in that book, but it isn't correct at all.  Eating protein after weight training will prevent catabolism.  Which is in essence your body consuming it's own muscle mass to repair the damage done by stressing the muscle during your weight training session.  It is best for this to be liquid protein (not just any food will do after a workout) such as a whey protein shake or smoothie because your body digests this at a much faster rate than solid proteins.  Proteins from dairy (casein protein) is generally a poor choice because casein is a much slower protein to digest.  Protein after weight training to build and feed muscle recovery from the damage you just did to it.

I made a little card I carry in my wallet with the calorie info for assorted dishes at about a dozen restaurants in my area.  So if I'm out and about and get put in a position where I need to either get food to go or to go to a restaurant, I'm prepared.

I don't eat out anymore because I am vegan AND gluten-free, which makes it almost impossible, although rarely it's just unexciting (baked potato or a salad, sometimes veggie chili if it doesn't have wheat thickener in it.)

Before I had to go gluten-free I used to eat out all the time and I can only imagine how many calories I was eating! LOTS, no doubt.

67,

That is a good idea and a great way to BE PREPARED.

Original Post by viraloracle:

I don't eat out anymore because I am vegan AND gluten-free, which makes it almost impossible, although rarely it's just unexciting (baked potato or a salad, sometimes veggie chili if it doesn't have wheat thickener in it.)

Before I had to go gluten-free I used to eat out all the time and I can only imagine how many calories I was eating! LOTS, no doubt.

 You would be surprised how many restaurants now offer gluten-free items.  Heck, even Ruby Tuesdays has a section of their menu.  I have a co-worker who can't eat gluten, dairy, and a few other things and they have a growing list of where they can eat.

Do you live in an urban area, viraloracle? I know you may not miss going out to eat, but as a person who loves to eat other peoples' cooking a few times a week, I would miss it. Anyway, my point is that when I've lived in urban areas or even smaller college towns, there are always great health food-oriented vegetarian/vegan restaurants around that I'm sure would have gluten free stuff on the menu. Obviously it doesn't matter if you don't miss it; I just get so sick of my own cooking sometimes!

Original Post by 67alecto:

Original Post by viraloracle:

I don't eat out anymore because I am vegan AND gluten-free, which makes it almost impossible, although rarely it's just unexciting (baked potato or a salad, sometimes veggie chili if it doesn't have wheat thickener in it.)

Before I had to go gluten-free I used to eat out all the time and I can only imagine how many calories I was eating! LOTS, no doubt.

 You would be surprised how many restaurants now offer gluten-free items.  Heck, even Ruby Tuesdays has a section of their menu.  I have a co-worker who can't eat gluten, dairy, and a few other things and they have a growing list of where they can eat.

Usually you can find vegetarian gluten-free items, or non-vegetarian gluten free items (such as meat) but it's very VERY hard to find vegan, gluten-free items aside from as I said above, salad and a baked potato.

I have never seen a Ruby Tuesday's in Texas, I only ever saw one in South Carolina. There may be some down here, but not in this city.

Original Post by sourmena:

Do you live in an urban area, viraloracle? I know you may not miss going out to eat, but as a person who loves to eat other peoples' cooking a few times a week, I would miss it. Anyway, my point is that when I've lived in urban areas or even smaller college towns, there are always great health food-oriented vegetarian/vegan restaurants around that I'm sure would have gluten free stuff on the menu. Obviously it doesn't matter if you don't miss it; I just get so sick of my own cooking sometimes!

I do miss it sometimes. There's a vegetarian/vegan restaurant here in town but aside from salad, everything contains gluten (seitan, wheat-meat is a big seller there.) It extends to their chilis, wraps, breads, soups, so on and so forth.

I am gonna make a trip out to McAllisters and get a giant salad and bring my own dressing sometime, with a side baked potato. That should be pretty good!