If only it was as easy as "getting a salad" ahhh

Why is everyone's response when finding out that I'm watching what I eat to just "get a salad, and come out with us"........really?  If it was that easy everyone would be at a healthy weight.  Sometimes that's a great idea but more times than not it's like fighting an inner demon when everyone around you is indulging in great food and you're the one with the salad.  I also here the "well take a day off" and yes I do take days off but three times a week doesn't really work and they almost seem offended when you tell them you can't eat what they eat.

Does anyone else get those looks of almost anger when you tell someone you don't wanna eat (the fatty, greasy) food they are offering?  They almost try and sabotage my progress by insisting I eat what they eat and then even calling me "anorexic" for not wanting fast food and suggesting Souper Salad...........really??

THEN when you finally give in and go out and eat with them I hear the "oh I thought you were on a diet?    should you be eating that?"  WTF ahhhhh

btw- highest weight 270, currently 214..........goal 170 :) 

Your strength has to come from inside of you.  You are doing a great job!  Just smile and say "no thanks, I'm fine".  You are in a different place than they are.

Oh how I feel you! That's one of the hardest parts of losing weight. . .everyone is so interested in what you're eating!  Leave me alone, focus on your own plate!

And when they say "What, are you on a diet?" No, Jerkface, I just don't find it necessary to assault my arteries with plaque from cholesterol and fat at every meal.

Just picture their faces when you're at your goal weight, looking fabulous, talking to them about something OTHER than the salad you choose to eat to stay healthy and fabulous :).

Clearly you're eating well, because you've lost so much weight so far, so tell them to mind their own business and worry about their own arteries. Congrats on your weight loss so far!

Yeah, I know how you feel.  I've been in the same boat.  Damned if you do, damned if you don't.  If you try to stick to your diet, they're shoving food down your throat.  If you eat what you want, they always say "Why are you eating so much?  I thought you were on a diet."  And then they wonder why you're always giving them dirty looks.

It is very hard to stick to a calorie/fat restricted diet while eating out.  And just getting a salad doesn't always cut it.  Depending on the size of the salad and what type of dressing you're using, it can have more calories and fat than some of the other entrees.  You have to get a side salad with low fat Italian dressing, and use very little dressing.  And that's all you get to eat for the whole meal.

I don't eat out as much as I used to (about once a month) so I just think of it as a special treat and pick out what I want on the menu.  And if anyone asks me why I'm eating so much, I tell them that I'm taking a day off from my diet and that usually ends the nagging.

Congrats on your weight loss BTW!  Keep up the good work!

I have similar problems when I go out to eat. :/

Basically it comes down to what you want. If they're treating you that way, you just have to brush it off. Order what you want to order and don't worry about it.

If you don't go out to eat often (like once a month maybe), you could order anything you wanted on the menu and it probably wouldn't hurt. :]

Depending on the salad, it can have just as much fat and calories as the other entrees.

My family and friends are all obsessed with food. Some of them are overweight and some of them aren't. But when they want to spend time with me, it always involves eating out or ordering something just as terrible in.

I worry about excess calories, but I also worry about sodium. I find I feel my absolute best when I have my sodium under control and if I have enough vegetables too. The amounts of sodium they use in restaurant foods horrifies me.

Anyway, you need to stand up for yourself. Health is an important matter, so never mind them and do what you need to do for yourself. <3

Congratulations on your loss to date.  Very impressive!

My strategy is to separate "socializing" from "eating".  I love to socialize, but don't choose to eat "special" treats all the time.  So, sometimes I go and stay on my normal eating plan, and sometimes I go and let loose a little by eating my maintenance calories for the day.  Either way, I don't make it a topic of conversation with the people I am with.  If anybody actually comments on what I choose to eat by saying "I thought you were on a diet" I always answer, "Oh, no, I am not on a diet, I am just trying to have a healthier lifestyle, and today I am have a little special treat".  But I find that people very seldom actually care what I am eating if I don't make a big deal out of it.

BTW, I find the best way to deal with the eating occasions when I am staying on my normal intake plan is not salads (which scream "diet") -- is to order a bowl of soup as a first course and an appetizer for my main dish.  Or I order a main dish, but draw a line through all the higher calorie parts of the plate (meat and starch) and eat only half.  The other half I box up to take home.

Congratulations on your progress! Whatever you've done this whole time has clearly been working, and so have your coping strategies with your friends.

We're around the same weight and I find it hilarious that they call you "anorexic" for not always wanting food.

I haven't had a problem with this yet for a few reasons: Everyone I go out with is very skinny and health-conscious. My attempts to eat "healthier" are still much worse than how they normally eat. Are most of your friends overweight?

I also order whatever I want when I go out, and this is rarely salad. I just seem to use a doggy bag a lot and usually don't eat everything on my plate. I work out and eat less for other meals or on other days. So far, this has been fine.

love everyones responses...............and so true, people really need to worry about themselves..........so to answer if my friends are overweight? well to me they're thin because most of them are shorter than me (i'm 5'8) and they weight about 150 ish but for their height (5'2-5'5) they think they need to lose a few.  and they complain about their weight lol ughh and then keep eating ahaha.

something that a friend told me years ago was to think like this......... ;;; when someone is eating the foods you love in front of you and making dumb comments about YOUR weight loss (hence my previous story) just think to yourself  "keep eating, you're going to gain weight and I am not"  weirdly it totally helps and then they question the smile on your face lol lol

ohhhhhhhhh and I'm still looking for my CC twin!!!!   5'8  CW 214   GW 170ish........21yrs old! let me know!!! :P

i was at a friends house yesterday and they made "5 cheese pizza" so just pizza, grease, cheese and it was one of those 'instant frozen pizzas" so you just know it's loaded with msg and fat and oil and basically crap so I had to say "no thanks"

the thing I hate the most is when you say "i'm sorry, i'm watching my calories and that just doesn't fit into my diet right now" and the person who is about to eat it is overweight and they say "oh, yeah, I probably shouldn't be eating this" and they look at you with a sad look kinda like YOU were guilt tripping THEM about their poor choices. Then i feel obligated to explain "sorry i'm on a 1200 calorie diet and eating that would really screw up my dinner allotment, and i just ate an apple, so really, i'm not really hungry either (i asked for an apple while the pizza was in the oven so i wouldn't be tempted when it arrived) and i start explaing "oh, well it's okay for YOU to eat it, because you probably haven't had a big breakfast like I did".... etc....

but my point is that sometimes i feel guilty for saying "sorry, I can't eat that" because I feel like the person about to eat the 'bad food' feels like i'm judging THEM.

I think it's better sometimes to lie and say you have allergies to an ingredient or that you just ate something else earlier and you're too full rather than to indulge that you are 'on a calorie restricted meal plan'.

Gosh, too much psychology! just shut up and say NO! :P you don't have to explain yourself.  Just say "no thankyou" and leave it at that!!! :) 

*smile* you gotta do what you gotta do :)