How many times have you eaten healthy all week and then the weekend comes and you go to restaurants or order a lot of takeout? You “reward” yourself for being so good all week by having “cheat meals” all weekend. Only to wake up on Monday defeated because all of your weight loss progress from the week is gone. 

The good news is that you can still eat healthy even when you go to restaurants or get takeout! 

HERE ARE MY TOP 4 TIPS TO EAT HEALTHY EVEN WHEN YOU ARE EATING OUT:

1. Decide which of the following is most important to you and only have ONE of the following: bread, wine, or dessert.
   
   
   1. BREAD
      Make sure you really enjoy it and have butter too! Life is all about balance! Just be sure to get water as a drink and have coffee after dinner instead of dessert. 
      
   2. WINE
      Drink only 1 glass of your favorite wine and really enjoy it! Make sure you get water with it as well and drink both so your wine will last longer. Be sure to send the bread basket away if you are at a restaurant (or ask for no bread for takeout) so you aren’t templated to eat bread. Order coffee (or make coffee at your house if you get takeout) for dessert instead of having a dessert. 
      
   3. DESSERT
      Choose your favorite dessert and really enjoy it! Make sure to get water as your drink and make sure you don’t order any bread so you aren’t tempted to eat it. 
      
      
2. When you order your meal watch the portions! Most restaurants give you enough for at least two meals so mentally take note and eat HALF of the portion given to you or order off of the appetizer menu and add sides or ask about lunch portions.
   
   
   1. REGULAR PORTION MEAL
      If you order a regularly portioned meal, ask for a takeout container when your food comes out when you are at a restaurant. If you got takeout, just get a new plate and put half of the meal on it. Put the other half that is still in the takeout container back in your fridge before you start eating. Make sure that veggies are included in this meal as they will help you feel more full.  
      
   2. APPETIZERS AND SIDES
      Ordering appetizers and sides is a great way to get the correct portion sizes and you will be able to eat the whole thing instead of cutting it in half. Make sure that your appetizers and sides have a lot of veggies in them too so it will help you feel full! Don’t feel bad about ordering different and “bothering” people. Do what is best for you and your meal plan. 
      
      
3. TRACK what you ate in your meal planning tracker when you get home/ finish your dinner! Whether you are tracking with The Ultimate Portion Fix, 2B Mindset, or pen and paper, it is important to write down everything you ate at dinner. That way the night morning when you weigh yourself, you can see if the meal either didn’t make a difference, positively or negatively affected your weight loss. Even if you did gain weight from the meal, don’t worry about it. Just use it as information and as a learning experience. Its simply DATA and does not define your worth! But if you’re on a weight loss journey, having this data will help you make the most out of it! Remember: You’re never “losing” – you’re winning or learning!
   
   Next time when you go to a restaurant or get takeout, order different things and experiment what works best with your body!
   
   
4. Don’t arrive STARVING! I often hear it in my bootcamps: “I didn’t eat all day so I could splurge tonight” – oh no sista! That’s not doing any good! Not only are you messing with your metabolism you’re probably awfully uncomfortable and hungry all day then overstuffed when you finally give your body some fuel in the evening. Go back to those tips above, order sensibly, ENJOY every bite and never look at it as a “cheat” but a splurge. And you should enjoy the splurge!!! Personally, I will often shake up a protein shake before I go. This gives my body REAL FUEL, helps avoid any crash splurging as soon as the bread basket is dropped and allows me to know I am eating the right fuel for MY body. ‘

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