Maintaining Healthful Eating Habits While Dining Out
Key Takeaways:
- Before dining out, reach out to the establishment to understand their menu options, which can help in avoiding impulse decisions based on limited healthful alternatives.
- Understanding kitchen lingo assists in making better food choices. Terms like ‘poached’, ‘roasted’ or ‘steamed’ suggest low-fat cooking techniques while dishes described as ‘buttered’, ‘fried’, ‘escalloped’ or ‘au gratin’ are likely high in fats.
- Assertiveness is key in tailoring the menu to suit dietary needs. Customers should feel empowered to request modifications to dishes, such as removing high-fat sauces or requesting healthier substitutes.
- Pay attention to portion control as excessive portions contribute to surplus caloric intake and fat. Opting for smaller servings like a children’s meal can limit portion size while reducing caloric and fat intake.
- Choosing a dining venue that provides a variety of healthful alternatives, even in the setting of fast food outlets, makes a significant difference in maintaining a healthy diet.
During festive seasons, dining out becomes an increasingly attractive option to many. However, this shouldn’t equate to compromising on healthy dietary choices.
Select Health-conscious Choices
Dining out can be filled with various gastronomic pitfalls such as enticing appetizers, sizable servings, and indulgent desserts that may pose a threat to any individual aspiring to adhere to a nutritious diet. Certain establishments such as the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center extend invaluable advice on navigating a healthful path while eating out.
A proactive approach is to reach out to the dining establishment beforehand to gain visibility into their menu options. This can reduce the odds of making impulse decisions based on limited healthful alternatives.
Master the Culinary Terminology
Understanding kitchen lingo can be instrumental in making better food choices. Recognize that terms like poached, roasted or steamed are indicative of low-fat cooking techniques. Conversely, if a dish is described as buttered, fried, escalloped or au gratin, it is likely to be brimming with fats.
Assertiveness can be key in tailoring the menu to suit your dietary needs. Waitstaff can be a treasure trove of information about food preparation, condiment choices, and alternative meal options. Feel empowered to request modifications to the dishes, such as omitting high-fat sauces or requesting healthier dessert substitutes.
Make Conscious Choices
If an establishment doesn’t support your health-conscious requests, it might suggest that other restaurants should be given a consideration in future.
Pay close attention to portion control. A meal deal may seem like a steal, but excessive portions contribute to surplus caloric intake and excessive fats. Even opting for a children’s meal can be a strategic move to limit portion size whilst reducing caloric and fat uptake.
When faced with fast-food outlets, choosing a venue that provides a variety of healthful alternatives like baked potatoes, chili, salads and plant-based burgers can make a significant difference.
More information
The University of Illinois provides an in-depth guide on maintaining healthy holiday eating habits while away from home.
