Noom…What to eat when eating out

I am now at the end of my weight loss journey and it has been amazing. The thing about Noom is that I am never really done “Nooming” though. Although my goal isn’t to lose a lot of weight anymore, my new goal is to maintain both my new weight and my health. This is why Noom is so great and different from “weight loss” plans. Everything about what I eat, what I crave and how I eat has pretty much changed which is why I know I can continue to be healthy and successful. You never really stop Nooming. I will write another post about my entire journey and results including before and after pictures (if I am brave enough) another time, but I wanted to first work on this second Noom post that I thought would be helpful to my fellow Noomers. Noom is about learning to eat in real life and real life includes eating out from time to time. Between not knowing exactly what is going into your dishes, not always having calorie and nutritional information available, and huge portions, it can be overwhelming. But it doesn’t have to be. Here are the best tips I have learned about eating out guilt free:

Plan ahead. Whether we are celebrating a birthday at a favorite sit down restaurant or in a rush and going to have to grab something fast, I plan ahead. This means figuring out what restaurant we are going to ahead of time, instead of winging it and picking something as we drive by. I keep in mind who has the most and best choices whenever possible. Look up a restaurant’s menu online whenever you can and decide what you want before arriving. This helps you to not feel stressed at the restaurant or be on your phone frantically trying to figure calories or see if you can fit something into your day. If you are able to do this far in advance, you can also plan ahead and save up some calories to splurge a little or maybe even have a dessert or favorite appetizer!

If you are in a situation where you were on the go or maybe traveling and have to choose a place to eat most large chains will have calorie information listed to help you choose. If not Google is your friend and you can usually find the information on popular dishes there or in the Noom App itself (although we all know it isn’t the most accurate sometimes).

The thing that I think makes Noom so different from other weight loss plans is that you can have everything in moderation and you don’t have to feel deprived of anything! So what if you have a favorite meal from a restaurant that is high calorie? With most plans you can either plan on never having it again or have it and call it a “cheat day” which will then in turn make you feel like you failed. With Noom, you learn to treat yourself to those favorites from time to time…just not all the time. Ask for a to go box at the begining of your meal and put half of your meal in it from the start. The biggest thing Noom taught me about myself was that my portion sizes were way too big. Even when I was eating healthy, I was eating way too much and restaurant portions are ALWAYS too much. Another way to splurge on something that is a little higher in calories is to add an extra healthy side. Replace the fries you would have normally ordered with some steamed veggies or a fruit cup. I have had the pleasant surprise at a few of my favorite restaurants that what I thought would be boring veggies were actually wonderfully seasoned and delicious!

Cheat Sheet: Here are some of my favorites from popular restaurants to make your life a little easier. 🙂

Applebee’s has many “lighter fare” menu items and I good variety of different dishes to choose from.

Chicken Tortilla Soup and Ceasar Salad~ 400+ Calories
Cedar Grilled Lemon Chicken~ 580 Calories
Thai Shrimp Salad~ 410 Calories
Peppercrusted Sirloin and whole grains side~ 350 Calories
Cedar Salmon with maple mustard glaze~ 350 Calories
Shrimp wonton stir fry~ 580 Calories (but 2550g sodium!)

So I realize that 54th Street is only located in a few areas (Kansas City, San Antonio and I believe Dallas) and I feel extremely lucky to live in one of them. I decided to include them anyways for my local friends and anyone else who is lucky enough to live in one of their areas. Most smaller restaurant chains do not have nutritional information on their menu, but 54th street has calories listed on every item. They also have one of the largest and most diverse menus of any restaurant I have ever been to. There is seriously something for everyone. They have a great “pick two” section with lots of low cal choices:
Hand Breaded Shrimp~ 209 Calories
Grilled Shrimp Kabob~ 153 Calories
Grilled Aparagus~ 84 Calories
Southern Green Beans~ 69 Calories
Fried Pickles~ 346 Calories (just have them for a meal, because yum!)
1/2 Turkey Sandwich~ 340 Calories
Blackened Salmon with steamed veggies~ 470 Calories
1/2 Havana Sandwich~ 380 Calories
Chicken Fajitas~ 460 Calories

Panera is awesome when it comes to low calorie menu items as well!
Cup of Turkey and sprouted grain roll~ 330 Calories
Garden Chicken Wonton Broth Bowl and fruit cup~ 350 Calories
Steel Cut Oatmeal with strawberries and pecans~ 340 Calories
Half medium veggie Sandwich and half seasonal green salad~ 320 Calories
Half steak and arugalu and petitie chocolate chipper cookie~ 350 Calories
Culver’s Mindful Choices
Culver’s is one of my favorites when we are short on time and need to stop somewhere in the middle of running around. There is one on our way home, annnnnd I sometimes crave a burger and know what I can order there to stay low calorie. Here is my “go-to” meal from Culvers:
Butterburger Single with no cheese
Side salad with raspberry vinaigrette dressing
Unsweet Tea/ Diet Cola (I LOVE Culver’s Root Beer)/ water~ Meal Total 490 Calories
Another options:
Garden Fresco Salad and tomatoe flourentine soup with 0 calorie drink~ 515 Calories

You can find more of their “mindful choices” here: culvers.com/men-andnutrition/mindful-choices

Outback- Here are just a few of Outback’s low calorie options:
Center Cut Sirloin 10 oz.~ 350 Calories
5 oz. Sirloin and Coconut Shrimp~ 540 Calories
Aussie Tacos Mahi~ 650 Calories
Bacon Bourbon Salmon~ 480 Calories
~ w/ fresh veggies 640 Calories
Grilled Alaskan mahi w/ veggies~ 390 Calories
or Tilapia (380 Calories)
Grilled Chicken (5 oz.) on barbie w/ mixed veggies~ 520 Calories
Alice Springs Chicken 8 oz~ 790 Calories (a little high, but soooo good. Worth saving up some calories for).

Sometimes life just takes you to a fast food place. Be ready for when it does with these options:

Egg McMuffin~ 300 Calories
Hamburger~ 250 Calories
Cheeseburger~ 300 Calories
Grilled Chicken Sandwich~ 360 Calories
Grilled Chicken BLT~ 380 Calories
small fries~ 230 Calories
6 piece McNugget~ 270 Calories
3 piece Chicken Select~ 400 Calories

Jr. Hamburger Deluxe~ 300 Calories
Jr. Cheeseburger~ 280 Calories
Apple Pecan Chicken Salad~ 570 Calories
Southwest Avacado Chicken Salad~ 590 Calories (Note: I think their avacado tastes funky)
Berry Burst Chicken Salad~ 470 Calories
Grilled Chicken Wrap~ 260 Calories
Baked Potato~ 270 Calories (w/ sour cream and chives 320 Calories)
Cesar Side~ 260 Calories
Large Chili~ 270 Calories
Apple Bites ~ 35 Calories
Jr Frosty~ 190 Calories