Posted on: 25 April, 2002
Author: Arleen M. Kaptur
Everyone enjoys a night out. Days are filled with ... ... ... errands, chores, and a myriad of other ... that color our daily lives, even our very ... To st Everyone enjoys a night out. Days are filled with commitments, obligations, meetings, errands, chores, and a myriad of other responsibilities that color our daily lives, even our very existence. To step back from this cycle of activity and go to a restaurant, have someone else serve you, cook the meal, wash the dishes, and clean up is a mini-vacation we all can appreciate.When you dine out, you cant leave your good sense or your healthy eating habits on the wayside, to be picked up when you return home. It doesnt make sense to work so hard to attune yourself to health-wise eating habits, and possibly undue all the good work with one calorie-laden, overly fat, sugary, and empty calorie meal. Your heartburn will gladly remind you of your sins.When you go to a restaurant, eat smart. There are a few tips so that you can thoroughly enjoy your evening, and go home refreshed, relaxed, and in greathealth. You will have nothing to be sorry for from a nutrition standpoint and you wont have to run the high school track field to get back to the point you were at before you had dinner out.Salads are great accompaniments to any meal. Ask for your choice of dressingon the side. This way you are sure you are in control of the amount that is poured onto the delicious salad ingredients that should be appreciated for their particular taste. Two to three teaspoons of dressing on a side-plate salad is an ample addition to your salad. You can also ask for oil and vinegar cruets and mix your own dressing.Avoid foods that are fried, even though fried foods are a tasty morsel. Choices of roast turkey, broiled chicken, lean ham, flank steak, broiled shrimp, broiled cod, steamed crab, spaghetti, are a few very smart choices from a restaurant menu. You can also sabotage your great decision with a lot of sauces, or gravies. So just use these as flavor enhancers and not flavor cover-ups.Fresh fruit is a great choice for dessert. How about adding some angel food cake, sherbet, or jello. You can have your dessert and eat it too.Eat modest portions and try to appreciate the foods flavor without a lot of additional items that take away from its natural goodness. Fruits and vegetables are taste sensations when eaten alone, but you can add a few touches to satisfy your sweet tooth. Also remember that an occasional splurge is nothing to feel guilty about. Your mind will never tell your stomach, so it will never know to add those calories to your weight scale.Enjoy your meal out and have fun with family or friends. You deserve it!©Arleen M.Kaptur Source: Free Articles from ArticlesFactory.com