9/6/11 Katie's Healthy Eating Journal: Tuesday

The other night we went out to dinner with friends.  It was a little bar and tavern and I had just broken through my plateau and didn't feel comfortable ordering anything "safer" than a salad.  Don't get me wrong, salads can be just as bad as eating a Big Mac; but if I take out all the garbage they put in the salad I pretty much know exactly what I'm eating.  There's no real hidden oil, butter, or salt in there.  Will I be this way forever (only eating salads because they're safe)? No.  But, let's be honest, I'm so close to my goal weight and I don't like driving an hour home in rush hour traffic after school.  Plus, I only get to see my son for about 30 minutes before he goes to bed on these nights.  I want the "glitter" and I want to be able to know I reached my goal weight.  This just means I'm going to work a little harder for the moment.  Then I will live a little and order crazier things on menus.  While were out all four of the salads were filled with so much to be taken out (tortilla strips, fried zucchini, cheese, sour cream, etc.) I was having a tough time deciding what to do without being such a pain.  Sometimes I've even had a restaurant create my own salad for me.  On this particular night I chose to request the chicken grilled instead of blackened (all the seasoning is high sodium), no cheese, no fried zucchini, no croutons.  I brought my own dressing.  The only thing missing was my starch.  Usually at a nicer restaurant I could just get a slice of bread from the table but I didn't have this option.  I waited until I got home and ate a 110 calorie bagel thin.  Voila!  I covered all my food groups with the bare minimum of calories.