Eating Out Game and Restaurant Strategies

Ok, first you should still eat your protein first. The protein first isn't to make sure you get it in, it is to make sure it slows your digestion process and to keep you full longer. Your body will be very busy processing the protein and burning it while the rest of your food fills up your stomach. I promise if you eat the protein first you will end up eating less.

Your sauce strategy is actually a pretty good one. You should eat full fat sauces if you are going to eat a sauce because they have to put less of other stuff in to compensate. Plus for use low carb eaters fat is not a bad thing (well saturated fats are but that is for another post).

I am not sure how far post op you are but I could not eat a whole salad if my life depends on it. Just be careful not to overeat.

Finally stop avoiding Mexican restaurants, believe it or not they are one of the more low-carb friendly cuisines out there. You can practically eat everything but what is on the outside of most dishes, plus you can't beat a fajita for low carb. Plus the fresh salsa and guacamole on top of fajita meat with cheese and the grilled peppers and onions. You can't go wrong here. Protein veggies, and healthy fats. Refried beans are great fiber (or pinto beans whole when they are offered and certainly black beans).

Italian and Chinese should probably be avoided, they are tough especially if you aren't familiar with how these meals are prepared.

The reason I avoid those types of restaurants is because I want it all and have a hard time not ordering the "forbidden" offerings and choosing bland offerings.  I do order fish or shrimp tacos and ditch the shell.

I can usually make my own ethnic food much better than any restaurant, so I don't go lacking.

I love this!  I am still in my researching phase, but am definitely looking to get sleeved.  My family loves to go out and eat, too, and I still want to be able to enjoy GOOD food.  I can't imagine just drinking protein shakes for the rest of my life.  That will never work.  But this, this can work.  There are definitely good strategies to dining out, and I know that one of my biggest issues now is portion control.  So when I get to this point, I will make sure to remember your training, coach!  And I won't eat from other tables lol!

I posted this in my blog too, so you can always find this info there. Protein shakes are your friend. You will want to ge to where you get most of your protein from real food, but at 4 months out I still drink one every morning. Its a great way to get a lot of protein easily. One of my things is from the four hour body which is to get 30 grams of protein within 30 minutes of waking up. The only way for us to get that is with a protein shake. Non-WLS people can eat 6 eggs, that's just not gonna happen for us.

I will definitely be checking out your blog as I go through this process...thanks so much!

Great information, thank you for sharing!  

There are some great suggestions here!  Just wanted to add that some Chinese restaurants offer steamed meat and veggie dishes, which I have found to be a godsend on nights where we are wanting something delivered.  I order steamed beef, chicken, and shrimp (sometimes also scallops, but those have to be finished in the first sitting) with vegetables and a sauce on the side.  I order brown rice but usually only have a very little amount if any.  I do get the regular yummy sauces, but I drizzle two teaspoons over the meat.  I always have enough for at least two meals - not bad for $10!!

Also, my hubby and I are big sushi fans, so now I get sashimi.  Sometimes I do get a sushi roll and try to pick out some of the fish from the rice, but it's a pain.  But the flavor combinations of the rolls are nice, so I do splurge occasionally.  Italian is definitely the most challenging I think, but usually there are entrees that are meat-based instead of pasta-based.  Sometimes they'll give you an appetizer-sized portion of an entree if you ask.

Very good strategies, especially the sauce on the side and drizzling it, you get the flavor without the rest of the junk. Just be careful with the chinese sauces and gravies as they usually have lots of corn starch which is pure carb. When you get rolls in sushi joints, ask if they will make it with brown rice, then no guilt all good.

Italian is a huge challenge, here again, be careful of the sauces as they often include corn starch to thicken. Don't be afraid to ask. Dishes like veal or chicken picata are good choices as long as you know what is in the gravy. Sometimes in italian restaurants the childrens menu have smaller portions of the regular entree's too.

One minor correction: coconut milk is one of the lowest carb things out there (2g carb for a 1/3cup serving). Thai curries may have higher carb counts for other reasons, but it certainly is not due to the coconut milk. Yes, it has fat, but healthy fats.

and chinese places around here offer "diet dishes" which is basically steamed meat and veggies with sauce on the side. An order of that is 6 meals for me, even 2+ years out. See if you can find that as it is a great option.

Yes you are correct. 1/3 of a cup is not very much but even at a cup  its only 13g (8g of sugar). However the fats are NOT healthy fats (57g total in a cup 51g of saturated fat). Saturated fat is the bad stuff. Info from here http://nutritiondata.self.com/facts/nut-and-seed-products/31 13/2 However that does not stop me from eating it. Most Thai curries have added sugar so I am sure that is where it comes from. When I make Thai at home, I leave out the extra sugar and I add in a few extra of the sweeter veggies like carrots.

Yeah steamed food from chinese is a great option but lacks in flavor for me and I end up compensating with soy sauce which is not bad just a salty flavor not much else. But a great WLS meal option for sure and you are right makes for about a weeks worth of food.