Eating out on sw seems impossible

[ohthegoats]

Every time we consider going out to eat, I check the syn value of things in advance and quickly realise that if I'm actually going to make it worthwhile being out (and not having a dressing free salad that I could get for a quarter of the price at home), then I'm going to be over my syns count by a huge amount.

Pizza express leggera pizza yesterday, 20 syns.
Thai food tonight... no idea what syn value my choices were, but I expect 30+ - that's even though I chose a chicken salad and a ginger pork fillet with vegetables and boiled rice.

I'm going to have to assume that every time I eat out during a week, I'm going to be over my syns and possibly not lose weight. Which isn't really sustainable.

Hey, I agree but you can be flexible with your Syns and use 10 from each day on other days. I went over by 10 Syns on Tuesday so have carried them over by having slightly fewer each day subsequently to make up for it. It does make me feel more in control. I find it so easy to lose control if I just give up counting - absolutely no will power!

If you're eating out 2 or 3 times a week and using 20-30 syns a time, that's 60 - 90 used on meals out and you have 45 - 15 for the rest of the week.

So no, you can't go off plan several nights a week and expect a good loss...but if you actually account for them during the rest of the week then you should be fine.

Takes all the fun out of eating out (I'm on holiday, we wouldn't normally eat out that often.) Hmmph.

I know :( I reckon what I would do

Is just add up my syns each day regardless of how much I had gone over them. You will automatically eat slightly less that you would do if you just thought 'sod it' and enjoy your holiday. Keep tracking but don't let It ruin your week. Come home and get back on plan :)

Oh if you're on holiday rather than you having a lifestyle that means eating out a lot...yeah, just try and keep track, make the best choices you can and accept that you're not likely to lose.

Gaining while on holiday is totally normal because you do do things like eat out a lot, it's what you do after the holiday that matters really...if you get back on plan straight away and stick to it, you'll lose again soon enough.

Hiya, depends where you want to eat really... If a pub type place I go for steak, salad and new potatoes, or gammon etc. pizza express - I'd go for tomato based pasta dishes.. Indian - dry chicken tikka etc. if you're on holiday though I'd just enjoy it and worry about the scales next week

Hey goats

Are you veggie? If not I find things like steak and salad, pasta with a tomato based sauce and maybe prawns, if I'm having Thai I usually go for pad krapow which is chilli, garlic and sweet basil, if I'm having Indian chicken shashlik with rogan josh sauce and boiled rice. It is hard especially if you eat out a lot pizza express is one of the places I refuse to go to because I love the pizzas and the are all really high syns!

Hey Buttwing. I'm not a veggie, but my boyfriend is (and dairy free) - so he's very carb based... I'm pretty much cooking completely separately to him at the moment. The other night they wanted to go to a veggie Indian restaurant - I looked at the menu in advance and it was terrifying! Normally I'm happy to go meat and veg in whatever flavour combo. The Thai I had was pretty good, but I've no idea how to count the syns. The day after I'd put on 2lbs though, so who knows what's going on!

Ah ok I thought I remembered your partner not eating meat wasn't sure if you didn't either. I think vegetarian restaurants can be hard because a lot of dishes seem to have cream/cheese in. I find them hard because I don't really eat dairy.

I think sometimes you just have to do the best you can, I find that if I have a large meal in the evening I often weigh more the next day but usually after a couple of days as long as I've been reasonably good it usually sorts itself out. Have you been having good losses so far?

So-so. 9 and 1/2 in 4 weeks. Not fastlike II'd normally lose using low carb, but I thought this might work being able to join in more with boyfriend's meals. It's not really working like that.

Why are you cooking separately? I don't eat meat and I find it fairly straightforward...but then I don't avoid carbs, it might be tricky if that's what you're trying to do?

I struggle a bit with meals out because often the veggie option is cheese or fried or creamy.

But I also have had a lot of weight to lose, so I've accepted that this is a longterm way of eating for me and that as long as I'm in general losing it doesn't matter if it's not that quick or if I have a gain because I've had something on that meant not amazing food choices...I'm only 4.5 lbs away from target now, so it does work, but it's not a crash diet.

I've had to write off the last two weeks because of eating out because of birthdays and weddings but figure that this is a long term lifestyle change so the occasional glitch has to be expected.

What's wrong with eating on holiday

Holidays are a couple of weeks a year,SW is long term.

I ate over a 100 syns on my birthday last week - no guilt, no fuss - 4 months without cake and I really enjoyed my afternoon tea.

Then the next day I just went right back on plan. Totally worth it.

Holidays are for enjoying. I always choose the lowest syn thing on the menu and have a decent glass or two of wine. Loads of people put on 4/5 pounds over a weeks holiday and then just get right back on - it's fine, it's real life.

I was talking about eating out in general but I'm totally with Laurie holidays are for enjoying and for me that means eating and drinking. I once managed to put on a spectacular 9lbs after a ten day holiday! I just got straight back on it and lost it in two weeks. As others have said it's a way of life not a quick fix.

Goats that's a really good weight loss, it's taken me 40 weeks to lose 3 stone 4 lbs but although that's not particularly fast I've had nights out, holidays, Sunday lunches out pretty much lived my life normally and if I've wanted to have something I've had it (within reason obviously!) I couldn't stand feeling deprived all the time I would be miserable.

Yep, I definitely get the thing about being on holiday and letting things slide a bit, but I've only just started really! At the moment it's still feeling annoying to have to pay a fiver a week to weigh myself, so I don't want to 'waste' that money by not losing weight. Going to another 'holiday meeting' tomorrow - last week Altrincham, this week Cornwall... next week the world! Ha.

The carb thing is just preference. I 'can't' eat bread - I'm not coeliac, but I'm under a consultant trying to work out what my allergy issues are, and things are bread related. Rice and spuds are my carb of preference mostly.

Ha ha goats were you at my group? I live in altrincham!!! What a small world

Go on holiday - and enjoy yourself!

Slimming World will be there when you get back.

I gained 8lbs while holiday for two weeks, but got straight back on track when I returned. I've lost 5.5lbs this week!