You hear stories of people who live off of salad bars. Well although I like salad and I eat salad quite often, I don't believe it is always the best choice when trying to reduce your calorie intake.
We had dinner this evening with my son, daughter-in-law and our two precious grandchildren at Sonnys BBQ. In days long past I had my regular order of a Big Deal with fries and sweet tea, but I did not have three days worth of calories to "spend" on this one single meal. So, after doing some menu scanning I decided on the salad bar and a side order of smoked turkey.
When I ordered the salad bar I did so knowing in advance that this particular salad bar has a couple different soups, chocolate and vanilla pudding, and the extra tempting banana pudding!
I loaded my plate with a huge pile of lettuce and anchored the side of the plate with grape tomatoes. I sprinkled the top lightly with shredded cheese and topped my lettuce with yellow cling peaches drained of juice. I put a tablespoon of thousand island dressing on the side and gave myself a little treat of 1/4 cup of tuna salad and another 1/4 cup of potato salad.
By the time my smoked turkey slices arrived I had already eaten about half of my salad creation and realized that it was easier than I thought to stay on my plan. I skipped both soups and the crackers and croutons and opted for a second plate of lettuce with peaches (drained) and no extra dressing. Why did I skip the dressing? I realized that I did not need it. It's weird but if you pay attention to what you can actually "taste" when your chewing you can take note of what is enjoyable. I found I can cut out butter the same way when I order toast because I always spread a little strawberry jam on my toast. With the sweetness of the jam it hides the taste of the butter.
Do I think salad bars are a safe place to hang out when your are watching what you are eating and trying to eat healthier? I don't think that they are for everyone. I knew going into it what was on that salad bar and if I didn't trust myself enough to make good food choices when I was browsing through the line, I would have just ordered straight off the menu. After all I could have ordered a Big Deal with turkey and a baked potato or baked sweet potato but I didn't want to eat heavy and the bread and potatoes would have been just that.
I am proud of myself. And I am even prouder that I am paying more attention to the food and temptations around me. I can do this. I can eat at the salad bar and not stuff myself and have a guilty conscience later. Do I want to live on salad every day? No. Do I want to learn how to make wise choices when eating out? Yes! I can do this and I am well on my journey to a new me!
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