Pumps Fitness Blog: Meal Deal??

A "meal deal" is no bargain if you're just buying extra fat, sugar, and calories. There's an old joke that goes something like this: two women are having lunch in a restaurant they haven't been to before. As they're finishing up their meal, one says to the other, "You know, the food here is really terrible!" To which her companion snaps back, "I'll say! and such small portions too!" It's so true, isn't it? No matter what we're buying, we're always looking for a good value - even if it's food that isn't very good...or very good for you.

Getting more for your money is generally a good thing, and we’ve been conditioned to look for the best value in everything we buy – from laptops to laundry soap. But if getting more for your money means getting more fat, more sugar and more calories, that can spell trouble for your waistline.

How often have you felt prodded to overeat – swayed by sales pitches that encourage you to buy more and consume more – and, by implication, “save” more? Order the bigger burger, and there’s a good chance you’ll be offered a meal deal for a discount on your soda and fries, too (after all, you’ll need more liquid to wash it all down). Order a large pizza, and you also get a sack of free breadsticks delivered to your door (just what you need for dinner… bread, with a side of bread).

Too bad the same doesn’t seem to hold true for healthy food. Most of the time, when you buy fresh fruits and vegetables, you buy them by the pound – it doesn’t get any cheaper the more you buy. I’ve been to movie theaters where I’ve been charged for a cup of water (just the cup, mind you – I had to fill it myself with water from the water fountain). That’s because the cup probably costs the theater a lot more than the soda does – they could practically give it away if they didn’t have to pay for those darn cups.

How can you keep yourself from giving in when you’re feeling outside pressure to overeat?

Focus on getting nutritional value, not just a huge amount of food
Is your goal really to buy “more food for less money”? What you should be thinking about is how to buy the most nutrition you can with your money. Spend $3 on a fast food meal and you’ll get about 40 grams of fat and a quarter-cup of sugar. For the same three bucks, you could buy a carrot (all your vitamin A for the day) an orange (all your vitamin C for the day) a banana (a hefty dose of potassium), a bunch of broccoli (nearly all your folic acid for the day) and a can of black beans (22 grams of protein and 15 grams of fiber).

Practice saying “no, thanks”
A few weeks ago, my local supermarket was giving away a one-liter bottle of soda with every purchase of $25 or more. The checker just couldn’t believe that I didn’t want it – “but it’s free!”
So practice saying “no”…“no thanks”… “thanks, but no thanks”…”I’m good”…

You’re the one who determines how much you should be eating
Remember who’s in charge. Just because a restaurant is willing to throw in an extra helping of food and call it “dinner”, doesn’t mean it’s an appropriate amount of food for you. You know what how much you should be eating. Keep a mental image of your portion sizes, and do your best to stick to them.

Don’t buy it if you don’t want it

Sure, it sounds like a deal if you “buy one and get one free”. And, if you’re good at taking home the extra for another meal, this might work. But if you don’t want it – and you know you’ll be tempted to eat it – don’t buy it. A “good deal” isn’t so good if you’re getting something you really don’t want.

Sesame Chicken Salad

Most sesame salads contain crispy noodles, but I've taken those out of this recipe, making it lower in carbs to help you towards your fitness goal. Servings: 6

Here's what you need...

1/4 cup slivered almonds
1 small organic green cabbage
1 cup pea pods, thinly sliced
1 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
2 cup shredded cooked chicken

For the Sesame Dressing:

6 Tablespoons olive oil
4 Tablespoons apple cider vinegar
4 Tablespoons coconut aminos, or low sodium soy sauce
1 packet Stevia
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 teaspoon sesame seeds

In a small skillet place the slivered almonds over medium-low heat. Stir often until golden brown.
Remove from heat.
Wash the cabbage and cut into long thin strands. Do the same with the pea pods and the red bell peppers - the thinner you slice the better.
Mix the cabbage, bell pepper, pea pods, chicken and almond slivers in a large salad bowl.
Combine the salad dressing ingredients together.
Plate the salads and drizzle with some dressing.

Nutritional Analysis: One serving equals: 202 calories, 10g fat, 89mg sodium, 10g carbohydrate, 3g fiber, and 17g protein

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