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Eat This...Not That...

Making the right choices

So today I decided to finally take a look at this book.  I've had it on the shelf for what seems like ever, but I've never really taken a read through.  Well, boy, was I shocked with some of the options!  In this post, I'll give you some of my favorites for restaurants in the Boston area, in addition to some of the other information I found super helpful in this book.  You might be just as shocked as I was.

Favorite Restaurants
1. Auntie Annie's - We are all instructed to get stick to whole wheat instead of white wheat, so what would you get here?  A Whole Wheat Pretzel?  Not at 450 calories and 9.5g of fat.  You'd be better off getting a Jalapeno Pretzel at 280 calories and 1.5g of fat.

2. Dunkin' Donuts - America runs on Dunkin' right?  Well, maybe not after you read this.  A Multigrain Bagel with Lite Cream Cheese checks in at 500 calories and 15g of fat.  Instead, you might want to choose the Ham, Egg & Cheese English Muffin Sandwich for 310 calories and 10g of fat.

3. Panera Bread - Now this is what we all think is a healthier option, as opposed to those fast food restaurants, right?  Well, get this...the Sierra Turkey Sandwich will cost you 840 calories and 40g of fat, while the BBQ Chicken Crispani is only 380 calories and 15g of fat.

This book didn't only go over the restaurant options, it also had a Menu Decoder, comparisons for holidays and special ocassions, options for the supermarket, choicces for beverages, information on what to eat when and specifics on what to give your kids.  I would say this would be VERY helpful for future reference.  Here are some of my favorites from these chapters:

Holidays & Special Occasions
1. Thanksgiving Dinner - For this meal, go for the light meat instead of the dark meat and replace the stuffing and sweet potatoes with green bean casserole and some cranberry sauce.  You'll save about 500 calories and more than 20g of fat.

2. Halloween - Are you that person that steals the candy from your kid's basket?  Well, instead of grabbing an Almond Joy, grab a 3 Musteteers because you'll save about 30 calories and 3g of fat.

3. At the Ballpark - Going to the game?  Have that hot dog with relish, mustard AND ketchup because it's only 280 calories and 15g of fat.  This is in comparison to nachos with cheese coming in at 692 calories and 38g of fat.  You can even have a beer if you want which will run about 138 calories.

4. Munchies at Work - I know I get that 2:30pm feeling...do you?  Instead of spending your hard earned money on Goldfish at 140 calories and 6g of fat, go for the Chex Mix for130 calories and 4g of fat.  

At the Supermarket
1. Granola Bars - We always have these in our house and unfortunately, we don't always have the best ones.  We used to get Nutrigrain Yogurt Bars and I'm glad we switched.  They are 140 calories and 3g of fat per bar.  Now we get the Vanilla Crisp Special K Bar at 90 calories and 1.5g of fat.

2. Ice Cream - I am a huge ice cream lover and I'm right in line with a lot of others when I say Ben & Jerry's is my favorite.  Well, the Ben & Jerry's Cherry Garcia Low Fat Frozen Yogurt is 170 calories and 3g of fat while the Edy's Slow Churned Rich & Creamy Black Cherry Vanilla Swirl Yogurt is only 100 calories and the same amount of fat.

Beverages
1. Coffee - I love Vanilla Chai but if I wanted one at Dunkin' Donuts, I'd be drinking 230 calories and 8g of fat.  I can switch it up with a Vanilla Latte Lite and I'd downgrade to only 80 calories and 0g of fat!

2. Beer - During the football game, you might want to have a beer in hand while you cheer on you favorite team.  If you do, trade your Sam Adams Boston Lager for a Sam Adams Light and you'll save about 40 calories.

Now, this book is pretty shocking but I don't necessarily agree with everything in it.  I'm a fan of getting rid of the processed foods and eating clean, 85%-90% of the time.  If you can do that, you're golden.  I definitely think this book, and the rest in the series, are worth a good read.  You might learn something and it might start you on your road to the healthiest you that you can be! 

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