However, I bring up yesterday because my family decided to go to Olive Garden for lunch after a serious failure at the doctor's office that resulted in my son not receiving the procedure he'd initially gone in for and some heated words from yours truly to the doctor, an embarrassed husband and son, and an all around negative connotation to the morning. My son needed Olive Garden. He needed his grandma and papa that met us there, and he needed to do this on a day when my daughter was still in school so that the attention was focused on him.
I needed it about as much as I need a kick to the face with steel toe boots.
The menu called out to me, the creamy goodness of the never-ending pasta drenched in rich Alfredo sauce, the salty-satisfying pull of a soft and warm breadstick (or 5) that just begged to be dipped into the tart perfection that is Olive Garden house salad dressing, the rich smoothness of a piece of pumpkin cheesecake... I should work for their ad campaign. I'm a walking billboard.
In the past, I've obviously gone straight for the fettucine alfredo, and have indulged in however many breadsticks my body could physically contain in one sitting.
Yesterday, I texted my challenge coach, Julie, for backup on the way there and went prepared to order from the Lighter Fare menu, sans breadsticks, plus a small crouton-less plate of salad.
I ended up with a steaming plate of ravioli di portobello in front of me, and my only lunchtime fail was that I did indeed succumb to the breadstick. One. Which was still 140 calories! (sorry, Julie...)
So here is a breakdown of how dining at Olive Garden can build up to be your one weekly "happy" meal, even when you order from the Lighter Fare menu:
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| The ravioli was amazing, although of course I could have happily eaten three plates of it and still licked the plate clean... which totally goes against the purpose of ordering Lighter Fare. |
One plate of Ravioli di Portobello: 570 calories
One Olive Garden breadstick: 140 calories
One cup House salad: 150 calories
Total: 860 calories
Even faring lightly but enjoyably, this was still a huge blow to my daily intake, considering the cup of Southwest Chicken Soup I could have had instead at home was only 134 calories! However, here's a breakdown of how I *usually* eat at Olive Garden...
One plate of Fettucine Alfredo: 1090 calories
Three breadsticks: 420 calories
Two cups House salad: 300 calories
One glass Moscato d'asti: 200 calories
Total: 2010 calories
Honestly, that's a massive difference. And I also adjusted the rest of my day around that meal and still I think my daily intake was between 1300-1400 calories.
Also... make sure when you eat out, you check the nutrition info straight from the restaurant website. I added my meal to My Fitness Pal and was pleased to see that my lunch was only 450 calories, only to discover upon researching this blog post that it wasn't the correct number. Now I'll be able to go back and change my numbers, but when you're using an app or website to track and journal your food and water intake, it's important to be as accurate as possible.
So the moral of the story, folks, is do your best to eat at home. It's so hard to control what goes into your body when you have no control over what goes into your food. Once in a while is fine but honestly... I'm glad that today everything I take in will be coming from my own kitchen.
I might also add that self control is easier at home. I nearly cried turning down the Andes mints the waiter carelessly dropped right in front of me at the end of the meal, and I lost complete control over my inhibitions when that bread basket was within arm's reach. If you do have an occasion to go out to eat, research the establishment first and try to stick with local restaurants that have working relationships with local food sources and natural, fresh vegetables instead of the previously frozen and shipped meals that are so common in chain restaurants. Happy eating!
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