Want to lose weight? Your in the right place!
 Fast food is nothing short of an obsession for many people. Fast food can be tacos, burgers, fries, and even chicken and fish but no matter what it is; fast food is rarely, if ever good for you. Fast food is nothing short of a way of life for some people. So much so, that they consume it up to three times per day. In some peoples’ eyes, there is little difference between a steak and a Big Mac from McDonald’s. There are too many people that have become too readily dependant on pre-prepared meals in their hectic lifestyles. For whatever reason, they feel that they simply have no time to adequately prepare a meal at home; no matter how much healthier and more inexpensive this process may be when compared to the fast food alternative. For many people, their first and only option is to hit the “drive-thru” to satisfy their hunger.
Some things you should and some other things you shouldn't get at your local fastfood restaurant.
Many people don’t realize is that there are some healthy options out there for fast food. While they are few and far between and there are certainly even healthier options available elsewhere, if you choose wisely you can find that some fast food restaurants offer options that are much less fattening than the run-of-the mill burger and fries.
Speaking of burgers, we will start with them. When ordering a hamburger from a fast food restaurant, be sure to say “no” to mayonnaise and cheese. It may surprise you to learn that much of the fat content in hamburgers is right there in the mayonnaise and cheese so by cutting them out, much of the time you can cut the fat in half. This may make the sandwich too dry for some people, but that can be alleviated simply by using ketchup and mustard, which should be readily available.
The cheese that fast food restaurants use is highly processed with loads of unhealthy oils and other unhealthy ingredients. Some of the cheeses are actually made from real milk, but a large majority are simply comprised of cooking oil. Many people may be able to tell the difference simply from its texture and color. Cheese made from oil will be more orange and oily than standard milk-derived cheese.
Additionally, fast food patrons should avoid any bacon from fast food establishments. While the bacon doesn’t taste the same as bacon made at your home, it is even more unhealthy for you than that bacon as well. While the standard method of cooking bacon is to fry it in a skillet, fast food restaurants prefer to just lay it under hot lights until it is warm enough to serve.
Stay away from sandwiches that are deep fried!
Always stay away from anything deep-fried. Chicken and fish seem like healthy alternatives to burgers, but any nutritional value that they once had are harshly voided once they have been dipped into cholesterol-laden cooking oil. Though chicken items will be lower in fat a majority of the time, they are not exempt. If you must eat deep-fried chicken or fish, be sure to at least pass on the mayonnaise.
Skip the french fries, go for a side salad.French fries have been a staple of fast food. However, they are loaded with saturated fat, which makes your body’s cholesterol skyrocket. Have some fries with your meal every once in a while, but if you find yourself frequenting fast food joints, you may want to consider a tossed salad as a side instead.
Meatless burgers.
Many fast food restaurants now offer meatless burger substitutes as well. These are generally made of soy products such as tofu and may take some getting used to. While they will certainly not appeal to everyone, there are many people who happen to like soy and tofu products and don’t mind the slight decrease in taste.
Sub sandwich shops also offer low fat, low cholesterol options for eating on the go. Instead of loading up on fats and oils, you can load up your sandwich with healthy vegetables and meats. Be careful what you add to your sandwich though, as a loaded sub with all the wrong ingredients such as sauces, bacon, and certain cheeses, will pack as much fat as any burger on the market. This is a mistake that is easily avoided, however, as many sub sandwich shops such as Subway make their nutritional information readily available so their consumers can make informed decisions about their meals.
Finally, what you drink can be just as important as what you eat. Sodas are loaded with sugars and additives and diet sodas are really no better since its all processed syrup and sugar in the end. Drinking water will have the best benefit and most fast food restaurants even carry bottled water now. |
