It's rare for me to eat out these days. Instead I prefer to prepare and cook meals at home. This allows me to monitor what ingredients I use. It also enables me to record the calorie implications of dishes I make, as well as note the protein, carbohydrate and fat content per serving using the MyFitnessPal app. In addition I enjoy being a 'have-a-go home cook', so going into the kitchen is a pleasure not a chore. When I do dine out, often I'm away from home travelling for work or leisure, so have no other option.
A couple of Sundays ago my food and nutrition content started well at home - porridge with a scoop of chocolate whey protein powder topped with blueberries for breakfast. A Sunday morning workout was followed by a protein shake and a couple of bananas. Lunch consisted of a breast of roast chicken - marinated in lemon juice, honey, olive oil and cayenne pepper - with wholemeal basmati rice and mixed vegetables. The app on my phone told me I was on target for achieving my daily 40% protein, 40% carbohydrate and 20% fat intake.
Then the naughtiness crept in. In the afternoon I jumped into the car to drive down to Manchester. En-route I had to call into motorway services for petrol, so decided to make a quick pit-stop and grab a coffee. "Would you like anything else with that?" asked the barista. Without hesitation I ordered a piece of chocolate tiffin to accompany my beverage. But as I sat enjoying the late afternoon sunshine and Cumbrian landscape, I plugged my refreshment into MyFitnesPal. YIKES! This was calorific.
On arrival in Manchester I checked into my hotel, but as there was no restaurant, I had to head out to find an evening meal. Fortunately there was a JD Weatherspoon next door. I wandered in, found a table and then looked at the menu. As it was Sunday, the pub was offering a traditional turkey roast. That'll do me! I thought. When I placed the order for my food I was asked "Is that the larger option?" Being a little tired from the drive down, I wasn't thinking clearly. "Yes!", I replied.
I returned to my table and then started to examine the menu again. I look at the calorie information of the meal that I'd ordered. As I couldn't believe the figures, I quickly totted them up again on my mobile phone calculator. I wasn't wrong. This meal contained over half the calories of my daily intake allowance.
It suddenly made me realise that "unconsciously" eating out is one reason why our population is becoming increasingly over-weight. I didn't need to order the large meal, but it was only an extra £1.50, so it would seem like a good deal to most people. In fact, the regular size meal was perfectly acceptable and would've kept me within my daily calorie allowance.
However, I must applaud JD Weatherspoon for actually providing calorie information on their menus. I'm sure that this will assist all their clients, me included, to make more informed decisions about the meals and the portion sizes they decide to order and eat. Let's hope that more pubs, cafés and restaurants follow this lead and include calorie information on their menus and labels too. I'm sure we'll all find that very useful indeed.
