7 Things To Avoid While Dining Out To Stay Healthy

Most of us are well aware of the fact that health is wealth. In the process of maintaining your health, regular exercise and a good diet are of utmost importance. Talking about diet, it is a well-accepted fact that what we eat at home is generally healthier as compared to that in the restaurants.

Dining out at a restaurant usually takes a toll on the health as well as the pocket. However, considering the fun experience that dining out in a restaurant can be, you would not want to lose out on the same just because you want to adhere to a healthier lifestyle. In fact, these days, dining out is an essential component of most people's social life.

To help you in a situation like this, the best thing that one can do is to dine out once in a while (and not too frequently). While doing so it must be ensured that you follow some basic guidelines to ensure that your simple act of eating out one day does not undo all the efforts that you have been putting for days towards a healthier lifestyle.

This article brings to you 7 such tips, which if followed while dining out will ensure a much healthier life:

1. Water With Lemon Or Orange

This is a recent trend that is seen in high-end restaurants. People tend to drink water that is infused with some type of citrus fruits. However, it has been observed that in most of these cases, the fruit is usually contaminated with bacteria as not enough care is taken while washing the same.

Thus, unless you are absolutely certain about the hygiene practices that are followed in the place that you dine in, it is advisable that you stick to drinking plain water.

2. Large Box Of Popcorn

It is a well-established fact that the larger the size of the popcorn box that you buy in a PVR, the more you are likely to save. However, the simple fact that most people fail to realize is that by buying a large box of popcorn you actually end up eating more than you normally would.

Popcorn is a massive source of saturated fats and a large box of popcorn has the power to undo the efforts that you had invested in the gym for a week. Thus, one of the primary things to do in your path to fitness and health is to keep away from popcorns altogether. If that is not possible, try to opt for smaller boxes.

3. Soup Sticks Dipped In Butter

Most posh places serve soup sticks with butter. While a soup stick is innocent, the dollops of calories that go with the butter are not. Go for this only if you can dip responsibly. If you have any doubts about the same, give this a miss.

Taking in hundreds of saturated fats and calories even before you start with the actual meal is not something advisable for someone keen to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Thus, it is advisable that you keep away from all that butter.

4. Packing Food (Unless You Are Going Home Straight)

It is important for you to understand that cooked food is not something that should be stored in room temperature for more than a couple of hours. Some food items need to be refrigerated while others need to be stored at higher temperatures. In either case, it is not advisable for you to take away food unless you can refrigerate the same within the next two hours.

If you do so, it will provide an ideal condition for the bacteria in your food to thrive and thereby pave the way for a number of diseases. Whether you dine at home or outside, it is a good idea to stick to freshly cooked meals. Thus, even if it means wasting some food make sure that you do not consume any stale food whatsoever.

5. Buffets And Refillable Drinks And Meals

If you are a foodie (or someone who is used to dining out), you will be well aware of the fact that buffets allow you to hog well. The same can be said in the case of refillable meals and drinks.

However, this type of hogging is not good for your health. By going to these sorts of places you actually end up eating way more than what you would usually do. While an occasional indulgence in the form of dining out means no harm, this type of calorie extravagance is definitely not encouraged. Thus, it is a good idea for you to make it a habit to order only small quantities of food.

6. Diet Soda

Having established that you will be dining out only once in a while, it is better for you to come to terms with the fact that it is okay to cut yourself some slack on those days. By consuming diet coke you might be carcinogenic in the long run saving up on a couple of calories here and there, but you will actually end up taking in a lot of toxic contents.

Research says that some of the ingredients of diet soda may even prove to be carcinogenic in the long run. Thus, for the sake of a long and healthy life, the best thing that you can do is keep away from these.

7. The Combo Meal

By buying the burger and the fries together, you actually end up spending less. However, the other side of the story is the fact on an average a combination of burger, fries and drinks could easily add up to 1000 calories.

By ordering separately, you actually end up ordering less. This helps you from unnecessarily consuming too much of fat and in turn paves the way for a healthier you. Thus, while dining out it is important that you do not give in to the temptation of saving some money by ordering combo meals.