Weight Watchers: Beware of Red Robin and Plan Ahead!

 
My youngest granddaughter is spending a week with me while my daughter and her husband celebrate their anniversary on an Alaskan cruise.  It seemed appropriate to eat out tonight as a treat to her, so we chose Red Robin, where  my older granddaughter works.

I forgot to check the nutritional info before I left (my bad), so I chose their "Simply Grilled Chicken Sandwich and switched the bun for the cibatta bun. I added a little ranch, catsup and mustard. Instead of fries, I chose the fruit bowl (they call it freckled fruit salad) and ate 5 Steak fries off Kenzie's meal.   I calculated total points for my meal at 10.  After looking at some of the other meal choices I considered, I think I deserve an A for selection! (However, the cibatta bun added fat grams, so I guess I should have stuck with their menu bun!)

Other meals I considered:

Whiskey River Wrap: Leaving off the fries, it would have been 1064 calories, 64 grams of fat, 71 grams of carbs, 48 grams protein and 3 grams of fiber. Grand total =  28 Pts!

Baja Turkey Club: Fully loaded per the menu it would have been 734 calories, 47 grams of fat, 29 grams of carbs, 46 grams of protein and 1 gram of fiber. Grand total = 19 Pts!

California Chicken Sandwich: Leaving off the guacamole and mayo, it has 597 calories, 22 grams of fat, 51 grams of carbs, 48 grams of protein, and 2 grams of fiber. Grand total = 15 Pts! (This wouldn't have been too bad of a second choice)


Yikes! Thank goodness I chose the Simply Grilled Chicken Sandwich!

If you like to visit Red Robin with your family, be sure to plan your meal ahead of time or you may be in for an unpleasant surprise when you calculate the points afterward.  A link to The Red Robin nutritional calculator is below


Red Robin Meal Customizer

Weight Watchers: It's All About Choices....

It only took me a few days to realize that the Weight Watchers Program was all about choices....making the right ones for me.  My daughter is on Weight Watchers too....my best girlfriend is as well; and the interesting thing is that we each use the choices and concepts of the Weight Watchers system in a slightly different manner.  That's the beauty of the point system, you can eat whatever you want, whenever you want, as long as you stay within your total point allotment for the day. And when you have a special event...you can dip into those weekly bonus points!

I think it's the psychology of the point system that works.  No more thinking solely in terms of calories, fat or carbs; it's just about the POINTS...that secret formula that Weight Watchers tell us is based on the Glycemic Index. Stay within the allotted points and you lose weight!

I equate it to having $100.00 n your pocket and walking into a store...you decide: Do I want this designer $100.00 item or these four knockoffs? Some days you want the designer item...but on other days it feels good to get a bargain and a larger bag!

Every day I make eating choices that make me happy and satisfy my needs for the day.  Sometimes my daughter and I splurge on a lunch at our favorite Chinese restaurant.  I make the best choices I can while there, skip the cream cheese wontons, choose the plain rice over the fried rice, and often take part of the food home for later.  But whatever points I "spend" during that lunch fits into my daily plan...which may mean that I'll eat a lighter dinner (my Crockpot Broccoli Soup, Progresso soup or some vegetable based dish for example.) The daily total is what counts.

My daughter eats larger meals, and hits the sack early each night.  I usually eat light early in the day with a reasonable dinner, and save points for snacking in the evening since I am a night owl.

I love the Weight Watchers system because it works for me.  I've learned to look for bargains, how to spend my points wisely as well as budget them throughout the day and week.  But I think the Weight Watcher's program  works for me mostly because of all the choices I have...tomorrow is always a new day!

Birthday Dinner with my Granddaughter: TGFBP! (Thank goodness for bonus points!)

I have seven grandkids and I take each of them to dinner for their birthdays every year.  As they have gotten older, the dinner tab has gotten more expensive, but I relish this annual one-on-one with them.

Last night my second oldest granddaughter, Kayla, and I went to her place of choice in Phoenix, The Melting Pot.  We have talked about this plan for several years, deciding that her 18th birthday deserved such a celebration (Our total with tip was over $100!)

I was worried about the plan from a Weight Watchers perspective because she wanted the 2-person, 4-course dinner which included a cheese fondue appetizer, salad, dinner fondue (with 4 different meats) and a chocolate dessert fondue to top it all off.   I KNEW that this would be tricky for me but I also wanted to partake in the celebration.

We chose the spinach artichoke appetizer, which came with veggies, bread cubes and chips.  I got the salad wedge with raspberry vinaigrette for my salad.  We picked a broth-based fondue to cook our meats (lean sirloin steak, ahi tuna, shrimp, and chicken breast).  And for the final temptation, we ordered the Yin-Yang fondue which was half milk chocolate and half white chocolate. The Yin-Yang had several diet-busting choices for dipping that included red velvet cake, brownies, rice krispie treats, marshmallows, bananas and strawberries.  Since it was her birthday, they added a piece of cheesecake. I tasted a piece of each, concentrating on the fruit....but there was that chocolate part with every dip...yikes....

I had saved up 21 of my daily points and I had all of my weekly bonus points available, but I knew that as hard as I was trying to keep the point count down, I was racking them up with every course. I did my best to estimate the total damage on my food log (31 points) but to be honest, I wasn't sure how close I was, and I worried I was underestimating.  I sent the meat and dessert leftovers home with Kayla, so at least I don't have to worry about them staring me in the face today!

Bottom line, I enjoyed the night with Kayla and indulged a bit, but afterward I didn't throw my hands up and say, "Might as well forget about dieting now!"... like I might have on other diet plans.  Instead, I knew I'd gone into my bonus points a significant amount for one day and decided I'd be extra careful not to exceed my daily points the rest of the week. Also, as soon as the food had settled, I got in 20 minutes of low impact aerobics to try to burn a few of those yummy calories I'd eaten!

I'm crossing my fingers and hoping that I will still lose weight on my Friday weigh-in.

Portion Control

I think one of the most important things you learn on the Weight Watcher's diet is portion control.  Every meal and snack now, I measure before I eat.  I scoop my rice with a measuring cup.  I count out 53 pretzels sticks for a snack.  I've known this is important for a while, but for some reason, I find it easier to put this rule into play on the Weight Watchers plan.

Here's an article I wrote a while back that makes for good reading when you need a reminder, not just about eating healthy, but also about eating a sensible portion. Fellow Weight Watchers, just say NO to supersizing!

"Portion Control - How Much Food is Enough"

Image courtesy of ebru/wikimedia commons

Americans have gotten out-of-control with their eating habits, and lack of portion control is a key contributor to gaining weight.No doubt, food choice contributes to obesity in this country, but just as bad is the mindset that “more is better” when eating out or serving a family dinner.

Does Eating "Supersized" Equal Obesity?
The movie, “Supersize Me” released in 2004, highlighted the insanity and toxicity of fast food eating and the portions involved. In the movie, Morgan Spurlock personally tests the effect of eating fast food for thirty days and gains 24 pounds!

Wholehealtheducation.com’s article, “Stress Causing Americans to Supersize” by Georgianna Donadio, Ph.D, points to this movie as a pop culture example of the issues of everyday gorging on food. She tells us that a study by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, outlined how food portions grew in fast food chains, restaurants and even homes from 1977 to 1996, citing stress as the key motivator. (Continue reading "Portion Control - How Much Food is Enough?)