Tips for Eating at a Buffet

I had a wonderful time in Niagara Falls this weekend! It was so relaxing. We went to the spa, hung out in our suite overlooking the falls, and spent a little time at the tables and came home with a few extra bucks (which is always nice!).

During the weekend, I chose to stick to program as much as possible. I brought a Nutrisystem breakfast, lunch bar, and dessert with me, and I chose healthy add ins like Subway's grilled chicken salad.

My biggest challenge came on Sunday night when our friend met us up there for dinner. He had comps for the Grand Buffet for the three of us, so I was going to have to try and find a way to avoid all my old habits if I didn't want to torpedo my weight loss!

Here are my suggestions if you find yourself at a buffet restaurant. Go to the salad bar with a dinner plate and make yourself a massive salad with all your favourite veggies. Salad bars frequently have lean proteins like hardboiled eggs, cocktail shrimp, or mussels as well- throw them on to bulk up your salad. Most buffets do not have fat free salad dressing, so either keep a packet handy in your purse or try using a squeeze of fresh lemon and some vinegar to jazz up your greens.

After you finish your salad, check out the soup bar. There is usually one clear broth type soup. Have a nice big bowl of soup. By the time you're finished soup and salad, you're probably feeling pretty full if you've already been working on portion control. At this point- go for it. If there's something you really want, have it. Use a salad plate or a side plate when you go up to the buffet and take a small serving of the dinner items. You're probably not hungry enough to do any real damage and you won't feel deprived of your favourites. Just stop eating once you are full and you'll be OK. By the time I had my salad with shrimp and a bowl of vegan onion soup, I was stuffed. I had a tiny piece of broiled salmon and a few more shrimp and I was done.

I was really happy with the way I handled food this weekend. Did I miss a few things? Sure. The Fallsview Deli has delicious sirloin burgers with caramelized onions and pepper jack cheese, fries with gravy, and enormous slices of your favourite cakes, giant muffins and cookies. But, I honestly felt my dinner was almost as good! I had a lean turkey sandwich on whole wheat with mustard, lettuce, and tomato, with a side garden salad. It was really good! Would I have enjoyed the other meal? Absolutely. But it's not worth the bloated feeling and extra pounds. I'm ready to make this a lifestyle change and I will not allow myself to fall back into my old habits. I really want to get to my goal this time. And I'm going to do it.