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NSV Saturday: Dining Out

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NSV Saturdays

You may have noticed a slight name change for this weekly meme. I decided that NSV Saturdays was a little less cumbersome than Scale-less Saturdays.  It’s still the same premise — weight-loss victory doesn’t just happen on the scales.  It happens in those moments when we make those little decisions that add up to life-changing choices, when we notice that our jeans are a little looser or we go down a size in clothes.  This is your chance to celebrate those successes that happened off the scale.  Let’s hear yours!

I had two that really stand out in my mind this week.  Actually, they’re the same thing, but on two separate occasions.  We ate out twice this week — the first times since I began losing weight that we’ve eaten out somewhere besides Chick-Fil-A, where I can have a grilled chicken sandwich and fruit, or Subway.  Both times, I was able to order off the menu and keep my meal under 500 calories!

I was so proud of that accomplishment…and the food was delicious!  We ate at Chili’s (my favorite) on Wednesday night.  I had the kid’s meal grilled chicken, which was the perfect size, with a side of corn-on-the-cob (no butter).  I ordered an extra side of black beans (Chili’s black beans are most excellent) and fat-free honey mustard on the side for the chicken.  The entire meal was 480 calories and 3.5 fat grams.  I can assure you that I’ve never done that at Chili’s before.

Megan was the only one who expressed her disappointment that we didn’t order our usual chips and salsa.  She asked if it was because they were fattening.  I told her the chips were.  She then asked if they were a temptation to me.  Absolutely!  I love Chili’s chips and salsa.  It seemed something of a sacrilege to eat at Chili’s without ordering them.  Finally, she offered a solution that seemed perfectly acceptable to her, “You could just look the other way, Mom.”

New Year’s Eve Brian and I found ourselves alone for the evening.  All the kids had gone to visit grandparents.  So, we went out to dinner again (after seeing Avatar, which was an incredibly fantastic movie, language aside), this time to Logan’s.  I ordered their Mesquite Grilled Chicken with the Parmesan peppercorn dressing (with which it is supposed to be “smothered”…smothered is never a good word for the calorie-conscious) on the side, their veggie skewer (yum!) and a baked sweet potato with the butter on the side.  I used maybe a teaspoon or two of the butter and that was plenty.  Oh, and I did dip a few bites of the chicken in the Parmesan peppercorn dressing — yum, again — but certainly not the 2 tablespoons, 160 calories, and 16 fat grams worth.  Again, I came in at under 500 calories.

It was a relief to know that I can eat out and enjoy my food without going overboard.  So, what about you?  What non-scale victories did you enjoy this week?

Oh, and I did get everything together for the weight-loss challenge.  It’ll be starting on Monday.  I hope you’ll join me!

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Kris Bales is a newly-retired homeschool mom and the quirky, Christ-following, painfully honest founder (and former owner) of Weird, Unsocialized Homeschoolers. She has a pretty serious addiction to sweet tea and Words with Friends. Kris and her husband of over 30 years are parents to three amazing homeschool grads. They share their home with three dogs, two cats, a ball python, a bearded dragon, and seven birds.

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5 Comments

  1. I can't wait to see what your challenge is going to be! I have started up my own personal challenge and am blogging about it. ( https://365smoothies.blogspot.com/ )
    I'm focusing more on health than on weightloss, but I figure the two go hand in hand!!
    Congrats on your loss so far!!

  2. You are doing great with your focus!! After several days of binge-ing, I started writing down my food intake again. :o)

  3. Writing down food intake is key, to me. If I don't write down what I'm eating, I always underestimate my food.

  4. Congrats on being able to eat out! It's always nice to know that you can still do the things you enjoy and stay up with your weight loss goals.

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