Go For The Good Foods Without The Guilt, Says Dietician
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If you're watching your waistline, it doesn't necessarily mean it has to be egg whites for brunch and nothing but baby greens for lunch and dinner. NY1 Health & Fitness Reporter Kafi Drexel has more on how you can enjoy your meals out without having to skip the menu items that are really making your mouth water.When you're watching your waistline, navigating your way through meals out on the town might be the last road you want to go down. But registered dietician, and author of "The Cheater's Diet" Marissa Lippert, has a way for you to do it.
According to Lippert, every meal can be enjoyed.
For brunch, Lippert says you can go for the pancakes and bacon, but eat smaller portions by sharing the pancakes and filling up on lighter entrees.
“When you're ordering strategically, you're able to get in the fun stuff like a little bit of bacon, a couple bites of a phenomenal pancake, and you're still eating light because you've managed to work in something more satisfying and a little lower in calories, like an order of scrambled eggs, or poached eggs, or an omelet filled with a ton of seasonal vegetables, like we've opted for today,” she said over breakfast at the Clinton Street Baking Co.
Clinton Street Baking Co. owner Neil Kleinberg says he uses those tips himself.
“I came last night for brunch with my family and we split the soft shell crab benedict and we only ordered a half order of something and we took some things home and then we had a hot fudge sundae for dessert,” Kleinberg said. “So it's like everything in moderation.”
While sharing might be "caring" over brunch, power lunches often involve business partners or people we don't know so well. So, to keep things light, Lippert suggests starting out with a salad.
“Think smart and order what's really worthwhile,” Lippert said over lunch at Locanda Verde in TriBeCa. “They've got a nice ravioli here, but your starting off and filling up with a lighter salad, so you're better able to manage portions of the real deal.”
For dinner, variety helps, so Lippert had us pop in at Joseph Leonard in the West Village.
“There are a lot of appetizers. It's a very vegetable-friendly menu, a very light seafood-friendly menu,” said the restaurant’s executive chef James McDuffee.
But if you still wind up going overboard on their more than 34 menu options, you might want to keep in mind a quote from Lippert's book – "Every day is a comeback. Wake up swinging."
“If you happen to have a particularly heavy day, the very next day, really focus on fresh fruits and vegetables,” said Lippert. “You'll be back to balance in no time.”
And hopefully that also once again means more room for dessert!