9 a.m.: Time to really test out if this apple thing works. Tonight we're hitting a favorite restaurant with friends. Eating out is a big danger zone for me -- and don't even ask me to just order a salad ... what's the point in paying for a night out if I can't enjoy myself? My plan (it's always important to have a plan when you're losing weight) is to budget my calories wisely at breakfast and dinner, eat my apple a half hour before we leave, skip the drinks and leave half of my dinner on my plate.

9 p.m.: The apple didn't cure my love of good food, but I felt much more in control when my meal came. I felt satisfied before I hit the half-way point and managed to bring home half my meal in a takeout box.

Pasta, and sauces and cheese ... oh my! Italian food -- while incredibly yummy -- isn't exactly known for the health factor. But just like you can find healthy choices while eating at Chinese restaurants and Mexican restaurants, dinner at an Italian restaurant doesn't need to derail your healthy eating goals.

Though heavier fare like pasta might come to mind when you think Italian, true Italian food actually has many healthy options. Some things to look for:

• Skip the breadsticks. Yes, they're tasty, but do you really want to eat so many calories in just breadsticks? Wait for your main course.
• Very vinaigrette. Choose a light vinaigrette for your salad instead of a creamy dressing.
  
• Super soups. Both Minestrone and Pasta e Fagioli are light and delicious options.
• Veg it up. Look for dishes that are heavy in vegetables. Many Italian dishes include roasted vegetables.
• Go grilled. Avoid breaded items like chicken parmesan or fried items like calamari. Instead, opt for grilled chicken or seafood.
• Pass on the pasta. Choose a small side dish of pasta if you'd like, but avoid the main courses that are primarily pasta.
  
• See red. Opt for marinara sauce instead of cheesy, buttery or cream-based sauces.
• Thin is in. If you're ordering pizza, choose a thin crust and all vegetable toppings.
• Have dessert at home. Tiramisu is wonderful, but it's best to save high-calorie treats like that for rare occasions. Instead of ordering dessert at the restaurant, consider having a light and healthful dessert waiting for you at home. (For example, a small piece of angel food cake topped with mixed berries.)

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If you're heading out to eat, you might think Chinese is a healthier choice than most ethnic foods. After all, there are lots of of vegetables in Chinese food, right? True. But, depending on your selection, your Chinese food might also have lots of sodium and/or sugar. And many foods at Chinese restaurants are deep-fried as well.

But with a savvy eye, you can select the healthiest of fare at your local Chinese restaurant and enjoy without guilt. Some tips:

• Opt for stir-fried foods, such as vegetables, shrimp or chicken.
• Skip the fried rice and choose steamed rice instead (brown rice if they have it).
• Avoid fried egg rolls, crab rangoon and deep fried beef, chicken or shrimp dishes.
• Go veggie. Choose dishes with a high vegetable content.
• Fill up on soup. Egg drop, won ton and hot and sour soups are all relatively low cal. Just don't top them off with the little fried crispy strips.
  
• Go Japanese. While sushi is a Japanese food, some Chinese restaurants have started offering some sushi options as well.
• Slow down on the soy sauce. Soy sauce is very high in sodium, so go lightly. In fact, most dishes will be flavorful enough without the addition of extra soy sauce.

Keep in mind that many restaurants will accommodate special orders. For example, you can ask that your stir fry be prepared with less oil and more vegetables than normal. Want to see how your favorite Chinese foods stack up? Try this fun interactive Chinese meal to total the calories, fat, sodium and other nutrition information.

Is Chinese not on the menu tonight? Check out these tips for eating healthfully at a Mexican restaurant.

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Cooking at home gives you complete control over what goes into your meals. But, let's face it, it's just plain nice to go out to eat once in a while. You can try new tastes and -- bonus -- there are no dishes to wash. When you know what to look for, eating out can be healthful, too.

If you're heading out to eat, try these tips that will help you enjoy Mexican food without the guilt:

• Skip the chips. If you can stop at three or four chips dipped in salsa, then go ahead and enjoy. (And please send me some of your willpower.) But when that big basket of chips is dropped off at your table, most people keep reaching for more without realizing how many they're eating.
• Just say no to the margaritas. I know, I know ... they're ridiculously yummy. But margaritas can be up to 45 calories per ounce. Considering the margaritas most restaurants serve are roughly the size of a swimming pool and made with sour mix, that can really add up. Heck, margaritas even made Forbes' list of the most fattening drinks.
  
• Soup it up. Want an appetizer? Try a gazpacho or a black bean soup. Not only are these options significantly lighter than nachos or other appetizers, they're tasty and provide some decent nutrition.
• Go lean with protein. Opt for grilled chicken or shrimp instead of beef.
  
• Don't get fried. Chimichangas, chile rellanos, flautas and other fried entrees really bump up the calorie count. Avoid the fried foods altogether.
• Switch up your sides. Many dishes will come with refried beans, guacamole or other sides. Ask for other options such as seasoned rice or rice and beans (neither of which is low-cal, but it's a slightly better option).
• Know the language. The menu descriptions should let you know what you're ordering, but you can still keep your eye out for a few key words: asada (grilled), pollo (chicken) and arroz (rice).
• Go veg. More and more restaurants are offering vegetarian options. Even if it's not on the menu, you can request something like vegetarian fajitas.

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I'm a single mom and between work, baseball games, taking care of the house and working in the yard, I sometimes feel like I can't catch up. I'm a big advocate for cooking at home; when you make the meal, you can control the ingredients and quality. But when life is really crazed, a night out at a restaurant is a pleasant break for me. Still, when eating out, I know that I don't want to get blindsided by a surprisingly high-calorie meal.

Last week, I asked if you review nutrition information at restaurants before ordering. I'm glad to see the majority of you do. Here are the results:

• 53 percent of you will check the menu for nutrition information, check online before going out to eat or ask the server for information -- whatever it takes to know the details about what you're ordering.
• 24 percent of you like to see the nutrition information, but don't go out of your way if it's not clearly stated on the menu.
• 17 percent of you check nutrition information sometimes -- like when you're trying to lose weight.
• 3 percent watch your calories at home but don't worry about it when you go out to eat.
• 3 percent of you never worry about the nutrition details and just eat what you want.

Here at That's Fit, we're constantly telling you what we think about things, but sometimes it's nice to know what you think. So from time to time, we'll ask you a question. Don't be afraid to speak up -- we love feedback.

Many restaurants now provide nutrition information either on their menus, online or by request. I know that I find it helpful when ordering. I'll never forget the time I neglected to look up nutritional information before going out to a chain restaurant; I thought I'd ordered a halfway-decent meal -- substituted a veggie side for fries and so forth -- but when I got home and looked online, I was shocked to see that my halfway-decent meal was almost 1,000 calories!

Bev told us that in one observational study, only 0.1 percent of fast food patrons reviewed nutritional information before ordering. An observational study has some obvious flaws; it doesn't account for people who look up the information online or just have familiar favorites that they order over and over, but still ... 0.1 percent is pretty shocking. It made me wonder, do you review nutritional information before ordering?

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Going out to eat isn't just expensive -- it also costs you a lot of calories. Even when I'm trying to be super healthy at a restaurant, I generally consume considerably more calories in a meal than I would at home.

And, let's be honest -- when you're at a restaurant, you don't always want to be super healthy. Sometimes, the entire reason you go to a restaurant is because you're dying to get the shrimp scampi, or you've been thinking about that baked artichoke dip all week long, and nothing else is going to satisfy.

Fortunately, you can make a lot of these dishes at home, where you'll save money and a lot of calories. Check out the gallery for five recipes from the Winter 2009 issue of the Publix GreenWise Market Magazine!

Got a recipe you want us to healthy up for you? Leave it in the comments and we'll do what we can to help!

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So you went a little overboard with dinner. How long will it take to walk it off?

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Welcome to Walking the Walk, a feature that takes a deeper look at commonly shared diet and fitness advice. Every other week, I'll choose one piece of advice and practice it for seven days. Then I'll report back on what I discovered about making it work in real life and how it affected my own personal fitness -- and how it ultimately can affect your own efforts.

When it comes to unhealthy habits, eating out has been the hardest one for me to break. If I really put my mind to it, I can plan, prepare and cook healthy meals ... for about three days. Then I find myself making excuses. And then I find myself sitting at a restaurant, letting someone else cook.

In my defense, we don't have a typical 9-to-5 schedule. Between work hours and family activities, at least two nights a week, I'm pulling in the driveway at 7 PM with nothing in mind for dinner (not so good for a healthy diet).

But like I said, those are just excuses. While it's nice to have someone cook and clean up, I pay for this habit with more than just money. Restaurant portions are far too big, and they can be loaded with fat and sodium.

So this week for Walking the Walk, I'm going to eat every meal and snack at home. This is one healthy habit I'm hoping will stick.

Thought peer pressure was just for junior high kids? Dieters face it, too.

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When it comes to cutting calories, you're usually better off making your meals at home. But there's one area where a restaurant may have a leg up on the home chef. Salad dressing.

It's not that restaurant salad dressings are lower in calories ... more than likely, they're not. But if you're pouring your salad dressing on top, you're probably getting more dressing than you really need. And, no, I'm not suggesting you dip your fork in the dressing before each bite because -- let's be honest -- that's annoying and just doesn't give you enough flavor.

The New York Times recipe tester has spent a lot of time working in restaurants and she says that if you're dressing your salad, you're dressing the wrong thing. Surprising, isn't it? It's kind of like finding out you're supposed to wear your shoes on your hands. After all, it's called salad dressing. Restaurants usually put dressing in a squirt bottle and then -- once the salad is mixed and in the bowl -- squirt a ring or two of dressing on the bowl. They toss the salad against the sides of the bowl until it's evenly coated.

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Eating at home is undeniably more economical and is also a better way to control the health quality of your meal. But, if you're like me, you enjoy going out to eat once in a while. During these penny-pinching times, does eating out need to be cut from your budget entirely? Not at all. Just follow these healthful tips for eating out on a budget:

• Order water. Forget about ordering wine, or soda, or fancy bottled waters. Just stick to plain old tap water. It's free in cost and calories.
• Skip the specials. When your server announces the day's specials, just disregard them. They're usually more expensive and, when it's not on the menu, you may not pay as much attention to how it's prepared -- you don't want to be surprised by high-calorie sauces or other unhealthful additions you weren't expecting.
• Ask about extras. Make sure you get what you paid for and order whatever healthful sides come with your meal. Remember, even if the only sides listed are high in calories, you can scour the menu for lighter options; most restaurants are happy to substitute sides.
  
• Doggie bag it. Be sure to bring home leftovers for tomorrow's lunch.
• Skip dessert. You don't need the extra calories or the extra cost. If you must indulge, consider splitting a dessert with someone else.

Even in these difficult economic times, do remember to tip your server appropriately -- they need to make a living, too. Do you have any other tips for eating out on a budget?

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Are you a fan of calorie counts on menus? Do you check out the online nutritional info. before heading out to a restaurant so you can make sure you order the healthiest thing on the menu? If you answered yes to either of these, how upset would you be if you found out that the nutritional information listed wasn't true? Let's say, for instance, the dish you ordered was listed to be around 400 calories and you later found out it was 600? You'd be pretty mad, right?

That's just what happened to some people dining at Applebee's, and they're taking their anger all the way to the courtroom. In Kansas City, the restaurant chain, along with Weight Watchers and DineEquity are being sued for providing false information on their 'diet' menu after it was found that some so-called 'healthy' dishes ha twice as much fat and 25% more calories than indicated. You can read more here.

I suspect this won't be the last lawsuit we see of this kind -- what do you think?

(via CalorieLab)

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Does being on a diet mean never eating out? Cooking your own meals is one really good way to keep track of what's going into your food -- and your belly. But let's be realistic here -- who wants to cook every night of the week? I'm guessing all of us eat out from time to time.

Eating out doesn't have to spell diet disaster though -- Prevention Magazine recently put together a list of the best foods to nosh on when you're out on the town:

• If you're at an Asian restaurant ... order a shrimp stir-fry
• If you're at an Indian restaurant ... order Chicken Tikka
• If you're at a Seafood restaurant ... order grilled fish with lemon
• If you're at an Italian restaurant ... order pasta alla marinara

Click here for more awesome restaurant rules ... and let us know if you have any of your own.

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According to General Mills, sales are up significantly on some popular brands, including baking goods, yogurt, soups, cereal and snack products. Some experts think this is a strong indicator that people are eating out less and opting to enjoy their meals at home instead.

Why do you think this is? If you ask me, there are a couple of factors at play:

• A drop in the economy coupled with rising fuel costs leaves less money in the bank for luxuries like eating out, OR
  
• Perhaps people are wising up and realizing that picking up their meals from a fast food restaurant is doing them no favours health-wise.

I have nothing against the occasional meal out with family or friends, but let's be honest -- cooking your meals at home is the only way to ensure that you're getting the healthiest, most nutritious meals possible. Your thoughts?

(via Diet Blog)

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