Fast food might not sound like the best choice when you're trying to lose weight. If you pick wisely, however, you'll find that many fast-food meals are quite acceptable in terms of calories, fat and sugar content. While trying to save calories, don't forget health. Special order your meal to save on calories. For example, ask for extra lettuce and tomato in place of the standard slice of cheese in your sandwich. You'll reduce calories and increase nutrients.
Step 1
Study the menu of your favorite restaurant. If you regularly eat at the same fast-food place, take some time to review their menu so you can pick the healthiest choices. Most companies have a menu posted on their website and many, including McDonald's and Burger King, include all nutritional information next to each item. Compare similar items and see which are lower in calories, fat and sugar. This will give you a good place to start when choosing items from the menu.
Step 2
Cut down on red meat and whole-fat dairy and instead focus on healthier proteins. Grilled chicken sandwiches, eggs on a muffin and yogurt parfaits can all be found at fast-food restaurants. Ask the server to hold the cheese and confirm the meat is grilled, not fried.
Step 3
Buy the smaller size available. Portions are often too large anyway. Never buy something super-sized, and order from the kids' menu if one is available. You'll be able to eat your favorite foods but consume a lot fewer calories.
Step 4
Skip the extras. Sodas contain lots of empty calories and sugars that can wreak havoc on your diet. For example, 7-11's Slurpee contains over 200 calories and 56 g of sugar, the equivalent to 11 tsp. Sauces, dressings, mayonnaise and other extras all add calories. Eliminate them and you could be saving hundreds of calories per meal.
Step 5
Be careful with "healthy choices." Because a meal has the word "salad" in it doesn't make it healthy. For example, McDonald's Grilled Chicken Caesar Salad contains 850 calories and 64 g of fat, most of it saturated. When choosing salads or soups, look at the ingredients. Avoid any meal that contains croutons, fried ingredients, lots of cheese or beef. Ask for dressing or sauces on the side so you can add just a small amount.
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