If you’re on the road for work a lot or if you’re just crunched for time, you probably find yourself hitting the drive-through at some of the more popular fast food chains on a pretty regular basis. That doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice a healthy diet, and it doesn’t mean you have to stick to nothing but salads, either. If you’re savvy with your orders, you can eat healthy fast food at just about any drive-through restaurant around. Here are a few of our favorite tips and strategies for ordering the best fast food for your health.
Don’t Super-Size Yourself
First of all, when you order at the drive-through, they’re most likely going to ask if you want to super-size your order. They might not use that language exactly, but they’re going to ask if you want a larger order or combo. And even if they don’t ask, the menu pricing is almost always set up to make it seem like a really great deal when you order the biggest sizes possible. Don’t fall for this marketing trap, or you could end up with a meal that’s easily 1000-2000 calories, if not more.
So, even if you can’t resist one of the not so healthy fast food options on the menu, you won’t be adding unnecessary calories. At first, this might seem like you’re not getting a whole lot of food for the money, but if you eat slowly and deliberately, you’ll find that you have plenty of food to fill you up. If you eat fast food regularly, and you make this one change, you might be impressed with the results.
Choose Healthier Sides
You can also decrease the number of calories you eat and your sodium intake, too, if you opt for healthier sides. While fries are the typical go-to side item for most fast food menus, a lot of chains offer healthier options. For example, Burger King has apple slices that you can order instead of fries. Just by changing out your high-fat, high-sodium French fries for healthy apple slices, you suddenly have a low-sodium fast food option that will give you plenty of energy and leave you feeling full and satisfied.
Go Grilled Instead of Fried
Whether you’re going to Wendy’s, Chick-Fil-A, or any other chain, you’ll notice that you can choose to get your chicken sandwiches and other entrees grilled instead of fried. Just going with grilled options instead of fried foods will automatically give you a low calorie fast food option that’s just as tasty and won’t ever leave you feeling hungry. The KFC Menu Prices has some healthy chicken dishes.
Be Choosy With Your Beverages
Another easy way to cut down on calories and sugar is to avoid those high-calorie sodas. Instead, you can usually opt for a bottled water, and if you don’t mind tap water you can save some money, too. If you’re craving a tastier beverage, always opt for the low-calorie options. Diet sodas aren’t ideal, but they’re definitely a lot better for you than regular sodas. Some of them have no calories at all, and all of them have sugar substitutes that are much better for you, too.
Order Entrée Salads
A lot of the entrée salads available from the likes of McDonald’s, Wendy’s, and Burger King are actually really filling and really tasty. They’re usually made with either grilled or fried chicken, cheese, and lots of delicious greens and vegetables. See the McDonald’s Menu Prices for the healthiest options at the McDonald’s.
Of course, salad dressing can add a lot of calories, but that doesn’t mean you have to go without it entirely. Instead of dumping the whole packet of dressing on your salad, just open it up and dip your fork in each time you take a bite. You’ll still get the taste of the dressing but without nearly as many calories.
Pick and Choose Your Extras
If you absolutely can’t live without mayo on your burger, skip the cheese (or vice versa). If you know that you’re going to get a big, juicy, calorie-heavy burger, skip the sides and drink water. A lot of the less healthy fast food options are really tempting because they’re so delicious, and it can be hard to resist. Instead of resisting what you want, you can eat low-calorie fast food without skipping the things you really want. The key is to just pick and choose when it comes to not so healthy fast food options.
If you follow just one of these tips for eating the best fast food, you could notice the number on the scale going down little by little. Follow all of them, and don’t hesitate to ask about the healthiest menu options available, and you’ll notice a significant improvement in your health (and your weight) in no time! See? You can eat healthy fast food and never worry about your waistline again. See all our Fast Food Menu Prices for other healthy options.