Don’t let a road trip derail your
smart food choices. Try these picks from health and nutrition expert Joy B. to
stay slim.
At Starbucks
Joy’s choice: This may sound boring, but I’m a black coffee gal. Can’t stand the
plain stuff? Stick to lattes and cappuccinos with skim or soy milk. If you’re
craving an indulgent low-cal treat, try a tall Frappuccino “light” (hold the
whipped cream), which has 165 calories and 3 g fat. As for tea, any unsweetened
variety will do. My pick: Tazo Shaken Iced Passion Tea.
Stay-slim secret: Decide what to order before you go. Go to starbucks.com/menu (click
“Nutrition”) for a calorie-count tool.
The
passion tea is infused with hibiscus, known to lower blood pressure.
At the sandwich shop
Joy’s choice: These places are great because you can easily customize your order.
My healthy favorite: a turkey breast sandwich on wholegrain bread with Dijon
mustard, piled with vegetables such as lettuce, tomato, roasted peppers,
pickles, onions and avocado.
Stay-slim secret: Requesting mustard, ketchup, BBQ sauce or hummus instead of mayo
cuts an extra 80 to 100 calories.
At the ballgame
Joy’s choice: Typically, I eat beforehand… or sneak in my own snacks. When I’m
with my family, we’ll often share a large bag of elephant peanuts: 28 peanuts
are just 160 calories and full of protein. The shelling process slows down
munching.
Stay-slim secret: You can enjoy your favorites – in the right amounts! Four snacks
under 200 calories: 1/3 large soft pretzel (160 CAL),
cotton candy (110 CAL), small cup frozen yogurt (150 CAL), large handful of
Cracker Jack (120 CAL).
Stroll
around the stadium: Make the seventh-inning stretch the seventh-inning walk.
Every move counts!
At McDonald’s
Joy’s choice: Sometimes when I’m on the road with my kids and they’re restless
for a quick lunch, we’ll hit the drive-through and order a bunch of grilled
chicken snack wraps (the Honey Mustard and Chipotle BBQ are just 250 calories
each!). Every once in a while I’ll order the salad with grilled chicken and
low-fat dressing.
Stay-slim secret: If you’re craving a burger, just stick with a plain one stacked
with lettuce, tomato, onion and a squirt of ketchup, mustard or BBQ sauce. Lose
the top of the bun and you’ll save about 80 calories.
At the diner
Joy’s choice: I’m an omelet lover and can happily eat eggs for any meal. Try an
egg-white omelet stuffed with vegetables. Request whole-grain toast and fruit
salad in place of potatoes.
Stay-slim secret: Diner salads tend to come already tossed with about 6 Tbsp of
dressing – that’s about 600 calories! So ask for the vinaigrette or house
specialty on the side and drizzle on a few teaspoons.
Try
an egg-white omelet stuffed with vegetables
Good-for-you munchies
Fend off a snack attack in the car.
Beanitos Nacho Cheese Flavor ($3.75 for a
6-oz bag) these natural white bean chips are lightly salted and packed with 6 g
of filling fiber.
Back to Nature Mini Chocolate Chunk Cookies
($3.5 for 6 mini-bags) a pouch of cookies – made with whole grains and
semisweet chocolate – is just 170 calories.