Seven Tips for Eating on the Go with a WFPB Diet
A client texted me, “Things keep coming up that take me away from home. I am hungry before I get back home, so I go to a restaurant and then I eat things I react to. How can I make this work. Help!”
You can handle the unexpected, eat out, and enjoy time with friends without abandoning your whole-food, plant-based (WFPB) lifestyle! Your health goals matter, but so do your relationships, your enjoyment of life, and your ability to adapt when plans change.
Following are seven practical strategies to employee when you're out with friends, running late, or eating somewhere that doesn't fit your usual dietary habits.
1. Plan Ahead: Don't Let Hunger Make the Decision
Even if you think you will be back home before mealtime, it is a good idea to always be prepared! Keep some WFPB food with you when you go out: nuts, fruits, veggie sticks, sandwich, almond stuffed dates, packed in a cooler with an ice pack. If you stay out too long and get hungry you have food with you that won’t sabotage your best efforts. If you get back home before mealtime, the meal is already prepared and ready to eat!
2. Look at the Menu Before You Arrive
Look at the online menu of restaurants near you now and make a plan ahead of time for what you will order the next time you are out and about and are hungry. If you don’t have a plan ahead of time, look for simple plant foods that can be combined into a satisfying meal. When looking over the menu look for options like:
Baked potato with vegetables or beans
Rice and beans with salsa
Vegetable-heavy salad with beans or lentils
Steamed or roasted vegetables with a whole grain
Vegetable soup, if prepared without unwanted animal ingredients
3. Suggestions for Various Restaurants
Burger restaurant: Ask if there is a veggie burger available. Many times you can request meat and cheese to be left off and veggies added. Or look for a baked potato, salad, beans, or other vegetable-based options. Request dressing and sauces on the side.
Mexican restaurant: Try beans, rice (brown rice may be available upon request, it is worth asking), fajita vegetables, lettuce, and salsa. Ask whether the beans and rice contain lard, meat broth, or other ingredients you have chosen to avoid.
Italian restaurant: Look for pasta with marinara and vegetables. Ask whether the pasta contains egg and whether the sauce contains dairy or meat ingredients if you have chosen to avoid these.
A restaurant with limited choices: We just got back from spending time in Texas with our son, Aaron. We went out to eat for breakfast (probably one of the hardest meals to eat out with WFPB goals). The restaurant we went to did not even have oatmeal. I ordered an English Muffin and asked for “all the veggies options you have in the back” to be roasted. They served me a delicious veggie loaded English Muffin. It wasn’t perfect, but it worked. I had to get a little creative and so did the chef in the back.
Ask whether the kitchen can prepare a vegetable plate, a substantial salad with beans, or a combination of vegetable sides. Read through the menu and find everything that is within your WFPB preferences and try to pull something together with those ingredients. A true chef loves to create something new and different, so go ahead and ask them to make something with the ingredients you have chosen.
4. When Eating out with Friends
Let your friends know your intentions. You can say something like, “I'm working on some health goals, so I'm going to choose something that works well for me. I'm happy to go wherever everyone wants.” You don't need to convince everyone to follow your diet, explain every ingredient you avoid, or apologize for your choices. A calm, positive attitude makes it easier to honor your needs while respecting theirs. By stating your intention to everyone ahead of time you will be more likely to stick to what you have stated and they will be more prepared to be supportive and may even give you some ideas.
When everyone else is ordering foods you don't normally eat, try this three-step focus:
PAUSE: Take a moment to recognize your hunger and your health goals. Ask yourself, “What would satisfy my hunger and help me feel good afterward?”
CHOOSE: Select the best available options for your health goals. Consider portions, how the food is prepared, and what will leave you comfortably satisfied with both the food choice and your health goals.
ENJOY: Be present with your friends. Eat slowly, appreciate your food, and enjoy the conversation instead of worrying about every bite. Remember you are with friends to connect, laugh, celebrate, and spend time with people you love.
5. Don't Turn One Unplanned Meal into an Unplanned Weekend
Remember, one meal does not determine your success. Your overall pattern of eating and habits matter much more. But be careful that one meal does not turn into a daily occurrence. Return to your usual habits at the next meal. If you choose something outside your normal routine, don't punish yourself by skipping meals or exercising excessively afterward. Simply resume your regular eating pattern.
6. Unexpected Delays
What if you're out running errands, your plans change and you do not have food with you and you get hungry, or your friends what to eat out and it is later than you would normally eat?
Buy WFPB options at a grocery store: If I am out and about and get hungry, my first choice if I am alone is go to the grocery store and buy some food to make a meal (fruit, nut butter, bread, veggies like baby carrots or small peppers, for example).
Choose the best restaurant around you: If I am with my husband, we are usually looking for Subway. If that is not a good options for you, go to a restaurant of your choice and choose a satisfying option with fiber-rich plant foods with previous suggestions.
It's late, and I'm worried about eating too much before bed: If you are hungry, try to select the easiest to digest foods (fruits and grains). If you are not hungry, it is ok to not eat even if others are eating. If you are meeting friends for an evening meal but you really don’t want to eat, it is ok to enjoy a glass of water with lemon or a cup of herbal (no caffeine) tea, while your friends eat. Just let them know your intentions ahead of time so they can support you instead of trying to get you to eat.
7. Focus on Progression Over Perfection
For lasting success, build habits you can maintain in real life, not just when you're at home with a perfectly stocked kitchen. Your success is not measured by whether every meal is perfect. It is measured by the healthy choices you keep making over time with portion control.
Your WFPB lifestyle should support your life, not make you afraid to participate in it.
Plan when you can.
Adapt when you need to.
Remember progressive consistency over time is more powerful than perfection at any one meal.
Blue Skies,
Dana
Dana West, RDN, LD thrives on helping her amazing clients get a new lease on life by embracing health and conquering disease, living with renewed energy and enthusiasm, through learning to cooperate with God, Our Chief Physician. If you’re desiring to improve your weight, health markers, sleep, or energy so you can live life to the fullest again – then join Better Together: A Monthly Health Challenge Club. Wanna Join? Deets Here
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