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It seems that you're biased toward thinking about fast food as a particular thing… Here are some fast food items you did not mention: McDonalds Apple Slices Very Berry Hibiscus Starbucks Refresher Jamba Juice Wheatgrass
Granted, no one is going to get by long term by eating ONLY those things, but the point is 1) the true definition of "fast food" is very broad and 2) if you get creative and eat selectively, there are healthy options to be found just about anywhere. Which was why I said it depends on where you go and what you order.
I'm pretty certain most people here will agree that when we tell people not to eat fast food, we are referring to places such as:
McDonald's
Burger King
Jack In The Box
Wendy's
Carls Jr
Arby's
KFC
etc.
And we are referring to the typical unhealthy items they sell such as grilled hamburgers, deep fried chicken, french fries, onion rings, soda, etc.
I doubt anyone is referring to Jamba Juice or Starbucks.
And nobody is going to question a piece of fresh fruit, no matter who sells it. Even McDonald's.
And yes, it's possible to get even healthy items at the above places I named, if you are selective, such as a salad with grilled chicken, and no dressing.
But in general, most fast food served at the places I named above is unhealthy. And it's often VERY high in sodium.
I doubt anyone is referring to Jamba Juice or Starbucks. And nobody is going to question a piece of fresh fruit, no matter who sells it. Even McDonald's.
And yes, it's possible to get even healthy items at the above places I named, if you are selective, such as a salad with grilled chicken, and no dressing. But in general, most fast food served at the places I named above is unhealthy. And it's often VERY high in sodium.
Places like Jamba Juice and especially Starbucks (which even has a dive-thru) really are fast food in just about every sense of the term. They're just disguised a little bit by marketing, decor and menu layout. Also, if I buy apples from McDonalds, plenty of people will question it, thinking they must be some sort of fake factory produced apples or something. Which was why I made that point about people not really understanding what they mean when they say "fast food", especially if they've recently read or watched one of those ridiculously biased books or documentaries about how evil fast food is.
I'm glad to see you got my point about ordering the right thing AND being selective about what you actually eat out of the bag. I agree that most fast food is unhealthy and high in sodium. But I'd challenge you to find any restaurant where you can order some popular, taste-rich entree and not find a whole lot of calories and sodium in there is well. The fact is, if you want to eat well, you need to shop well and eat at home. Better yet, grow/raise your own foods if that's an option.
Fast food overall gets a bad rap in my opinion. A lot of it has to do with the choices you make. Most restaurants, even fast food, have options that aren't terrible. It's just that people don't like to pick them.
Common culprits:
- Mayo. Mayo is insane. The listed calories for a whopper is something like 650 calories. You can save 140 of that just by losing mayo.
- French Fries. This is probably number 1. Everyone loves them but if there was ever a food that that was more useless and more unhealthy, I can't find it.
- Drinks. I admit to enjoying a real coke as a cheat once a week. But the fact is, a large coke is on the order of 300 calories by itself. People tend to discount the calories in drinks.
- Sauces and dressings. Always get these on the side. They usually have far more calories than one would ever imagine.
So if you go somewhere and grab a burger with no mayo, and pair it with a side salad, you're not doing that bad. Yes, the burger is on the fatty side, but at the end of the day, its calories in calories out. Avoid the worst offenders and you'll probably be a lot better off.
I am sharing my experience, I have never taken the fast food and any kind of exercise. I have always preferred the green tea. And it has provided me huge benefits regarding my health. It has reduced my weight and provided me a Stressless life. Some years ago, my weight was 80 kilos, but now this time, I am 67 kilos. The another fact with green tea that it provides the blood purification facility.
I concur with the green tea - I've lost a grip of excess weight and am very close to my ideal physique. But exercise and clean food are just as important.
Places like Jamba Juice and especially Starbucks (which even has a dive-thru) really are fast food in just about every sense of the term. They're just disguised a little bit by marketing, decor and menu layout.
This is so true. I used to drink a Venti Carmel Latte from Starbucks everyday... until I realized there was like 500 calories in that drink.
However, this is a bit simplistic; in regards to your "fast food", stereotypical fast food will not have the nutrients required, thus a person will slowly starve themselves of essential nutrients which will lead to other issues.
I think it depends on the fast food itself. My favorite fast food chain is Boston Market, which seems to be available only in the Mid-Atlantic & Northeast Region. They offer American home cooking such as: meatloaf, beef brisket, and rotisserie chicken (for the meat). Then for the sides they have cream spinach, sauteed spinach with garlic, turkey stuffing (without the turkey), mashed potato, chicken noodle soup, rice pilaf, steamed carrots, steamed sweet corns, etc. I usually get their chicken with the garlic spinach and carrots on the side. Very nutritious and fulfilling.
I think it depends on the fast food itself. My favorite fast food chain is Boston Market, which seems to be available only in the Mid-Atlantic & Northeast Region. They offer American home cooking such as: meatloaf, beef brisket, and rotisserie chicken (for the meat). Then for the sides they have cream spinach, sauteed spinach with garlic, turkey stuffing (without the turkey), mashed potato, chicken noodle soup, rice pilaf, steamed carrots, steamed sweet corns, etc. I usually get their chicken with the garlic spinach and carrots on the side. Very nutritious and fulfilling.
Even Boston Market has a few foods you would not want to eat too often.
Take a look at Boston Market's interactive nutrition menu, and sort the menu by the nutrient, so the foods with the highest amounts of that nutrient appear at the top of the list.
If you click on Saturated Fat, the food with the highest is the Pastry Top Chicken Pot Pie, which has 23 grams of Saturated Fat, and it also has 1280mg of sodium.
Their Meatloaf Carver sandwich has a whopping 2160mg of sodium.
A few of their chicken dishes are high in cholesterol, such as their Parmesan Tuscan Chicken, which has 355mg. It also has 2000mg of sodium.
Overall, Boston Market is a lot healthier than most typical fast food places, but some of their foods are high in sodium.
I have a Boston Market near me in San Diego. They are in a lot of states according to the map on their website.
Their interactive nutrition menu is the best nutrition menu I've seen so far.
Last edited by RD5050; 05-19-2014 at 04:11 PM..
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