You’re sitting in the car sharing conversation with the talking box and you’re torn. Numbers one through five are all battered in a couple layers of grease. Some random items are advertised as grilled or broiled, but the lettuce is sometimes wilted, the tomatoes are discolored almost to a white tint and the “freshly baked bun” is wrinkled and soggy.But it doesn’t matter. You’ve got nothing in the car to nibble on, and it’s meal time. You’re not willing to give up your favorite pair of jeans again for some excess weight, yet you have no choice….it’s fast food or no food.
And you’d be surprised. After some research, I’ve discovered even the grilled chicken sandwiches can be worse than a basic, single burger, sometimes even more calories than a Big Mac.
Of course, this is hopefully under the most undesirable of circumstances. Fast food joints, though still more for convenience rather than health, have improved when it comes to freshness in the face of continuing media emphasis on better food choices.
I wouldn’t recommend eating any of this stuff on the average day. Even eating hamburgers and French fries at home is better than this. But, travel and last-minute trips sometimes call for more convenience. Maybe you don’t have an oven or a stove or even a refrigerator to store basic perishables.
I wouldn’t say your focus would be getting the right nutrients, but more avoiding the wrong ones if you’re going through that drive-thru. So as far as fat and calorie content is concerned, here are your best bets to avoid unnecessary consumption of fatty foods and keep the weight off. If you’re going for something fried, make sure to stick to the smallest size. The larger ones are off-the-charts bad (as in 460 calories and 29 grams of fat for ten chicken nuggets.)
If you’ve got more of an appetite, I wouldn’t recommend the fries or nuggets at all. Keep in mind: the nutrition facts don’t include any dressings or sauces, and calories from fat are estimated to the nearest ten.
Top Five at McDonald’s:
*Honey mustard or BBQ snack wrap (grilled): 260 calories, 9 grams of fat, 80 calories from fat
*Small French fries: 230 calories, 11 grams of fat, 100 calories from fat
*Premium Caesar salad with grilled chicken: 220 calories, 6 grams of fat, 60 calories from fat (minus the meat, it’s 90, 4, 35)
*Snack size fruit and walnut salad: 210 calories, 8 grams of fat, 70 calories from fat
*Hash brown (150, 9, 80), scrambled eggs (170, 11,100) or an English muffin (160, 3, 30) for breakfast
Top F-ive at Wendy’s:
*Mandarin chicken salad: (180, 2, 20)
*Side salad (35, 0, 0), mandarin orange cup (80, 0, 0), or small chili (190, 6, 60)
*Jr. Hamburger: (230, 8, 70)
*Grilled chicken go-wrap: (250, 10, 90)
*Four-piece chicken nugget: (190, 13,120)
Top Five at Chick-Fil-A:
*Chick-n-Minis: (260, 10, 90)
*Char grilled chicken sandwich: (260, 3, 25)
*Char grilled chicken garden salad: (170, 6, 50)
*Spicy Chicken Cool Wrap: (400, 12, 110)
*Fruit cup: (100, 0, 0)
Top Five at Taco Bell:
*Fresco grilled steak soft taco: (160, 4.5, 40)
*Crunchy taco (170, 10, 90) or crunchy taco supreme (200, 12, 100)
*Grilled chicken soft taco: (200, 8, 70)
*Cinnamon twists: (170, 7, 60)
*Mexican rice: (130, 3.5, 35)
So have hope, ladies. With moderation and a good eye, it’s possible to find items that aren’t over-the-top. You might find you’re still hungry after eating some of them, but that’s because there’s not enough fat to make you feel satiated.
If it was me, though, I’d stick to making the greasy food at home as often as possible to avoid preservatives and extra salt supposedly needed for preservation. At least you know what’s going in it…..and it’s not sitting in “the back” on a counter for hours.
Kristin Larmore just graduated from Appalachian State University with a degree in Journalism and a minor in English. The only fast food she really enjoys is Chick-Fil-A, but she occasionally will eat a salad from Wendy’s now and again. She literally can’t remember the last time she had a fast food burger, but her weakness is a basket of sweet potato fries at a restaurant or made at home.
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