Day Nine: First Meals Out

Dark Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Butter Icing (these are NOT on plan)

It’s Friday, and Husband and I have a birthday dinner to go to out of town. To prepare for the two and a half hour car ride, I pack a meal to eat – grilled chicken Caesar salad. I decide to save it for consumption just before we arrive at the restaurant so I won’t be famished. I’ve decided to not eat an entrée at the restaurant.

Although the Nutrisystem plan allows for eating out, it does not allow dieters to “take a break.” Some diets do, like Weight Watchers, which allows participants to use “discretionary points” to eat each week. This allows a person to have something decadent as long as it fits into the parameters of the discretionary points. I guess the people at Nutrisystem are afraid that if we eat real food, we won’t go back on the diet.

Husband and I decide to become rule breakers. We give ourselves permission to have a small break at the birthday dinner. He has a side salad and pulled pork, but he does not have croutons on the salad, asks for the dressing on the side, and he only eats half of his pulled pork. Good job! Husband enjoyed several rolls with cinnamon butter. I had three rolls. We each had one chocolate peanut butter birthday cupcake. I had no trouble resisting additional cupcakes even though the peanut butter icing was heavenly. I felt full, and I did not want to ruin my losing streak.

Prior to eating out on Friday, we both followed the Nutrisystem plan. Husband even had a working lunch at a restaurant and ate “on plan” by consulting the eating out guide. He had a grilled chicken salad with the dressing on the side, no cheese and no croutons. I think he’s starting to get sick of salad. I know I am beginning to feel like a rabbit after eating several heads of lettuce in one week.

On our last trip to the grocery store this week, I snuck into the cabbage section of the vegetables area while Husband was distracted by fruit. I bagged some Chinese cabbage hoping he wouldn’t notice. Of course he did. He said he’s not a fan of cabbage, but I was sick of salad. He asked me if I thought he was stupid, and I said no I just hoped he wouldn’t notice it looked a little different. He laughed. My clever plot was foiled by his keen observation. Better luck next time. 

I wonder if he knows about fennel…