Foo - Fast food ain't as bad as I thought

I hardly ever eat fast food, but when I do, I don't hold back. Today on our way to the ice rink, my wife and I stopped by BK. After I ordered, I got curious about the nutrition information and checked. Here's what I found out:

Texas double cheeseburger: 990 calories
Large fries: 500 calories
Large coke: 290 calories

That's less than 1800 calories total -- seems fairly modest for a supposedly oversized meal. Not that it's health food. The meal did contain 94 grams of fat (more than a stick of butter) and a couple days supply of sodium. Had I sprung for an ordinary sized meal and washed it down with water, I could have gotten out for around 1000 calories which seems like something a normal person should be able to handle.

However, this was a one shot deal. My next meal will be chicken curry with lots of rice and nan. Despite my good experience today, I think I'd puke if I had to eat BK more than once or twice a month.

holy crap!!!!!!!!!!!!!

1800 calories in one meal!!!!!!!!!!! damn. i prolly don't eat that much in one day!!!!!! and all the fat!!!!!11:eek:

I had two Whoppers with cheese the other day. 1460 Calories, 84 grams of fat. I don't like fast food that much, but when it's 2am in the middle of the night and I need energy to ride home, I'll eat anything but McDonalds.

Gorge on this stuff everyday while being sedentary, it's not surprising why most North Americans are overweight.

nah. i'll do without before i eat that stuff.

Chipotle!

Fast food is more a problem in what people tend to order rather than what's on the menu. Double chesseburgers, whoopers, and milkshakes aren't on the list of intelligent choices.

I hate to admit it, but if I'm on a ride and need to eat quickly, I'll head to McD's and order a QP w/o cheese, a small fry, a side salad, and a water. Use half the dressing they provide for the salad (which is plenty), and in at about 800 calories and 33 grams of fat. I'll add a plain hamburger if I'm really hungry. It's satisfying, cheap, and as long as I'm not eating this every day, I don't see any problem.

- Mark

1800 is probably the same amount of calories you can get from a meal at a normal restaurant.



I had two Whoppers with cheese the other day. 1460 Calories, 84 grams of fat. I don't like fast food that much, but when it's 2am in the middle of the night and I need energy to ride home, I'll eat anything but McDonalds.

Gorge on this stuff everyday while being sedentary, it's not surprising why most North Americans are overweight.

BK isn't any better than McDonalds

I used to manage a Health food store back in the mid 90's. We sold a book called "The Fat Book". It listed all the nutritional info for just about every fast food chain menu item. There are some fast foods that really aren't all that bad. Plain hamburgers, plain cheese pizza's, some bean burito's. Not good for you, but too bad.

... plain cheese pizza's, some bean burito's. Not good for you, but too bad.

A plain cheese pizza or bean burrito is "not good for you"? That's being pretty hard core.

- Mark

1800 is probably the same amount of calories you can get from a meal at a normal restaurant.

"a meal at a normal restaurant" covers an awful lot of ground and while you can certainly find restaurant meals with 1800 calories, this isn't average or anything I'd call a "normal" restaurant meal. Whether done at BK or at a sitdown restaurant, 1800 calories and 90 grams of fat at a single sitting is a ton.

- Mark

1800 is probably the same amount of calories you can get from a meal at a normal restaurant.

That's kind of what I was thinking. Some of the stuff I encounter when I eat out is no joke.

Besides, the typical college student weekend drinking binge could easily put this number to shame.

I hardly ever eat fast food, but when I do, I don't hold back. Today on our way to the ice rink, my wife and I stopped by BK. After I ordered, I got curious about the nutrition information and checked. Here's what I found out:

Texas double cheeseburger: 990 calories
Large fries: 500 calories
Large coke: 290 calories

That's less than 1800 calories total -- seems fairly modest for a supposedly oversized meal. Not that it's health food. The meal did contain 94 grams of fat (more than a stick of butter) and a couple days supply of sodium. Had I sprung for an ordinary sized meal and washed it down with water, I could have gotten out for around 1000 calories which seems like something a normal person should be able to handle.

However, this was a one shot deal. My next meal will be chicken curry with lots of rice and nan. Despite my good experience today, I think I'd puke if I had to eat BK more than once or twice a month.

i've never looked into calorie counts, but it's not like indian food is exactly healthy and fat free. or am i wrong?

I had two Whoppers with cheese the other day. 1460 Calories, 84 grams of fat. I don't like fast food that much, but when it's 2am in the middle of the night and I need energy to ride home, I'll eat anything but McDonalds.

Gorge on this stuff everyday while being sedentary, it's not surprising why most North Americans are overweight.

2 whopppers? wtf? how?

anyway...

http://www.subwaynh.com/images/subway_logo.gif

FTW!

That's kind of what I was thinking. Some of the stuff I encounter when I eat out is no joke.

Right. I don't know if TGI Fridays counts as a "normal" restaurant, but it's certainly a typical chain. The Pecan Crusted Chicken Salad (http://www.thedailyplate.com/nutrition-calories/food/tgi-fridays/pecan-crusted-chicken-salad) is an item many otherwise "diet-conscious" patrons might be tempted to order (it's a salad- how bad can it be, right?). But at 49.5g of fat per 700cal serving (that's 63.6% cals from fat!!!!), it's no bargain, nutrition-wise. Top it off with a soft drink, maybe some jalapeno poppers or mozzarella sticks, and a dessert, and you could probably hit 90g of fat in one sitting. Certainly over 1800cals, easy.

i've never looked into calorie counts, but it's not like indian food is exactly healthy and fat free. or am i wrong?

You are correct. Although nan is pretty good, as long as it's not slathered in ghee (clarified butter). Otherwise, ghee is used everywhere, in copious amounts, and in South Indian cuisine, so is coconut and coconut milk. But damn, it's tasty!

You are correct. Although nan is pretty good, as long as it's not slathered in ghee (clarified butter). Otherwise, ghee is used everywhere, in copious amounts, and in South Indian cuisine, so is coconut and coconut milk. But damn, it's tasty!

yeah, the ghee is precisely what i was thinking of. regardless, i do love a good curry, with some lime pickle on the side.

I hardly ever eat fast food, but when I do, I don't hold back. Today on our way to the ice rink, my wife and I stopped by BK. After I ordered, I got curious about the nutrition information and checked. Here's what I found out:

Texas double cheeseburger: 990 calories
Large fries: 500 calories
Large coke: 290 calories

That's less than 1800 calories total -- seems fairly modest for a supposedly oversized meal. Not that it's health food. The meal did contain 94 grams of fat (more than a stick of butter) and a couple days supply of sodium. Had I sprung for an ordinary sized meal and washed it down with water, I could have gotten out for around 1000 calories which seems like something a normal person should be able to handle.

However, this was a one shot deal. My next meal will be chicken curry with lots of rice and nan. Despite my good experience today, I think I'd puke if I had to eat BK more than once or twice a month.


I never realized til I read this that a handy way of putting fat intake into perspective
is to convert to sticks-of-butter equvalency measurements.
That would be 88g of fat per 110g or 4oz stick of butter.

did someone say fast food?
http://www.bergoiata.org/fe/felins/High%20Velocity,%20Cheetah.jpg

For curiosities sake, my caloric & fat intake for yesterday:

Breakfast: Mcgriddle, hash browns, coffee - 698 cal, 43 g fat
Lunch: Tuna sandwich, chips, Snapple - 780 cal, 28 g fat
Dinner: Salmon, collards, grits - 559 cal, 23 g fat

Total: 2037 cal, 94 g fat (approx. 13% over and 47% over the RDA respectively) :eek:

Good thing I don't eat those Mcgriddles everyday. I limit myself to one a year.

Given the amount of food available eating out, how can anybody not pass the RDA in fat and calorie count?

I don't have the patience to count calories nor do I care. My BP, HR, BMI, body fat is well within the acceptable range.


2 whopppers? wtf? how?

anyway...

http://www.subwaynh.com/images/subway_logo.gif

FTW!

Subway is just as bad in terms of nutrition, that's because I ask them to add copious amount of Mayonnaise, Ranch, Sweet Onion Sauce, Honey Mustard, and Hot Sauce. The 6 grams of fat they claim is when you skip the sauces, without sauces, the sandwiches taste horrible.

Ugh. This thread is one of the many reasons why I rarely eat out.

I haven't eaten fast food in the last 5 years except for Subway and similar places. It amazes me the massive amounts of fat that i used to ingest. I also don't eat red meat as it is pretty high in fat as well. Regardless the saying "you are what you eat" is an absolute fact.

Given the amount of food available eating out, how can anybody not pass the RDA in fat and calorie count?

I don't have the patience to count calories nor do I care. My BP, HR, BMI, body fat is well within the acceptable range.



Subway is just as bad in terms of nutrition,

doubt it.


that's because I ask them to add copious amount of Mayonnaise, Ranch, Sweet Onion Sauce, Honey Mustard, and Hot Sauce. The 6 grams of fat they claim is when you skip the sauces, without sauces, the sandwiches taste horrible.

oil & vinegar.

it's not fat free, but 1. it's not as shiddy as the sauces listed above, and 2. it tastes gooooood.

Subway is just as bad in terms of nutrition, that's because I ask them to add copious amount of Mayonnaise, Ranch, Sweet Onion Sauce, Honey Mustard, and Hot Sauce. The 6 grams of fat they claim is when you skip the sauces, without sauces, the sandwiches taste horrible.

BS. You just don't have any self control.

Well, you all must be roadies or something or I am just a slug. I have never succeeded eating fast food - now give me a slow chicken and we are talking some good eating!

i've never looked into calorie counts, but it's not like indian food is exactly healthy and fat free. or am i wrong?
It depends on what you eat -- Indian food varies a great deal. It is true that ghee is a common and plentiful ingredient, but the chicken curry I make contains nothing but chicken, spices, lentils, and spinach. We also eat a lot of tandoori chicken (skinless chicken grilled with spices) and palak paneer at home (basically spinach and paneer which is a reasonably healthy cheese). Rice, dahl, and raita are cheap staples that are quite healthy.

Your point is well taken though -- Indian food can be high octane stuff. I still think it's far better for you than eating out or eating frozen processed foods.

I had two Whoppers with cheese the other day. 1460 Calories, 84 grams of fat. I don't like fast food that much, but when it's 2am in the middle of the night and I need energy to ride home, I'll eat anything but McDonalds.

Gorge on this stuff everyday while being sedentary, it's not surprising why most North Americans are overweight.

How can ANYONE in the world possibly eat two Whoppers?

How can ANYONE in the world possibly eat two Whoppers?

That's easy, even for a beanpole like me.

Loves me some Whoppers, though I have been making a concerted effort to cut back on the fa(s)t food. The fat and cholesterol are just out of control in that stuff.

Man, well, I don't know. I can never even finish a burrito at Qdoba. I doubt I could even finish ONE Whopper, although I haven't eaten "traditional" fast food in about ten years (on Phish tour, actually), so I haven't really tried.

although I haven't eaten "traditional" fast food in about ten years (on Phish tour, actually), so I haven't really tried.

Grilled cheese, veggie burritos, and 2-for-$5 Sammy Smith Taddy Porters do not a well balanced diet make, my friend my friend.

:)

Grilled cheese, veggie burritos, and 2-for-$5 Sammy Smith Taddy Porters do not a well balanced diet make, my friend my friend.

:)
Heh, I think I was swinging all of those at one point, so it was a treat to eat food that I wasn't selling. Only now can I actually make my veggie burrito recipe and not want to puke.

That's better than you thought?! :lol: Today I had Buffalo Wild Wings for lunch, and I have no doubt it touched 1000 calories with ease. :o