Do you have a favourite restaurant? I love Subway – I go there at least once every week. In this post I’ll explain how my Subway habits have changed since mid-July. We all know how Subway emphasises the need to “Eat Fresh”; and that the story of Jared Fogle’s mega weight loss is based on what is now commonly known as the “Subway diet”. Does it then mean that you can order any sub and still be making a healthy choice? Today, I give you 5 weight loss mistakes you’re making at Subway.
1. It’s not just about the calories.
You’ve seen how Subway highlights its selection of low fat subs – basically, subs with less than 6g of fat. They are Ham, Oven Roasted Chicken Breast, Roast Beef, Subway Club, Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki, Turkey Breast, Turkey Breast & Ham, and Veggie Delite.
If you were counting calories and would like to have a low fat sub, you would probably pick something with a lower calorie count, for example, Ham which contains *264 calories as compared to Sweet Onion Chicken Teriyaki at *354 calories.
However, besides calories and fat there are other factors to consider, such as sodium and carbs. Say you picked Ham, which sounds pretty good at just 264 calories. Then you realise it contains a whopping 1,070mg of sodium! Consider the Oven Roasted Chicken Breast, which costs 30 calories more but less sodium at 618mg. Bearing in mind that this is only one meal out of the many you will consume throughout the day, you should keep your sodium to a minimum whenever possible. When you consume too much sodium, BAM! You get water retention and also increase your chances of getting high blood pressure.
In the past, my favourite combination was Cold Cut Combo with Egg Mayo and Bacon. I obviously blew my meal and sodium limit in one sitting! As a general rule, processed meats such as ham, cold cuts and bacon contain the highest amounts of sodium.
*These values are based on the combination of wheat bread, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, green peppers, pickles and olives.
2. Bread matters.
I’ve said this before – I love wraps! But not all wraps are created equal. The wholemeal wrap I always purchase, for example, contains just 134 calories, 23g carbs and 198mg sodium. Subway offers wraps too, amongst breads. Surprisingly though, each Subway wrap packs an astounding 309 calories, 51g carbs and 606mg sodium. Also, at 7.8g fat (versus the other breads, all of which contain less than 3g fat) I’m not so sure it’s a good choice. And nope, they aren’t wholemeal. In my drunken days I had thought that Subway wraps were a better choice than breads, as wraps are most often associated with salad bars and healthy eating places… imagine my horror when I looked it up on the nutrition chart!
When it comes to sliced bread, I used to eat nothing but white. My current favourite is wholemeal because I feel it tastes much better than white and keeps me feeling fuller for longer. When I dine at Subway, I am inclined to pick wheat, which contains 190 calories, 32g carbs and 281mg sodium. That way I get to enjoy my carbs without a whole truckload of additional “baggage” the other breads contain. If you’re wondering about the taste… well, honestly, Subway breads generally taste the same to me!
3. Vege out and get dressed!
So you’ve picked your sub. Now choose your veggies and dressing! My usual choices are tomatoes, cucumber and lettuce (iceberg lettuce has very little nutritional value, by the way). I like green pepper, too, but I feel bloated after eating it so I skip it most days. I wish Subway had a wider variety of greens! Did you know that you can ask for more vegetables on your sub without having to pay extra? One of the worst things you can do is not eat any veggies – fibre is so important and you should seize every opportunity to add fibre to your diet.
I used to dress my sub in only mayonnaise. After I embarked on my diet change, I realised that I don’t like mayonnaise that much anymore. In fact, after the diet change I stopped craving many types of food. If you add mayonnaise to your sub, you’re really adding 108 calories, 12g fat and 82mg sodium. If you love mayonnaise and simply have to have it, try asking for less. Many weeks ago, I asked for mustard on my sub, and it turned out so salty, I had trouble finishing. True enough, each serving of mustard contains 115mg of sodium. I am now happier to eat my subs and salads without dressing – that way I truly appreciate the flavour of my food!
Sometimes I see people ordering double or triple sauce on their subs and I can’t help but wonder why they need so much flavour on theirs and if they can even recognise what’s underneath that drenched pile of mess they’re eating.
4. Pick the right kind of drink.
I feel very strongly about sodas, especially diet sodas, as I had recently found out how harmful these drinks are. If you haven’t already read my article on 5 reasons to quit Diet Coke, you totally should! I think I said enough in there to make people who care about their health want to stop drinking soda.
When I visit Subway, I order only bottled water. It costs more, but hey, water is so good for you! Or you could bring your own water and drink it separately after you leave the restaurant. I refuse to drink anything else at Subway. I try not to drink my calories because I can then spend those calories on nutritious food. Just imagine, if you go for regular Coke in a 16oz cup, you are basically packing on an extra 200 calories! That’s a Subway cookie’s worth by the way.
If you love soda and cannot live without it, you could go for a smaller cup. After all, you should be watching your portions! :) For the record, this rule applies not only to Subway, but everywhere else we dine.
5. Get your just desserts!
There were the good ol’ days when Subway sold heavenly brownies. Now they have baked bars instead (which don’t taste too bad), and the usual large cookies which are so good (I swear they used to be better!). Those who prefer a savoury snack may pick up a small bag of chips; the health-conscious may prefer a small tub of yoghurt (even when it comes to yoghurt, which is generally perceived as a healthy food, you’ve got to choose carefully – but that’s a topic I’ll leave for another day). I don’t adore chips and have never chosen that as my side at Subway. I have a strong sweet tooth!
As mentioned in point #4 above, each Subway cookie costs around 200 calories. Imagine me downing a 6″ sub, a 16oz Diet Coke (sodium galore!), and a couple of cookies (hello, old diet). Depending on the sub I choose, one meal can easily meet (and maybe even bust) my entire day’s caloric budget.
One of the many things I’ve learnt from my diet change is that you don’t need to eat everything at one go. Dessert can be eaten a few hours later as a snack. Right now, at around 400 calories, 2 cookies contain more than one meal’s worth of calories for me. Instead of having 2 cookies, I consume just one. And I eat it only 3 hours later, at snack time. On most days though, I don’t even buy the cookies because I have too many awesome snacks to turn to! As I said earlier, I visit Subway at least once a week. Over the past 12 weeks, I only had… guess how many cookies? One! I used to treat Subway sides as somewhat obligatory; now I only buy them when I have a craving.
I hope you liked 5 weight loss mistakes you’re making at Subway! Now that I’ve said my piece, it’s your turn to share – what are your Subway habits, and do you intend to change them? :)
Copy and paste from: http://www.jadeisabelle.com/2012/10/10/weight-loss-mistakes-youre-making-at-subway/
