Lunch at Olive Garden

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jen1229 Posted: Tue, Jul 28 2009 9:58 AM

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I went to Olive Garden yesterday with a friend who was visiting from Ohio.  I had the best lunch and very Weight Watcher Friendly.  The dish is called Chicken Speidini and is only 460 Calories.  The meal itslef consists of a grilled chicken kabob (nice large chunks of chicken) with a pesto zuchini and roasted red potato.  Complete with bread stick, salad and diet coke the whole meal was only 14 points on WW.  It's nice to be able to go to a place like that and have a dish that is kind to people tryig to lose weight.  I got the nutrition information from their website, which makes it easier to plan ahead.

I still have 2 pounds to go to 50 pounds lost, but since June when I started tracking I have lost 15 inches mostly in my waist and abdomen.  Part of it may be redistribution.  Also, the problems I was having with my legs is nearly all cleared up.  They are nearly back to their original size (which was always extremely thin for my weiht, as are my arms and wrists).

Have a great day everyone.

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whalen replied on Tue, Jul 28 2009 1:52 PM

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Dear Jen,

Congratulations on almost 50 pounds!  That is a tremendous accomplishment.  And I'm glad you could enjoy lunch at Olive Gardens.  I (believe it or not) have never been to one but I see the commercials on TV and everything looks totally fattening with all the sauces, etc.

I am trying to stay on a healthy diet.  I am less disoriented now about retirement and although money is terribly tight (as it is for most people right now), things are getting easier.

I am going to try to follow your example!

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Spirit replied on Tue, Jul 28 2009 2:54 PM

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Jen:  The nutritional info restaurants post does make it much easier to eat out and still maintain a healthy diet.  Plus, your meal sounded delicious!

You really deserve a lot of credit for your weight loss.  Glad to hear your legs are better.

Spirit

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donw replied on Thu, Jul 30 2009 4:47 PM

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Okay, time for a quick poll.  Which restaurant do you prefer, Olive Garden or Red Lobster?

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Ron AKA replied on Thu, Jul 30 2009 7:13 PM

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donw:

Okay, time for a quick poll.  Which restaurant do you prefer, Olive Garden or Red Lobster?

That is a tough decision. It is a good thing that at least up here they build them side by side. We usually decide as we are pulling into the parking lot!

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Spirit replied on Thu, Jul 30 2009 8:19 PM

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I like Red Lobster.  Purchased at Harraseeket Wharf in South Freeport, Maine, fresh off the lobster boat and still kickin'.  Bring those bad boys home and have the water boiling.  Steamed right away in a pot with Old Bay seasoning and served with melted butter (or Smart Balance) and a slice of lemon to perk up the flavor.

Oh, wait...you mean the restaurant called Red Lobster!  Well, we don't have them in Maine.  Ironic, isn't it?

Olive Garden is nice, though. 

Spirit

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mrfino replied on Fri, Jul 31 2009 2:00 AM

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I've never been to a Red Lobster (but I've eaten lobster at Harraseeket Wharf!).  The Red Lobster in my town closed about 5 years ago.  In my few experiences with Olive Garden I have been underwhelmed. There isn't an Olive Garden nearby so it's generally not an option for our rare dining out. But I doubt I'd go there willingly in the future.

John

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donw replied on Fri, Jul 31 2009 9:07 AM

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Honestly, that was a trick question...they are the same company, just different branding.

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Spirit replied on Fri, Jul 31 2009 10:51 AM

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John:  I take it you didn't come to Maine for the soccer tournement this year.  Good thing.  Everything got rained out.   Five inches of rain on Friday afternoon.  St. John's Bazaar actually closed down for 3 hours for the first time in history and all the volunteers went home.  I was working in the Duck Pond game booth.  How prophetic!  The puddle in front of the booth was deeper than the wading pool the rubber duckies were floating in.  All in all, a truly miserable experience.  On the way home we passed lots of soccer families.  Wettest folks I ever saw.

Spirit

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mrfino replied on Fri, Jul 31 2009 5:07 PM

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Spirit:

No soccer tournament in Brunswick for us. My teenagers gave up soccer a couple of years ago and the youngest is just getting her feet wet with soccer (which I guess she could have done easily at the tournament this year!). One of my co-workers went to the Brunswick tournament with her son this year. She complained about the weather. It reminded me of the first time I brought one of my kids to that tournament, in 2002 I think. It rained so hard on the way there that we had trouble seeing the road to find the motel. I look back on that as an adventure but my co-worker doesn't yet have the benefit of the passage of time to appreciate fully that she was spending "quality time" with her teenage son.

Too bad about the Bazaar. We had fun there a few years ago.

Here in Vermont today it's been pouring buckets all day, kind of wiping out a downtown festival going on (sort of) right outside my office.

John

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PumperB replied on Fri, Jul 31 2009 8:08 PM

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CONGRATULATIONS!! You are doing great! Now you need to go talk to some other diabetics that could benefit from your success!!

And thanks for the news about the Olive Garden meal!

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jen1229 replied on Fri, Jul 31 2009 11:10 PM

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Hi Everone:

I also post on the Diabetes support board at WW.  A lot of questions come up that I learned the answers to here. 

We don'thave Red Lobster here eithe, but they advertise on our local TV stations all the time. I went to the fish store last week and they had lobsters for 4.99 a pound.  I bought two and they cooked them for me.  Yumm.

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nance replied on Sun, Aug 2 2009 11:03 PM

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donw:

Honestly, that was a trick question...they are the same company, just different branding.

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jen1229 replied on Mon, Aug 3 2009 4:25 PM

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Don:

They may be the sam company but they don't serve the same food.  I wish we had one here. I'm sick of watching their commericials.  I decided today that I need to lay off shell fish.  I'm mildly allergic but I think I do react to them.  Anyway, I resisted buying lobster again today as they were still at the fish store for $4.99 a  pound.