Weight Loss Plan... Stop Eating Out.

 According to a recent study people who eat out regularly consume an  extra 24,000 calories  yearly which translates into 6 to 7 pounds of weight gain yearly. Study co-author Lisa Powell, a professor of health policy and administration at the University of Illinois at Chicago, said " the researchers wanted to better understand the role of restaurant food in people's diets. "We know that parallel to the rising rates of obesity, Americans have been increasingly eating food away from home, and they now take in, on average, about 600 calories a day from restaurants. Interesting article.," Sadly, Americans rarely eat together anymore. In fact, the average American eats one in every five meals in her car, one in four Americans eats at least one fast food meal every single day, and the majority of American families report eating a single meal together less than five days a week. It’s a pity that so many Americans are missing out on what could be meaningful time with their loved ones, but it’s even more than that. Not eating together also has quantifiable negative effects both physically and psychologically" This is according to a fantastic article in  The Atlantic that you should read.

I think that a lot of social problems would start to clear up if as a nation we went back to having a family dinner. It is really quite satisfying to prepare a meal and have the satisfaction of knowing that no one is eating better than you because you made you exactly what you wanted. You did not have to go to a restaurant and micromanage your order. You've totally avoided the frustration of your meal being all wrong and having to pay for it anyway. Plus you'll save a bunch of money.