Domino’s Pizza
You can actually have two pieces of pizza if you order correctly. Ask for the thin crust with a few veggie toppings and you can stay under 300 calories. Just don’t stray. The calories increase quickly with the crust and the toppings. So don’t ask for sausage and pepperoni. Those two add-ons will increase your calories by more than 30 percent. I’d rather add a glass of wine or a salad.
Either as an alternative or in addition to your pizza, you might consider a garden salad with light Italian dressing for 100 calories. If you add grilled chicken, you can stay under 200 calories, but you will increase your sodium intake. As you may have noticed, the chicken at most fast food chains contains a lot of sodium. Be careful with the dressings. The light Italian has 20 calories per serving while regular Italian has 220. ( Nutritional source: Domino's Pizza )
Pizza Hut
Like many other chains, Pizza Hut is pushing a healthier message. If you order the Fit ’N Delicious pizza (real name not an endorsement) with a few veggie toppings, you can have two slices for approximately 300 calories.
If pizza isn’t your thing, but you are at a Pizza Hut with friends or a sports team, you can also choose a pasta dish. I recommend the spaghetti with Marinara sauce. Coming in at just under 500 calories, it does have 1,000 milligrams of sodium, but has a very low fat count at 1.5 grams. This is also one of the largest dishes with over 600 grams of food. That’s equal to six slices of the Fit ’N Delicious pizza. Now that’s food weight, not calories, so don’t get carried away. (Nutritional source: Pizza Hut)
Taco Bell
As with most Mexican food, you can add up calories quickly with tortillas, beans, and fried tortillas as shells. I recommend sticking to the Crunchy Taco Supreme. You can have two for 400 calories.
If you must have a burrito, the Burrito Supreme and the Fiesta Burrito are safe. Keep in mind the Burrito Supreme is 25 percent bigger for the similar calories. Whether you get chicken, beef, or steak, you will stay within a 40-calorie range. (Nutritional source: Taco Bell)
Baja Fresh
Too bad fresh doesn’t means less calories. Baja Fresh has some of the highest calorie counts I found. They also have larger portion sizes, but unless you are going to split a 950-calorie burrito or even a 1,400-calorie chicken cheese quesadilla, you have limited options.
It’s best to stick to any of their soft tacos—Americano, Baja, and Original all have between 220 and 250 calories apiece. Two are filling and are made with no lard or MSG and are never frozen.
Lastly, remember those complimentary chips thrown in the bag have calories too—approximately 200 in fact. (Nutritional source: Baja Fresh )
The key to making any food choices work is being realistic. As much as we would like to eat organic, cook all our meals at home, and sit down at a table to enjoy this wonderful food, we won’t. So second to a perfect world is to be a little wiser. I hope this information helps you make better choices the next time you must run through the drive thru. I know I will be going to an In-N-Out burger soon—just can’t seem to drive by that one.
