If you’re determined to eat healthier in your life, you’re likely going to be spending a lot more of your time at home cooking your own meals. However, every meal you eat for the rest of your life can’t just be made and enjoyed at home. Because of this, it’s important for you to know how to keep to your healthy lifestyle, even if you’re eating at someone else’s home, enjoying a meal at a restaurant, or going to a cafe warrnambool eatery and having a coffee date (with cake).

To help you learn how this can be done, whether you’re just trying to improve your overall health or needing to stick to a certain diet for medical reasons, here are three tips for eating healthy when going out.

Stick With Just Water

When eating out, it’s easy to want to indulge in all the wrong ways. So to help ensure that the things you’re indulging in are actually worth it, Helen West, a contributor to Healthline.com, recommends that you replace any soda or alcohol you would have normally ordered with just water. Those other drinks are filled with sugar and calories, which can very quickly start to add up and knock you way off course.

Additionally, by drinking some water before you even start eating your meal, you’ll be able to tell if your hunger pangs are really from being hungry or just from feeling a little dehydrated.

Pick A Meal With Fruits And Veggies

For many people, the bulk of their meals are made up of carbohydrates. While you need carbohydrates for energy, it’s important that you’re also able to balance out your meals with the vital fruits and vegetables that your body also needs. To ensure you’re getting something from all parts of the food pyramid, ChooseMyPlate.gov recommends that you pick a meal to order that has fruits or vegetables incorporated into it. Some of the most popular options could include things like stir-fry, kabobs, or something off the vegetarian menu.

By choosing a meal that inherently comes with produce in it, you’ll be eating a balanced meal that will be good for your body rather than merely tasting good at the time.

Make Substitutions, Additions, Or Omissions

When you’re looking at the menu at a restaurant, there’s no need for you to feel boxed into ordering your meals exactly as they’re laid out in front of you. Especially if you have a waiter assisting you, Barbara Gordon, a contributor to EatRight.org, shares that you can ask for all types of substitutions, additions, or omissions to your meal.

Additionally, you can and should also ask how a dish is prepared if you’re worried about things like too much salt or the style in which something is cooked.

If you want to have a healthy diet but also want to enjoy yourself by eating out occasionally, use the tips mentioned above to help you accomplish both goals simultaneously.