Now I don’t consider myself a fussy or even careful eater, but I always felt that there are places I should or should not eat at simply because I would feel just bad after a meal there. This is especially the case in the US whenever I go there on business trips. I always used to return to Singapore feeling ill and bloated, inevitably dieting for almost a week to clear my system. Given that the frequency of my travel to the US can sometimes be up to 20 times a year, this is not a trivial problem.
Its been four years since I started travelling there so extensively, and obviously I have tried various ways to work around this problem from not eating (doesn’t work….I end up babbling in business meetings) to eating smaller portions (didn’t seem to work either….still felt sick as a dog on my return). Its a given that I have to eat out whenever I travel and inspite of what some of you may be thinking, I am fortunate enough to be able to afford not having to visit McDonalds or Pizzahut for every meal. Obviously a fast food diet for a week is an inevitable recipe for disaster (see “Upsize Me” for more details!). That said, I can’t afford to eat at Per Se or the French Laundry every meal either. So its somewhere in between.
I’ve been looking this issue up and this site actually has some great analysis of what NOT to eat in the US (http://www.menshealth.com/eatthis/16-Restaurant-Industry-Secrets/index.php). I can subscribe to most of the stuff there, but more importantly, I figured out what could be my problem. Checking the calorie and fat listings for drinks, I realized that this could have been the source of my problem. And not the alcoholic drinks either. Have you ever been in a meeting and been asked if you want a coffee from the Starbucks downstairs? I get that at every meeting I attend. Averaging 3-4 meetings a day, thats 3-4 high calorie, high fat Lattes a day. Multiplied by 5 days and I start to see a crack of daylight. Basically, I can starve myself during meals, but I have to be careful of the drinks in between too. Man, life is hard. Anyway, will try this on my next visit and see how it goes. Wish me luck!
Tong Hsien-Hui
Some Meowsings...... 