Step right up and get your fried food on a stick with a side of fat with it! I know what you are thinking, it is impossible to eat healthy where almost everything is deep-fried. Honestly the San Antonio Rodeo is not an easy place to be when you are on a diet or trying to eat healthfully. With such a variety of food options available, it is easy to overindulge. However, all these options allow you to balance your choices between high calorie and lower calorie foods and practice picking on them instead of pigging out. It is possible to indulge in the great food and not throw your diet down the drain completely. Generally, when you think of healthy food at the rodeo think of the 5 food groups. Anything with meat, vegetables and fruit is a really good choice. Below are a few tips to help you enjoy the rodeo while staying on track with your diet.
1. First of all, don’t skip meals before going to the rodeo. As you have heard many times before, if you starve yourself thinking you are “saving up” calories you will end up ravenous and overindulge when you finally eat. So eat small meals consisting of lean protein and healthy fat to help keep your metabolism going and keep you satisfied until your next meal.
2. Don’t deprive yourself of that special food you have been thinking about all year. The key is to prevent yourself from overindulging-limit yourself to one or two of your favorite foods that satisfy your cravings without ruining your health. As mentioned above, eat something throughout the day so you aren’t starving when you finally get the food you have been really wanting.
3. Use the buddy system. Share a serving of your favorite decadent goodie with a friend or two. Most servings are much larger than one person needs to be satisfied anyways. This way you get a taste of those items that are less healthy without over-doing it.
4. A great thing about the rodeo is that exercise is built in when you are walking around looking at all the exhibits or going on the rides. For extra activity, park at the back of the parking lot to help increase your walking distance. Also it wouldn’t hurt to hop on the treadmill and do a workout before going to the rodeo for the day.
5. Another advantage to rodeo food is that it is made in front of you. Therefore if you are getting a fruit smoothie for example and you don’t want sugar in it, then request it that way.
6. Feel like having something on a stick? Try roasted corn on the cob rather than a corndog. The corn on the cob has just 250 calories and zero grams of fat (not counting butter). A great choice instead of the 700 calorie corn dog with 35 to 40 grams of fat.
7. Have a pork loin sandwich for filling, high-quality protein instead of a burger or fried sandwich.
8. How about Dippin’ Dots, kettle corn, cotton candy, or a caramel apple. These run around 150 to 170 calories as opposed to fried candies or funnel cake which will run you close to 1,000 calories.
9. Drink plenty of water. It will keep you hydrated and is calorie free. If you do decide to have an adult beverage, choose light beers (shoot for MGD 64 or Michelob Ultra) instead of Margarita, which will run around 300 calories at least. Stagger your beers with water between each one.
10. If you are following a really strict diet I would recommend visiting the rodeos website or calling the rodeo sponsors and vendors. Most vendors will provide you with an ingredient list and additional nutrition facts upon request.
As you can see, it is not impossible to find healthy foods amongst all the temptation. Just look beyond all the deep fried options on the menu.