Calories on the Menu

As a personal trainer, I always tell people up front that I am an exercise specialist. Not a nutritionist. That being said, it is my job to be a motivator and provide accountability to my clients. And sometimes their biggest struggle is with food. We burn a ton of calories in our workouts, but if they're not matching that with a caloric cut-back, they may not get the results they want. Unfortunately eating is 60% of weight loss.

So for my serious clients we do a food log. That's right. They write down EVERYTHING that goes in their mouth and I give them a calorie counting book to find the caloric values of the things they eat. They hate it. But it makes them very aware of what they eat.

The main problem we've had with these food logs is that my "Biggest Loser Complete Calorie Counter" isn't so complete. It doesn't have all foods. Mainly it doesn't have restaurant foods. Or at least not the restaurant foods that these clients are choosing to eat.

But a new law may change all that. At least in California and New York. Old Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed a legislation requiring chain restaurants that have more than 15 outlets to post calorie counts for each item on their menus and menu boards.
New York restaurants are required to post a full health disclosure (calories, fat, sodium) on their menus.

It will be interesting to see if this changes consumers' choices. What will we choose when we realize that the Burger King Triple Whopper with cheese, fries, and a coke has 2,200 calories and 115 grams of fat?

Or how about when we notice that a large order of fries and a cheeseburger at McDonald’s has fewer calories than a blueberry muffin and a venti mocha Frappucino at Starbucks. Will we still choose the 1,010 calorie chicken caesar salad at Chili's over the 510 calorie chicken caesar salad at Panera?

Hmmm...what do you think? Would a nationwide law like this change the diets of Americans?

It would certainly make our food logs a little easier.