Fast Food Options That Will Keep You Looking Fierce…

Either your boyfriend dragged you out to Jack in the Box, it’s 2am, you just left the club and you are starving, you have a 30 minute lunch break with nothing but drive-thru’s in a 15 minute radius, the thought of cooking is exhausting in itself, or you have a $20 bill in your pocket with no more wiggle room in your spending budget.

Although I don’t exactly condone fast food, I understand shit happens. So when we are faced with a crises (yes, we can call fast food that) and we may die if we don’t eat, the best thing to do is handle the situation as wisely as you can. Thankfully, most fast food joints have healthier (I didn’t say health-Y I said ier) options . And each ‘better choice’ has its own special modifications to feed your body as close to what it deserves as possible.

The first one that comes to mind is something I admit to eating recently. We were on tour and had a show in an hour with only a Chick-Fil-A in sight and an Uber full of hungry men . I had to get some food in my body to have enough energy to sustain throughout the show, so I put on my healthy hat and selected me best option: Grilled Market Salad without granola, blue cheese or dressing. But keep in mind, the chicken is not what we all thought it was.

After doing my research, I found out that their “grilled chicken” is really a combination of: water, apple cider vinegar, soybean oil,yeast extract, salt, modified corn starch, palm oil, dehydrated garlic, dehydratedonion, corn maltodextrin, sea salt, flavor, sugar, chicken stock, cane molasses, chicken fat, spice, natural flavor [including smoke], chicken meat,dextrose, lemon peel, citric acid, red bell pepper, orange juice concentrate,grape juice concentrate, natural flavor, paprika, vinegar, xanthan gum, ascorbic acid, and spices.

So in reality, I should have asked for no chicken, but we live and we learn and do the best with what we have .Luckily, we all have smart phones and the world of information at the touch of our fingers, so my best recommendation is look up the ingredients in what you are eating before stuffing your face . With that being said… here are some more health-IER options at a drive thru near you.

1.  Jackin the box : Southwest Chicken Salad with grilled chicken, no cheese and no dressing.

2.  McDonalds : Southwest Chicken Salad with no cheese, tortilla strips or dressing. They also serve apple slices and ‘cuties’for a sweet and healthy desert or snack.

3.  Wendy’s : Asian Cashew Chicken Salad with no dressing.

4.  TacoBell : Fiesta Taco Salad with chicken, no cheese, no tortilla strips, and substitute guacamole for sour cream. For lower carb, substitute extra lettuce for rice. Oh, and don’teat the bowl!

5.  KFC: Grilled chicken breast with a side of green beans and/or corn on the cob. Toss the biscuit.

6.  In–N-Out: Your best bet is a hamburger protein style without spread. No fries or Shake! Although red meat is arguably not the healthiest for you,their beef is 100% pure, unlike a lot of the other restaurants. 

7.  Carl’s Jr: Original grilled chicken salad, no croutons or dressing.

But if you MUST have liquid sugar on it…oh, I mean dressing, use it as sparsely as possible.Think salad, not soup. Enjoy!

– Elana Kluner