You might think that it's not possible to maintain a healthy diet when you eat out at restaurants. In many cases, you would be correct. It is, however, quite possible to stick to a healthy diet while occasionally enjoying a restaurant meal. It's all about making good food choices, which starts with learning about the nutrition you need to stay happy, physically healthy, mentally stable, and active.

When you pick up the menu, start by skipping over the drinks section. Although you may be tempted to enjoy a beer or mixed beverage with your dinner, these usually have many empty calories, which is not good for your body. Red wine is an exception to this rule, and may actually help prevent heart disease. Try to have only a single glass.

Also skip over the appetizer menu, unless it's a side salad. The appetizers at restaurants are usually high-fat foods that are not meant to fill you up and can in fact make you crave even more high fat foods. Examples of these are mozzarella sticks, potato skins, and wings. Rather just have a main course, or share a single serving with a couple of other people.

When choosing your main dish, it is of course important that you look at the ingredients of the dish. Avoid anything with fatty meats or cream-based sauces, and don't order the onion rings, fries or baked potato. Rather order a side dish of vegetables, or ask for the main course alone.

Portion size is also important. When possible, order from the lunch menu. Ask for a doggie bag at the beginning of the meal. To avoid being tempted to eat the whole main course, split it in two and bag one half.

After the meal, skip dessert. If you're really tempted, share a dessert with the whole table, or split the portion in half. Many fancy desserts in restaurants have more calories than your entire meal, so keep this in mind before you flag down the waitress to put in an order! Of course, on special occasions, it's alright to cheat a little, but overall healthy eating requires lots of resisting temptation around you.