Panera Bread

Bakery/Cafe type restaurants often have a reputation for being fresh and healthy, when in reality, not all of their items are going to be healthy options.

Sometimes people will go to cafes and get a salad, thinking they are making a healthy choice, but once you add typical nut/bacon/avocado toppings along with a signature dressing, some salads can end up being close to 1000 calories!  Flat bread sandwiches also have this kind of problem...they have the healthy reputation, but aren't always the best choice.

I like that Panera has a pdf document available on their website with a full nutritional analysis of all the menu items! If you scan through the pdf, you can pick out some of the lower calorie options such as the new Lentil Quinoa Broth Bowl that I chose to get! It really hit the spot on the rainy day that I went! Although it came in at 410 calories, the sodium was way too high (1,390 mg...ekk). 

When it comes to sodium, the general rule of thumb is to stay under 2,000 mg for an entire day. Very hard to do if you eat out often! Since salt enhances taste, it is not surprising that most restaurants have high sodium items.

There is no need to obsess over the EXACT amount of nutrients you are getting during a particular meal. Just be mindful of what you are eating and I guarantee you it will all balance out!