Why I Hate Combining Buffets and WW

So today my husband had the day off and decided he'd really like to go to Hometown Buffet for lunch.  I slept through breakfast so I figured what the heck, I have plenty of points and I've done this before so I can make it work.  Now, like a good girl I started with a salad, lots of lettuce, peas, mushrooms and broccoli on top, just a teeny bit of egg and NO CROUTONS!  That's right, I went for the bacon bits and left my buttery, garlicky crunchy yumminess off and guess what...I didn't miss them at all.  I had light ranch and all was good.  Onto the actual food!

If you have been to a buffet recently then you'll understand this next part....their healthy selections are on the sucky side.  Sure they have green beans....swimming in a vat of buttery water (not to mention they are cooked until almost mushy and are usually an unnatural shade of brown green), baby carrots (I do actually eat those but we all know they aren't a FREE veggie) and today a very soggy assortment of zucchini and squash.  How do I handle this?  Does it get the better of me???? NO WAY BUFFET!  I ate the following...

• 1/4c mac n cheese
• 1 fish stick (more the size of a chicken strip)
• 1/2c white rice
• 1/2c orange chicken (not the healthiest but its actually quite good)
• 4oz of lemon pepper baked white fish...super yummy!
• baby carrots
• salad!!!!!!!!!!!!
• 1/3c of chocolate pudding for dessert

So, as you can see I 'sampled' my way around instead of loading my plate like a glutton and snarfing down uncountable amounts of crap.  To be honest, I didn't even finish most of the servings I gave myself, a few bites here a few there and then onto something else.  All in all I used 18 points...not bad considering I let myself have a dessert and there was a bit of Chinese food in there.  Now fab but hey, its eating out at a BUFFET, its not going to be low points.

Now you are probably thinking...okay she sounds like she did okay so why does she hate it so much?  Well I'll tell you.  It's actually sort of a twisted and complicated emotion I have for buffets while doing WW.  I don't feel like I eat enough to justify the cost, then I feel guilty about wasting money and have to battle myself not to get another plate and load up just to make sure I eat my dollars worth.  Crazy right?  We eat out more than we should, I know this, but at least when I get a meal at one of our usual places (yes my lovelies, Wendy's is one of our usual places) I know the points up front and feel like the cost to fulfillment ratio is right. 

I am probably all alone out here feeling that way, and you may be feeling a little let down that I didn't have some awesome train wreck of a story...sorry if my title was misleading ;)  but I feel better having faced one of my fatty demons and come away with a little peek into how my 'fat girl brain' works.  I will not let myself eat more than I want just to feel better about the cost.  Buffets make me feel guilty about that.  Buffet, I think we need to break up.  The End.