What to order at McDonald’s if you’re trying to keep weight off: the expert

Fast food with a side of fitness.

A UK health expert claims you can indulge in gluttony of golden arches without completely ruining your diet.

Celebrity fat loss trainer Rosi May took to Instagram to share simple swaps to make your McDonald’s order more of a happy health meal. Better yet, we can’t talk about a bed of greens or a grilled chicken breast.

May says, “This is how you lose weight eating McDonald’s and don’t worry, I’m not about to tell you to swap your burger for a salad because nobody’s going to Maccies for a salad.”

She explains that in order to lose weight, the body must be in a calorie deficit, which means burning more calories than you consume. In this sense, the goal should not be deprivation, but careful calorie counting. She asserts, “Weight loss isn’t about cutting out everything you love.”

May claims that by following her fast food advice, you can save yourself over 500 calories per order and pave the way for weight loss.

“500 calories a week adds up to 1 pound. If you do that every week, that’s 52 pounds a year.”

Number one meal getting better? A quarter pound double with cheese, large fries and a large Coke contains 1,385 calories, which for most people is right around the recommended daily limit for calorie intake.

May suggests the easiest switch is to swap that large Coke for Coke Zero or a Diet Coke that saves 212 calories. That doesn’t mean Coke Zero or Diet Coke are a healthy choice, as both contain aspartame, which a 2022 French study linked to an increased risk of stroke.e.

May reduced her large fry, which contains about 444 calls, to a medium one, which comes to 337, thus saving herself over 100 calories.

Finally, she swapped out the double cheese Quarter Pounder for a standard double cheeseburger, saving an average of 200 calories while maintaining double the patty’s satisfaction.

May explains, “All in all, this will save you over 500 calories, and you can still eat a double cheeseburger, fries, and a drink. But it doesn’t get all your calories for the day.”

May concludes by telling her followers that weight loss doesn’t mean deprivation or relapse, “You can still enjoy things like McDonald’s while on a weight loss journey. But it doesn’t have to be boring. You just have to get smart with it.”

Her advice is echoed by registered dietitian, freelance writer, food consultant and sustainable food blogger Kelsey Kunik, who admits she also patronizes Mickey D’s, “In the world we live in, many of us are incredibly busy and more than likely you’ll find yourself out and about hungry. So while I don’t recommend eating McDonald’s every day, it can absolutely be part of an overall healthy diet.”