Macro Options for Domino’s Pizza: My Pick 3 & Swaps
Ok… here we go… Domino’s Pizza
When you are in a calorie deficit or diet phase… nothing is really off-limits. That would be a personal rule if it is. Or maybe that is a dietary need of an intolerance or an allergy. But truly, nothing is off-limits. It is all about how you make something work within the numbers that your body needs.
It wholeheartedly is calories in versus calories out. You may remember this graphic from the blog Diet, Weight Loss, Fat Loss & Calorie Deficit. This truly is it. This is what it takes in order to lose weight. That doesn’t say in it that it has to be from whole foods or it has to be from convenient measures or supplements. The things that you may have to deal with when different measures are taken… lower energy, higher hunger, and maybe the rate of loss changes a little bit due to other hydration manipulation factors like sodium.
But this is really it… you can have Domino’s Pizza.
Here’s how I’ve made this work over the course of time and how I guide some of my clients to.
Pick 3 for Domino’s Pizza
So here’s the deal… You can have it but again it needs to fit. we each have our own calorie make up that we need to consume each day to match the expenditure we have. And like the graphic shows above…. if we want to be in a weight loss phase, we have to consume less than we are expending. And that is where this strategy comes in. How can we make food outside of the house work?
So let’s try this out… first I have gone through and chosen my pick three. There is no rhyme or reason to why I specifically chose these except for the fact that it sounds good to my tastebuds and it fits in the under 500 kcal framework that I want to put together for my pick three.
And why pick three? I guide my clients that I work with to pick out three different options from each place. You don’t want to go to a specific place and find out that for some reason you’re one option that works is not currently available and then you are left in a sense of urgency to just choose something else. Honestly, there’s nothing wrong with choosing something urgently that you think might work… but the more prepared you can be for different situations, the less that’s up to the uncertainty of it all.
Understanding some of the options & possible swaps!
Sometimes… it’s more about how can I change up what I truly want… You can swap things. you can ask for things to be removed. It really is your food your way…. At least most of the time.
Here are some other things that I’ve found as I’ve been making my way through some of the different websites that have already done write ups on Domino’s Pizza. Some of them had some really great tips on how to take certain menu items and make them even leaner. It’s not so much about making them less fat or less carbs…. it’s about making this smaller to allow you more from other things within your day. Think Tetris… this is making the blocks work better for you to be able to clear more lines for the day.
Crust
This is by far one of the most important factors when it came to choosing something within a certain calorie amount. Even the nutrition on the Domino’s website recommends different portion sizes for different crust. I would choose accordingly, but also to preference. If you hate thin crust, pizza, just go for a different type of pizza crust, and moderate your portion accordingly.
Toppings
- Cheese: Domino’s offers you the ability to choose light, regular or extra on their cheese and some other options. This does make a big difference too. For the cheese alone with no toppings on a small pizza, the calories for the entire cheese portion range from 560 cal to 730 cal. If you don’t mind having your cheese on the lighter side, this is a great place to be able to save some calories.
- Sauce & Dressing: this is an area that I recommend every client be wary of when they are wondering food because it is a place where we can find many calories that we did not expect. For a small size pizza, the sauce of robust tomato is 70 cal, barbecue is 130 cal, white garlic parmesan is 380 cal and marinara sauce is 80 cal. Then, if we take a look at the different dipping cups, they can range anywhere from 25 cal for the marinara sauce all the way to 250 cal for the garlic sauce or sweet icing.
- Toppings: the above recommendation for cheese does change, depending on the type of crust for the pizza, but the toppings can matter so much more. Toppings on a small pizza can range anywhere from 10 cal to 270 cal depending on what you choose. If you’re looking for options, look to vegetables or lean proteins to add. Even if this adds to your calorie count, it’s going to add to your volume, your fiber or your protein consumption. Basically, these things will help you feel a little bit more full with the choice that you’ve made.
There are many different ways to make it through ordering takeout when you have so many different options. But I’m going to recommend and I always do… Two things.
- Is this something that you actually like to eat? If not, don’t order it and just get what you enjoy and compensate elsewhere or moderate the amount. I have done this with heating up some batch prepped chicken to get more protein and calories that were leaner in a alongside of a slice of pan pizza. My chicken helped fill me up and the pizza was what I wanted. I had the best of both worlds..
- If this doesn’t fit your calorie allotment, are you OK with it right now and will you be OK with it later? It does not matter what you do in any situation if you are not OK with it either in the moment or later. If you’re not OK with some thing, honor yourself enough to just not do it. You don’t want it. Don’t do it. A lot of people will talk about self sabotage and they don’t understand why they did something in the moment. If you take a moment and assess everything before you go through with your actions, it can be a priceless moment. It’s the moment that you take that later lets you escape that crazy cycle of gu
Making it Work!
Finally… you may remember remember this from seeing it previously posted on my social media accounts, but if not here it is again.
Resource: Making It Work
This allows you a little bit more wiggle room than some of the options that I have provided above. Sometimes it’s nice to just be able to grab one or two things and know what those things are right off the bat. maybe you need to take your kids through the drive-through to feed them and you just want a small cup of chicken noodle soup… and now you can fit. Or maybe you truly just want hashbrowns because you want that crunchy potato flavor…. if you can make it fit, go right ahead!
