Eating Healthy at Sonic

Sonic might be an old-fashioned drive-in restaurant, but its portions are decidedly modern--large! It's a good thing that the servers are on skates--it'll help them burn off the calories. Resist oversize burgers, fried side dishes and the fruit-flavored drinks. As long as you know where to look, you can find a meal to fit your calorie budget.

• Many of the burgers contain trans fat, the worst kind of fat you can eat.
  
  
• Sandwiches are large and most contain more than 500 calories and 20-60 g of fat each. Smaller is definitely better, with your best option being the Jr. Burger (310 calories, 15 g fat, 0.5 g trans fat, 610 mg sodium).
  
  
• Omit extras like cheese (60 calories, 5 g fat) and bacon (70 calories, 5 g fat) to save calories and fat.
  
  
• Be a kid again to save calories. The Corn Dog (210 calories, 11 g fat, 530 mg sodium), Chicken Strips (200 calories, 11 g fat, 470 mg sodium) and String Cheese (80 calories, 5 g fat, 190 mg sodium) are kids' menu selections fit for any adult!
  
  
• Try the Grilled Chicken Salad (310 calories, 13 g fat, 1,070 mg sodium) or Santa Fe Chicken Salad (380 calories, 15 g fat, 1,180 mg sodium) with fat-free Golden Italian dressing if you want a meal rich in veggies.
  
  
• Not in the mood for beef? The Grilled Chicken Wrap has 380 calories, 11 g of fat and 1,440 mg of sodium.
  
  
• Skip frozen treats such as the Sonic Blasts, shakes, malts, Cream Slush Treats, and Cream Pie Shakes, which are high in calories and fat. Slushes are simply sugar and empty calories, too; choose the small if you want to indulge. The regular size (14 oz) Diet Coke or Diet Dr. Pepper float can be a reasonable treat for about 220 calories and 8 g of fat.
  
  
• The lowest-calorie ice cream choices are the Jr. Banana Split (180 calories, 3.5 g fat, 60 mg sodium) and Vanilla Cone (180 calories, 6 g fat, 80 mg sodium).
  
  
• Go elsewhere for breakfast, as there is no choices with fewer than 450 calories and 30 g of fat at this drive in.
  
  
• Sonic provides nutrition info on its website.