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No. 9: The Cheesecake Factory - Reese's Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake Cheesecake
-Sat. Fat: 43 g
-Sugar: 21 tsp.
You can't finish a meal at The Cheesecake Factory without a slice of their famous dessert -- but you probably could do without the extra 1,500 calories it'll add to what surely was not a light meal in the first place. If you're one of those "I can eat whatever I want, I just exercise," types, you'll need to engage in 4.5 hours of calorie-busting aerobics to burn off that slice, according to the Center for Science in the Public Interest.
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No. 8: Chevys - Super Cinco Combo
-Sat. Fat: 36 g
-Sodium: 3,950 mg
This meal comes with a beef enchilada, a chicken enchilada, a crispy or soft beef taco, a hand-rolled pork tamale and a chile relleno -- and don't forget your sides of Mexican rice, sweet corn tamalito and a choice of homemade beans a la charra, refried beans with bacon (the obvious choice) or black beans. And since everyone feels like participating in a heart-pumping activity after gorging on Mexican, it's worth noting that you'll only need 3.5 hours of playing tennis to burn off these calories.
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No. 7: BJ's Restaurant & Brewhouse - Small Deep Dish Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza
-Sat. Fat: 30 g
-Sodium: 4,680 mg
At nine inches, this deep-dish pie might be smaller than your typical pizza, but CSPI says that it's the caloric equivalent of eating three Pizza Hut personal pan pepperoni pizzas. You would need to bike nonstop for 5.5 hours to burn off this pie.
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No. 6: The Cheesecake Factory - Farfalle with Chicken and Roasted Garlic
-Sat. Fat: 63 g
-Sodium: 1,370 mg
Bow-tie pasta, chicken, mushrooms, tomato, pancetta, peas and carmelized onions -- that meal doesn't sound incredibly unhealthy, right? Add a garlic-parmesan cream sauce to the mix, and you've suddenly got a fat bomb on your hands. This pasta dish packs three times the recommended daily intake for fat.
To set the calorie counter back to zero, you'd need to fit in an after-dinner jog ... for about five hours.
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No. 5: Maggiano's Little Italy - Prime New York Steak Contadina Style
-Sat. Fat: 66 g
-Sodium: 5,260 mg
Let's talk in a language any American can understand: McDonald's menu items. This meal from Maggiano's is equivalent to nine McDonald's quarter pounder beef patties, plus one cheeseburger. You'd have to hop on the rowing bike for seven hours to get your pre-steak body back.
When you're sitting down to a meal at one of America's classic chain restaurant establishments, you're probably not looking to skimp on calories. After all, restaurants like The Cheesecake Factory aren't known for hosting Weight Watchers meetings. But do you know just how bad for you a single meal is?
The Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit organization focused on being "the voice of the American public on nutrition, food safety, health and other issues," wants you to take notice. They put together the "winners" of this year's Xtreme Eating awards based on calories, saturated fat, added sugar and sodium. Here, the nine most unhealthy chain-restaurant meals in America.
The Center for Science in the Public Interest, a nonprofit organization focused on being "the voice of the American public on nutrition, food safety, health and other issues," wants you to take notice. They put together the "winners" of this year's Xtreme Eating awards based on calories, saturated fat, added sugar and sodium. Here, the nine most unhealthy chain-restaurant meals in America.
