1) Have a Plan
Before you step out the door to go to that party, develop a plan for how you want to eat and drink at the party. How many hors-d'oeuvres will you eat? If it's a dinner, will you have any bread with your meal? How will you handle desert? How many drinks, beers, or glasses of wine will you enjoy? Plan to drink lots of sparkling water.
2) Visualize!
After you've made your plan, close your eyes and visualize yourself at the party following through on your plan. See yourself passing up on the bread or eating only half your desert. VISUALIZATION REALLY WORKS - TRY IT FOR YOURSELF AND SEE!
3) Pre-Party Snack
Don't show up at the party hungry. Have a small snack just before you head out the door. Make it something healthy like a hard-boiled egg, or a protein bar. Your self-discipline will be much stronger if you follow this advice.
4) How Do You Want to Feel?
On the way to the party, think about how you want to feel at the party, and how great you will feel in the morning looking back at how well you did at the party. Parties end, but the extra calories you take on like to hang around forever!
5) Enjoy Your Food
Once you're at the function, follow your plan, and most importantly, make sure you really savor the food you have carefully chosen to enjoy. It is so easy in a social setting (my experience) to dive into the food, and not really even taste it! A better plan is to enjoy your food and then go dive back into the interesting conversation.
6) The Morning After
Reflect on how well you stuck to your plan at the party. Pat yourself on the back for your successes, and analyze any slips you had, so you can do better next time. Nobody's perfect, but we can always learn from our experience.
7) Choose Your Events Wisely
If you are overwhelmed by the thought of the food pressure you know you will feel at a particular event, you can always choose to give that event a pass in favor of other opportunities. Be selective - your body will thank you for it!
Paul McIntosh
Lifeweight - Lose Weight and Keep It Off - For Life!
paul@lifeweight.ca
www.lifeweight.ca 905-541-1738 (c) 905-393-5275 (o)
