How to stick to your diet when you’re at a social gathering
It’s possible that your social circle is keeping you fat. You are permitted to be fussy with your nutrition especially if you are working towards a goal. Social gatherings can be a vulnerable time for you to stick to your diet. So, what can you do?
Have a look at the menu beforehand if you can. Scan the menu and look out for lean proteins and vegetables, and stay away from fatty foods.
If you know you are having a gathering, meal plan ahead and prep to ensure you keep your fat intake to a minimum for the other meals in the day. This will give you some more scope at your outing to indulge, and yet ensure balanced nutrition. Similarly, stick to low carb meals in the day so you can split your calorie intake and allocate higher cals to the meal you will be consuming while you are out.
Keep the 80/20 principle in mind, should you want to appease a craving, do not resist. You can go for something that is of high quality (is nutritious in some way) and know that two spoons for flavour can be as satisfying as having the whole thing.
Skip the appetisers and aim directly for main course items. This curbs the intake of unnecessarily calories from snacking. Avoid any gravy items if they seem dense, and in the last case scenario, pick out and eat only the protein in the dish. Proteins will ensure you are kept feeling full.
Stack all the food you want to eat in your plate at once, and do not go for a second serving. You may lose plot of how much you have eaten if you keep going in for servings. Rather, serve yourself food once so you are able to analyse the portions you should keep, and are visually able to assess a fair split between vegetables proteins and carbs.
Be mindful that indulging a little more than you planned to might be okay! Do not let this be a trigger that leads you to binging. If you need some moral support while you battle with some decisions, you can get your own personal Accountability Coach who can support you with strategies to stay disciplined and enforce your sense of purpose in the goal you seek.
