Lose The Weight, Not The Fun, Of Summer Cookouts

It's summertime!

And with it comes barbecues, picnics, celebrations, and FOOD TEMPTATIONS. If you are trying to lose weight, control your blood sugar, cut back on saturated fats for heart health, or make any other dietary changes to improve your well-being, this can spell failure or the idea of deprivation. So what is a person to do? Shut themselves inside and become a recluse? Well, that IS an option, but not one that would probably make you very happy!

Commit to doing things differently from now on. Parties, cookouts, and social events are going to be a part of the rest of your life. It is time to leave the "kid in a candy store" mentality behind. You can still enjoy parties without making your body pay the price.

Below are some tips for handling picnics/cookouts, parties, and other celebrations with greater ease (for your mind and body).

* The number one thing to do is go with a plan in mind. Stop pretending you do not know what your M. O. (pattern) is at such events. You have had that "V-8 moment" after overindulging at a party far too many times to fool yourself anymore. Think ahead and decide what your strategy is going to be as far as eating (and even drinking). Then, stick to it! You may not do everything you planned to at first, but do not let that be an excuse for giving up. Keep reviewing your attempts and challenges, and resolve to do a little better each time based on what you learned the previous time.

* Never go to a social event hungry, unless you are planning to have a MEAL there. You are just setting yourself up to overeat or eat junky food. The "saving-calories-for-later" strategy does not work well for SO many reasons. Eat before you go if you know there is going to be a lot of finger food. Have a balanced, healthy meal at home and maybe just plan to have a small dessert there.

* Do not eat anything unless it is on a plate and served all at once (that includes you fixing the plate). Picking at food here and there makes it difficult for you to process how much you have eaten. By the time your stomach feels the stretch and sends the signal to the brain to turn off the appetite, you have already overeaten.

* Drink water or Perrier (NOT soda water or flavored water) instead of alcohol, or at least have 1 or 2 glasses of water between alcoholic drinks. This will help counteract the dehydrating effects of alcohol, reduce unnecessary calories/sugar, and prevent you from becoming inebriated!

* Bring your own healthy dish to share-something you have discovered and thoroughly enjoy. This assures that you will have at least one thing you can eat there that will not sabotage your healthy eating efforts, and makes you look like a thoughtful guest (momma always told me to never be an empty-handed guest). You might even find people asking you for the recipe!

* Barbecues are often an overload of starches: bread/rolls/buns, potato salad, pasta salad, potato chips, baked beans, etc. Piling your plate with high-glycemic, low-nutrition carbs such as these can sabotage your best efforts at life-time weight loss unless you learn to be smart about them. Either choose to have only one of them, along with a meat and some greens, or a smaller serving of a few of them.

* Learn to dodge or deflect people's well-intentioned urges for you to eat. If someone asks you if you tried "such & such" yet, you can say "Yes, and it was great" or "No, I'm full right now" or try, "Oh, I can't eat that; it gives me gas" (if you are the type of person who is comfortable delivering a line like that). People will continue to offer you food (sometimes even being insistent about it, which is usually based on their own insecurities), but continue to hold your ground and repeat the same phrase again. (If you have a particularly hard time with this, I suggest you practice some phrases in the mirror until you get comfortable saying them and they will more easily roll off the tongue when you need them. Seriously; try it).

* Focus on the fun, not the food. Unless the invitation said, "Come to a food-tasting party," there is some other reason for the event. Keep your focus on that. Use your mouth for talking more than eating. Keep your hands occupied with a bottle or glass of water. Involve yourself in any activities available.

(Note: if you tend to eat because you are shy or nervous in social settings, there are many things you can do to learn to be more confident. I used to be shy, too. Hypnosis is one of several things that helped me to become the confident public speaker and leader I am today. If you would like to talk to me more about my transition from shy to outgoing, contact me via email or phone and I will be happy to discuss with you.

For additional help with establishing healthy habits during celebrations, purchase my hypnosis CD, "Healthy Parties, Holidays, and Vacations" for just $10, plus shipping and handling. More personalized hypnosis CDs made specifically for you and your challenge areas can also be ordered for an additional cost. Contact me for more details.

Lisa Smith is a Certified Master Hypnotherapist, Wellness Coach, and NeuroLinguistic Programming Practitioner in the Virginia Beach area. She is a sought-after speaker, workshop presenter, and group coaching facilitator for creating health and self-fulfillment.

Her private practice, Life by Design Coaching and Hypnotherapy, offers coaching, hypnosis, NLP, and other options for health and self-improvement. In her 11 years as a hypnotherapist, she has conducted over 8,000 hypnosis sessions with children and adults for weight loss, addictions; stress and anxiety; phobias; childbirth; surgery preparation, cancer, pain management, and other mind-body healing. Sessions can be conducted in person or by phone. Visit her website at http://www.hypnocoachlisa.com for contact and other information.
Copyright (c) Life by Design Coaching & Hypnotherapy. June 2007. All rights reserved.