Tips for Eating Healthy in Difficult Circumstances

Sometimes it can be hard to eat healthy because of circumstances that seem beyond our control. A friend asks us over for dinner, another friend takes us out for dinner, a family reunion crops up, all in the course of a couple days. If one isn't careful the pounds will quickly add on and we'll once again be planning to start or re-start a diet on another day. We can't control everything, but here's a few tips to consider.

1) If at a pot-luck reunion-type meal, choose among the healthiest options for the bulk of your meal. For example, load up on fresh fruits, raw vegetables (without the dip!) and other reasonable options for the as the base of your meal. Then garnish your plate with one or two-bite samples of the other delicacies that you might like to try. And if you're actually trying to lose weight, pretend it's like a one-trip salad bar--don't go back for seconds.

2) If you're at a friend's house you may have very little choice on the actual meal. But you can control the portion size. Let them know that the food looks delicious (if it does!) and that you can hardly wait to taste it (if that's true!), and then politely ask for the portion size that won't blow your diet out of the water. And if they still give you way too much, cut it down to size and then ask if they have a little take-home container so that you can eat the rest later. Hopefully they'll be impressed with your discipline and your appreciation for their meal.

3) If you're at a sit-down restaurant there will usually be a few reasonably healthy options to choose from. Try to avoid entrees with special sauces, toppings, spices or other dressings. That's often code language for "let's take a perfectly healthy food and turn it into dietary disaster!" Instead order your vegetables steamed without butter (relax...if you really must, you can ask for a little butter on the side for you to add to the vegetables sparingly on your own), your steak or fish grilled without butter (same scenario as the veggies) and your pasta with marinara rather than cream sauce. Salad dressings always on the side, preferably just oil and vinegar. And with restaurant portion sizes getting bigger, consider taking half of the meal home for lunch the next day.

We can't always eat perfectly (whatever that is!), and food and relationships are meant to be enjoyed, but not at the expense of our own health.