Eating at Social events

knharris2013

Just started my journey to getting healthy (ok, started again for the 100th time is more like it). This time around, I am determined to make meaningful, longterm changes.
This weekend was busy with social events and I found it to be a major challenge to eat well.
I am looking for suggestions and tips on this topic please!

vespiquenn

Personally, because social events aren't as common for me (except bar outings), I try to log them as best as I can and move on.

However, things like limiting intake can help such as if there's food, only have one serving. No grazing or seconds. Alcohol limit to one or two drinks. So on and so forth.

Some people find success in banking calories. For example, shaving off 100 calories from your weekday calories and saving them for the weekend allows you to splurge while staying within your calorie goal.

jayeless

Usually I just have a social meal here and there, rather than a whole weekend of being out and about with people, so it's possible my ideas are harder to apply in that situation. However, there are three main things I do to try to cater to social eating:

1. Exercise more and "bank calories" in advance of these events. I don't starve myself on the days I'm banking, though (MFP put me on 1200 calories so I have to eat some back!!). I eat enough to feel satiated and "bank" the rest.
2. Moderate alcohol consumption. Where I'd previously be happy to have 2 or 3 servings of alcohol, now I usually stick to 1.
3. Moderate food consumption. Like if I'm trying a few different dishes (my family likes to order a bunch of stuff and everyone tries whatever they fancy), I might try to estimate about 50g of each. If you're not a shorty like me stuck on 1200 calories, you could have more I also don't "waste" calories on stuff I don't really like or want, so I don't feel obliged to try everything.

Then at the end of the evening, I log. Usually I haven't broken the bank, which makes me happy. Sometimes I have, but I just shrug it off, and maybe do a little extra exercise the next day. Going over by a little bit, occasionally, won't make a huge difference.

ahoy_m8

Social events are a challenge for me, too. I like to pre-log, so any unknowns make that difficult. Here's what I do:

dinner parties/restaurant dinners - I reserve 500 cal for dinner + 2 glasses wine. Log as accurately as I can when I get home. Trim calories the next day to the extent I exceeded 500 calories. My TDEE is 1750, and I cut on 1500, so 500 is 33% of daily calories... a big dinner for me.

cocktail parties/happy hours - I eat before I go, preferably a meal but at least carrots & celery so I'm not famished after a glass of wine. My experience is cocktail food isn't that great. Even when it looks exquisite, the taste is ho hum. Personally, I won't be satisfied on a bunch of tiny bites. Better to use the calories on a real meal. I just don't eat any of it and enjoy the company instead. And I drink 1 or 2 glasses of wine, depending on what I pre-logged for the week.

receptions/meetings/book club - I pass on all food offered at non meal times. E.g. that coffee cake sitting out at a meeting or cheese and crackers at book club. Once you get used to ignoring that stuff, it's really not hard to decline.

I do bank calories for wine on weekends, as vespiquenn describes above..

rosnz

Yes - we can be silly can't we.There was a birthday at work today so a large chocolate cake. it wasn't a time I would normally have thought of eating, let alone cake but everyone was having a slice so I was tempted. Wasn't a huge slice but to be honest it wasn't even a particularly nice cake and I was left thinking " why on earth did I do that" in hindsight I could quite easily have just ignored it!

kristen6350

You really just have to plan ahead. Either bank calories from another day in the week, eat less early the day of or plan what you'll eat and eat only that. Also moderate booze.

Just because it's a birthday party, doesn't mean you have to eat a huge piece of cake, just get a small one. Just because someone is having a party at a bar, doesn't mean you have to get drunk. Just have 1 or 2 that fits into your calorie allotment.

Figure out what is "wasted" calories and cut that out. Figure out what you can't live without and work that in.

mccraee

Dinners are hard if everyone is sitting around a table then I feel like I have to eat. But, I would try to keep it reasonable. In a restaurant I would try to order smartly.

At cocktail kind of parties, I grab a drink and nurse it along for the 1-2 hours max that I'm there. I just don't eat the food. I tell myself that this kind of event is social or networking, not for refueling my body.

Potlucks are hard. Try to take something smart. Pick one or two things.

Focus on seeing people and visiting and not getting your thrills from eating

cwolfman13

If I have a social event...bbq, dinner party, etc I generally eat a bit lighter during the day...then I go and enjoy the company of good friends.