HELP Office Party Coming Up! What would you do?

SnifterPug

Personally I would bank some calories for the booze but not go to the party hungry. I'd then put some food on my plate that I don't like all that much and wander around with the plate without necessarily eating any or all of the food.

I'd steer clear of the beer (which I never drink now, anyway, as that was a huge culprit in my weight gain) and would drink something like gin and tonic or rum and coke. It's easy to alternate between alcoholic drinks and just Diet Coke/tonic so it looks like I'm drinking more than I might be.

That's because I don't actually adore work parties and wouldn't want to sabotage myself for the sake of one. If it was the party with friends that I am going to next week I would just have whatever I want and deal with the consequences afterwards. I find, now that I'm tracking and logging, that I am generally much more aware of what I'm eating/drinking and find I want less than I thought, even when I give myself free access to everything.

Have fun!

SuzySunshine99

In an enviornment like that, no one is really paying close attention to what you are eating and drinking, so I don't worry about being judged.

I always keep a drink in my hand at those parties....I'll have one adult beverage and then move on to water/soda.
The advantage to always having a drink in your hand is that it's harder to eat a lot, especially if you're moving around and socializing. I look over the food choices and pick out a few things that I really want and pass over the things that are ordinary.

swim777

Great advice here! I struggle with the social events, too, especially if I’mseriously cutting back. Tonight we have a fire pit party so luckily, it will just be lighter fare after dinner. I’m hoping to take my favorite large cup that keeps everything cold and sip on diet 7 up. I’ve walked my two miles and I’m planning to just have my regular lunch today skipping breakfast and snack. We are going out to eat a nice dinner before. So I am having something different that I like, and I should be full. (These are close friends so I can bring munchies to contribute and just enjoy my drink and company.). If I were further along with my efforts, I would have a small amount of something, but I’m really on a roll, and I’m trying to keep motivated.

richstyles

Quick Update: I survived! lol

The tips really came in handy. Drank a large protein shake (pure whey and milk) as a "pre-game". Alternated with alcohol and unsweetened tea. Made sure to load up on salad.

But most of all just enjoyed everyone's company.

Of course, I scanned the barcode on my beer and racked up some calories as the night progressed (that I walked off later) but all in all, everything worked out great. Had fun without any guilt or worries. Hopefully my scale will agree with me in the morning.

But if not, I'll just make up for it along the way.

MariaA1960

Glad you survived the party and not only that, enjoyed it.

I found the tips on this thread absolutely brilliant and shall be utilising them myself throughout the up and coming festive season.

I like the idea of always having a drink in hand (mine will be sparkling water with ice and a slice) so I can decline the offer of a drink politely, and using a small plate, and only putting on a couple of food items...again, people will see that I have food, and no-one is going to cajole me to go to the buffet.

Hopefully by the time the festive merry-go-round is underway, I will be a good few pounds lighter than I am today.

FireyChimera

I think that you are worried too much. Just go and enjoy yourself, live a little

amusedmonkey

The thing about dieting that we are inclined to either deprive ourselves or overcompensate. I usually bank calories for events and just enjoy the things I like the most and don't touch the things I like less. I'm less inclined to overcompensate because I have been managing my calories for a long time now, but there was a time when I had that fear of overeating way more than I can manage to balance out.

Earlier in my weight loss, I needed to remind myself that it only feels like a big deal because I'm dieting, but it actually isn't. To give myself a better perspective of what to expect and what to do, I used to ask myself "how did I eat at similar events when I wasn't dieting?". Sometimes the answer was surprising because things were within my calories and I didn't need to change anything or maybe just a few small tweaks. For example, when I go out with friends for pizza, it's less than 700 callories, which is how many calories my main meal had when I was dieting and I discovered the reason it felt more stressful initially was just that it was in a differnt setting away from my comfortable routine, and that feeling that I "shouldn't be doing this while dieting". It was all in my head.

For bigger events, the first time I decided to "just live a little" I ate way more than I would have when I wasn't dieting. When I reflected back after the event, it was eye opening. No, this wasn't how I usually eat at similar events. I usually do eat a lot, but it takes less food to make me happy and content than it did that evening. I was clearly overcompensating. It's okay to say no to things I don't want. I didn't have a problem saying "no" when I wasn't dieting, so why did I feel compelled to eat everything I was offered? Was I trying to hide the fact that I was dieting? Was I being too strict with my diet that I rebelled? For the next similar event, I tried to remember as well as I could how I ate before dieting. Then I calculated the approximate calories, and thought of a few tweaks to reduce the calories without changing my party routine too much. Got a diet drink instead of juice (no advice for managing alcohol calories since I rarely drink it) and ate only the things I liked the most in the smallest amount that made me happy - if the smallest amount that made me happy is still high calorie, so be it. I got 95% of the food enjoyment for 60% of the calories with just these two simple tweaks and that was a very memorable day.

After a good while it becomes much easier, so you have that to look forward to. Eating out or going to a party is not a big deal for me now, just a part of life. I just enjoy my time without thinking too much about it, and I don't do it daily, so it can easily be balanced out without stress or deprivation.

geraldaltman

It wasn't a party and what I did was a late decision. My exercise today exceed what I had for breakfast and I wound up having a full day's (plus) worth of calories remaining. So, I decided to take myself out to an early (pub approved 😉) dinner. Try as I might, my meal, drinks (and a couple more at home) and rich dessert didn't even come close to using them up.