Basically all I do with my friends is eat

Wow, well you and your friends sound like legit foodies. Color me jealous!

Well, you may be tempted, just because you're used to having that kind of food. For potlucks you can bring "healthier" or more lower calorie items to share. Are you concerned with the idea of "dieting" for some reason? Would your friends not be supportive if you just made a choice to try to be a bit healthier (versus being on a "diet")? Would they have any interest in doing non-food related activities as a means to hang out?

You could also try eating before you go, so you're not so tempted. Or just plan on having a cheat meal, keep it reigned in, and then go workout extra to burn off the extra calories you've consumed. There are a lot of work arounds for this Good on you for trying to have a strategy!

sweet potato gnocci in a butter, maple, sage sauce

Why not just enjoy the food , log it and try to eat in moderation. The gnocci sounds incredible.

Bonding with friends over food is wonderful and there's nothing wrong with it. It's part of the community; what is more hospitable than sharing food with people we love? Food is nourishment and at its core is a joyous part of our lives. I have the same "problem", though, so I understand that you'd love to find a few other things to do and not just eat

Our solution has been board/card games! Board games are the best because they take up the whole table and we discourage eating around the game (so as not to smudge the boards or ruin the cards). We play LOOOOONG and involved games, like Arkham Horror, Cards Against Humanity (if you're in college this one is AMAZING and terrible haha), Apples to Apples, or Power Grid. There are so many great games out there that get your mind focused on something other than eating. Of course we have snacks here or there during game nights, but when the focus is on winning a game that can take hours to finish, we focus on that and eat a lot less! PM me if you want some game suggestions!

Maybe alternate beer and water on a night out or have a small drink instead of a regular one. Another one would be when you get together with friends you eat the food, but have water instead of the wine/beer or just get yourself a small glass and only refill when everyone else has finished their larger drinks. (Or you could do what I did filled my wine glass only half and topped up with water, keeping in mind that I didn't drink any worthwhile vintages)

Another thing would be to find low cal breakfasts and lunches that you can have on days when you know your evening will not be that virtuous :-)

One Sunday you could just make a big pot of veggie soup that you then freeze in portions for those days when the gnocci come along (and don't I fancy gnocci right now ... hmmm)

I think you got some great advice and ideas already. I just wanted to say that I totally know where you're coming from!

I definitely do a mix of the ideas suggested. I plan ahead to splurge when I attend a party or go out with friends. I'll adjust my day accordingly whenever possible, and it really has not been much of an issue. For me, the whole idea of "dieting" is so difficult to get my head around and I've never honestly been on a "diet" in my life, this is a lifestyle change and if my friends disapproved we would have a problem. However, that said I don't turn down cupcakes. I just have one, and may leave some on my plate...instead of the three I might have indulged in 5 years ago.

Sometimes it kind of freaks me out how much our modern culture is connected to food. I know human beings have always been into food as a social thing and obviously we need food as fuel for our bodies! BUT...I know people whose only entertainment source is food, particularly going to restaurants. That is kind of sad to me! There are families who instead of taking their kids out to play mini golf, bowl, ride bicycles...just take their kids to chain restaurants. :-(

Just gonna add my tuppence worth, though I think everyone else has pretty much covered it all!

I love love love my food too, so here's what I try to stick to:-

- have plenty salad/veg and smaller portion of the 'good stuff'
- don't deprive yourself - but keep logging as you go, I find this makes me more mindful of what i eat. (doesn't stop me eating, but it is good/horrific to look back and see how well/badly I have done!)
- exercise!! I'm not one for the gym myself, but I do DVD workouts at home and also try to fit in as much walking as possible - if I have an event planned where there will be lots of food, I really try to boost my exercise the couple of days before - do what i can on the day itself - then continue this the day after

It won't stop you putting weight on if you're really going for it food-wise, but will hopefully mean you put on less - and keeping the exercising going consistently will hopefully mean what you did put on comes off again quickly!

Either alternate your beer with club or diet soda or go for a workout (first!) and join your friends after they've had a round and stick to one.

Great idea! My fiancé and I kind of do this. It's typical for us to go to a BBQ on Sunday evening and indulge a bit, but we've been active all day hiking, playing tennis, etc.

I used to worry about the occasional night out with friends where I have 3 or 4 pints and a serious dinner. Then I got a fitbit one tracker. I got an email from them this week summerizing my whole last week (including a night out). It showed me having an 11208 calorie deficit. I havent done the math on it yet (I figured around 9000).

But what it did tell me is that a night out with friends isnt going to derail me that much. It seems to be one of those 'work hard play hard' things.

ETA: *disclaimer - had the flu so didnt really eat much one of the days