Out of your control?

What happens when your food choices are out of your control?  Can that really happen?  Can someone or something keep you from staying in control of your food intake? 

No, not completely.  While situations may arise when the food you have to choose from is not your choice, how you handle your choices is still very much your own.

Vacations for instance.  We always “save up” for vacation, being extra disciplined and keeping a strict intake until we hit the road, but why?  Isn’t that pre-planning that you will make poor food decisions?  Instead, set yourself up for success.  Understand that your food intake may not be 100% A+ in the nutrition department while on vacation, but don’t use it as a free pass to disregard all your wise nutrition habits.

Another example…weddings!  We attended a wedding this weekend.  A perfect example of when the type of food offered is not your choice.  It was a beautiful wedding and fun reception, dinner served buffet style.  Lo and behold, southern food!  Of course!  Fried chicken fingers, mac and cheese, green beans, fried okra, and rolls.  Oh, and don’t forget the sweet tea!

What do you do?!  Do you turn your nose up and go without because, well, this just does not fit into your diet plan?  Haha…yeah right.  Do you figure, “well, I have no choice so I might as well go all out,” and over-indulge in the southern feast?  Again, no.  That would be deciding that your food choices are out of your control.  Instead, enjoy the provided meal graciously and stay in control.  How did I handle this particular instance?  To begin, the food was served to us in the buffet line, so the portions were pretty well controlled (which was nice as it prevented that extra generous serving of mac and cheese that may have happened otherwise).  So I accepted the 2 chicken tenders and a scoop of mac and cheese.  Second, I took a look at what was available and adjusted.  When I got to the veggies (green beans and fried okra), I requested two scoops of green beans and no okra.  For a beverage, of course water won over sweet tea.

A “go-to” adjustment for me at events where food is provided is to look for the opportunity to bump up the veggies and remove one of the greater nutrition offenders.  If work provides lunch, is salad a side option?  Bump up your salad serving and keep the main a little smaller if it is outside your typical diet parameters.  Invited unexpectedly to a restaurant for lunch or dinner?  Scope out the menu and look for grilled main options and veggie sides.  You can never go wrong with portion control too.

Was dinner last night out of my typical diet parameters?  Sure, but I felt just fine after making the best adjustments I could, taking my time to eat it, avoiding any guilt for being off-track a little, and especially after dancing the night away.  Get your toes tapping and your hips swinging and you’ll burn a few calories.

Here comes wedding and vacation season!  So don’t feel thrown off course when the available food choices are out of your control…YOU are still in control of how you handle your choices.