Stop trying to bank your calories

With December in full swing and more people attending holiday parties this year, I wanted to share a little tip with you: stop trying to bank your calories!

We all know that most holiday parties involve food. Often these are foods that you don't eat on a regular basis which means that you'll probably want to try a lot of dishes. Which is great, that's what parties are for. However, lately, I've been seeing a lot of people attempting to offset or bank calories by restricting their eating before heading to a party.

We need to stop doing this. Why? Because it's not doing what you think it's doing. Our bodies don't work like a bank account where you can save a bit here in order to overspend over there.

What actually happens when you restrict before a big meal or party:

• You get really hungry because you haven't eaten enough
• You get to the event and you're ravenous so you eat everything you can get your hands on
• You feel out of control around the food
• You barely even taste what you're eating
• Your body is too hungry to send you fullness signals so you eat until you're uncomfortably full

Sound familiar?

In an attempt to save calories, we get too hungry, we end up eating more than we normally would, AND we're eating so quickly that we barely even taste or remember what we ate. Where's the fun in that?

Next time you plan to attend an event where you know there will be a lot of food, try this:

• Eat normally throughout the day. You don't have to eat a meal right before leaving for the party, you can still go mildly hungry in anticipation of eating, but if the party is around dinner, make sure to eat breakfast and lunch. If you need some ideas for balanced meals, check out my FREE meal planner.
• When deciding what to eat, start with what looks most appealing or what you can't get on a regular basis
• Eat slowly and be mindful - can you eat with all of your senses?
• If something isn't as delicious as expected, remind yourself that you don't have to finish it
• Check in regularly to see if you're still hungry, if you are, eat more
• If you're full but find yourself eating simply because the food is there, move away from the food table, or if it's a plated dinner, put your napkin over your food

Keep in mind that you may still eat more than you normally would and that's ok. Having access to a variety of foods that you don't normally eat likely means that you want to try a bit of everything. That is normal. The benefit of not showing up to an event ravenous means that all of that food you want to try, you actually get to taste, enjoy, and decide for yourself if you want to go back for more or move onto something else.

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