Going out on a diet??

So, it's around 2 a.m. on a friday night. I don't usually go out on fridays 'cause I work Saturday mornings, but I do go out on thursdays. Probably because it's ladies night on several places around the city or maybe just 'cause thursdays just fit all of my friends schedule.

Anyway, last night I went out with some of my coworkers and of course they asked "HOW CAN YOU GO OUT AND STICK TO YOUR DIET?"; I simply answered

"It's not that hard after you've figured out some tricks" 

This answer got me thinking which were those tricks I was talking about. I'd never really listed them, but I thought this would be a good time to do so. 

So... I guess here they are:

1. DON'T FALL FOR PEER PRESSURE.

• Most of the time your friends are gonna say something like "oh, come on! just have ONE, nothing bad is going to happen if you have ONE". I must say they are correct, not much is going to happen if you have only ONE, but... it's going to make it easier to say yes to the SECOND. Keep your goal in mind, it's a week of hard work worth ONE decision? 

2. TELL YOUR FRIENDS YOUR GOAL.

• Sharing your goal to the people around you really makes it easier. Don't be ashamed to tell them you're trying to get in shape, EVERYONE is trying to get in shape. So, most probably, they are going to feel identified with this AND they're gonna try to help you. When making dinner plans or something they will include you in the planning, from choosing a place with a salad bar to choosing one of your favorite healthy restaurants. So trust me, sharing is not bad.

3. ASK FOR VEGETARIAN OR LOW CALORIE OPTIONS.

• Nowadays most places have healthy options. If it's not on display, ask for it. I'm not a vegetarian, but I've noticed that asking for vegetarian gives me a lot more options, and then I just simply ask they waiter if they can add any kind of protein I want. If they don't have any of these options, I simply change the side dishes. You know, instead of asking for wings and fries, I ask for wings and vegetables. 

4. AVOID TEMPTATION

• If you cannot change the side dishes ask them not to put them on your plate. This really helped me during the first 3 weeks. As I've told you before I'd always go on a diet for a week and then just succumb to temptation. So not having it there while I was eating really helped me think it wasn't even an option.

5. DON'T BE SO HARD ON YOURSELF

• You CAN give yourself a break once in a while. If your friends are eating something you REALLY like right infront of you and you can't stop thinking that you want it, have a tinny piece of it, it's ok. Being so hard on yourself and not allowing you to enjoy what you like is what makes most of the people fall of the wagon. Allow yourself one of your favorite snacks a week and choosing this to happen when you're with your friends just makes it taste a lot better. 

So, these are just some of the tricks I've used to keep on track while going out. Maybe when I'm able to identify any other I'll make a GOING OUT ON A DIET - PART II entry.

Hope this helps you on any level, Read you later.