Don’t cancel your summer plans on account of your diet.
Perhaps you’re motivated to lose weight — or keep it off — by the warming weather, as you anticipate a buzz of activity and swimsuit season. But sticking to a strict diet may douse your social plans, or at least make for a lousy experience. Fortunately, there are ways to maintain healthy dietary changes that don’t dampen the forecast for a good time this summer. After all, if you don’t enjoy yourself — and the foods you eat — experts say you’re liable to wind up feeding bad habits again by the time fall arrives. Here’s what you should do instead.
Start fresh.
There’s some obvious low hanging fruit when it comes to enjoying healthy eating in the warmer months — like, say, fruit and veggies that are in season. “Summer is a great time to get things like fresh peppers, tomatoes, berries [and] zucchini,” says Rebecca Levine, a registered dietitian at the Center for Lifestyle Medicine at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago. Spring and summer are a great time to visit local farmers markets, she says. Also, take advantage of fresh herbs to flavor your food, says Elisabetta Politi, a registered dietitian nutritionist and nutrition director at the Duke Diet and Fitness Center in Durham, North Carolina.
Fire up the grill.
“Barbecuing is awesome in the summertime — because who doesn’t like cooking on the grill?” says Andrea Giancoli, a registered dietitian and nutrition communications consultant in Hermosa Beach, California. You’re eating something that was cooked in a way that’s healthier and tastier, she says. Going to a barbecue? As an alternative to burgers and hot dogs, you be the guest who brings, say, shrimp kebobs with roasted vegetables, advises Tonya Turner, associate director for clinical services and lead dietitian at Medical University of South Carolina’s Weight Management Center. Or sear lean proteins, like chicken and turkey, and grill fruits — from pears to pineapple — to really bring out the flavor, Levine suggests.
Give in to temptation.
The good news is you’re probably less likely to crave more caloric comfort food now, like mac and cheese, as compared with when it’s colder, Politi says. But as the temperatures climb, more social gatherings could mean tempting fare at every turn. The key, experts say, is finding the sweet spot between saying no to every piece of pie or other dessert you crave — which is usually a clear path to crashing and burning anyway — and eating whole-hog. “Allow yourself those pleasurable foods,” Giancoli says. “Just watch your portion control. But enjoy them — they help you stay on the diet.”
Size up dinner out.
Instead of canceling dinner plans for fear you won’t be able to stick to your diet, pay attention to the big picture, like how you eat throughout your entire week. Familiarize yourself with portion sizes at home that fit with your eating plan. You might, for example, have just a 3-ounce piece of fish for your lean protein at dinner with a 1,500 calorie per day Mediterranean diet. Once you have a sense of portion sizes, you can better eye them when you’re out, Giancoli says. Then if your meal is out-sized, you could put half in a to-go box before you start eating, or share with a friend, she says.
Say no to Draconian weight-loss approaches.
Don’t fall into the trap of trying to shed pounds in the short-term by depriving yourself of decent food. Such extreme measures — by their very nature — are bound to fail, won’t move the needle on improving your overall health, and experts say they’re more likely to entice you to resume old, bad eating habits. “We’re so often looking for quick fixes, and right now people are doing cleanses and detoxes and juice fasts,” Giancoli says. “My recommendation would be to avoid those … really they just end up being starvation diets.” Instead, embrace variety and enjoy the wide array of food choices the season has to offer.
“Try a new food, it might taste good.”
If you have kids, you know this refrain. The simple but all-encompassing advice (intoned by the cartoon character Daniel Tiger, and echoed by dietitians) applies to adults, too. Rather than embarking immediately on a whole-scale dietary overhaul — even a new eating pattern that is highly rated — in an effort to get healthy for the summer, dip your toe in the water first. Hate veggies? Giancoli has heard that from clients before, and says invariably they come up with some they like. Take time to try a variety of healthy foods prepared in new ways, from those grilled fruits to veggies sauteed in olive oil.
Take a walk.
Lean into the impulse to get out and be active. “It’s so much easier to be healthy in the spring and in the summer, because the days are longer,” Politi says. “We spend more time outdoors. It’s easier to go for a walk after work, compared to the fall or the winter when we get home and it’s dark.” Physical activity is not only critical in its own right to optimize well-being, but experts note that when we feel better physically we may be more motivated to eat better as well to keep that feeling going. “Diet and exercise are a marriage,” Giancoli says — and let no one tear them asunder.
Imbibe strategically.
You can still raise a glass this summer, even if you’re lowering your calorie count. But to keep the party and your healthy diet going drink like a dietitian, in addition to consuming alcohol in moderation. “A lot of the summery drinks tend to be higher in sugar and calories,” Levine notes. So consider trading in the tiny umbrella for stemware. Have a glass of wine instead of a sweeter mixed drink, she recommends. If you’re drinking beer, pay attention to the calorie count, since this can vary greatly from one brew to the next. Stay hydrated — drinking lots of water — while imbibing and in general, which can also help moderate how much you eat.
Treat your diet like an endless summer.
Rather than fixating on simply dropping a few pounds in anticipation of warmer weather, let your steps toward a healthier you lock stride with this season of possibility — and continue beyond it. Take stock of the positive effects of dietary improvements on how you feel physically and mentally, such as boosting mood, to sustain those changes. “What really seems to motivate clients in my experience is when they feel better,” Politi says. “That’s really what you want the spring and the summer to accomplish — realizing that eating less flour, less sugar, eating more fresh vegetables and fruits, and being more active, that leads to a sense of well-being.”
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9 Ways to Actually Make Eating Well Fun This Summer originally appeared on usnews.com
