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I am a firm believer that steel of abs require steel of minds. One must have a great deal of determination  and do everything of his own volition as the directives of the common social life can be in conflict with such a quest. Yes, I am talking about all those company all you can eat buffet dinners, potluck parties, dates and bar hoppings. If the idea of isolating yourself from the society is not igniting your spark (hopefully not), you have to learn how to find your way through these activities without damaging your diet. Here are a number of very good, tested and approved, tips for you to keep your diet during any social activities. I callthe list ‘Social butterfly Diet’

Start with the good stuff

Almost every buffet has vegetables and fruits. Start with them before you move on to others. Fill as much part of your plate with salads as you can. This has two major benefits. First, obviously, you get the lowest amount of calorie for the portion. Second, your plate will look full so you don’t have to deal with the peer pressure. The society has a funny way of reacting to peoples eating habits. If you are overweight, your eating habits will be considered as your weakness and if you are in good shape, not accepting a second serving offer may be considered as rude and being oversensitive since you can effort a second serving. This is more apparent in different cultures but I am sure you know what I am talking about.

Don’t wander around food

In social gatherings where food is served on a large nicely decorated table, place yourself far from the table. And the time comes, quickly fill your plate and leave the table. As you’d guess, if you can’t reach it, you can’t eat it. If you have to be close to the food then pay extra attention not to nibble. A bite or two may look very look very innocent but believe me when I say they do add up fast.

Study the crowd

If you don’t trust your judgment, find someone whose judgment you can trust. Find the leanest looking person and check out what and how much he or she is eating. Try to find the slowest eater and try to adjust your speed accordingly. This way you can verify that you are not stuffing yourself.

by erich1667

Don’t eat under the influence

As cliché as it is, minimize your alcohol consumption. According to studies, %5 of the alcohol consumed turns directly to fat. More importantly, alcohol can reduce the amount of fat your body burns by up to %73 (1). I will be writing about this more in depth later but I guess even this information should be good enough to reconsider going for the second round. Sugary alcoholic beverages contain more calories are than others so if you have to drink, you can try a glass of white wine or a light beer instead of margaritas or wine coolers.

To sum up, whatever the purpose of a social event is, it is never eating all together in one room. Social events are mostly for networking if not for a more specific purpose, so make sure you get the best out of it. Do not worry; even if you don’t eat anything during, your changes of starving yourself to death, are zero to none.

1. Siler, S.Q., Neese, R.A., & Hellerstein, M.K. (1999). De novo lipogenesis, lipid kinetics, and whole-body lipid balances in humans after acute alcohol consumption. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 70, 928-936

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