'Tis the Season to Party! Get 12 Tips to Breeze Through These Celebrations

Here's an article to help you through this holiday season, which, as we know, is fraught with sugary foods.

Addicted to Sugar & Refined Carbs? 12 Tips to Breeze Through Parties

Sugar addiction expert shares tips for people who want to lose weight or suffer from diabetes of hypoglycemia

By Connie Bennett

On any special occasion or holiday, well-meaning “sugar pushers” come out in full force. But just because you’re at a party doesn’t mean you have to “fall off the wagon” and pack on pounds or zap your energy. You can still take control over your sugar addiction, diabetes and hypoglycemia, and even trim down. Here are 12 simple strategies to help you breeze through those tempting, tortuous party situations:

1. Think long-term. Do you want to peel off five pounds? Would you like to banish your blues, mood swings, and “brain fog”? Staying focused on your goal will help you steer clear of fatty, sugary foods on that buffet platter.
2. Pick a party purpose. Do you want to meet three new people? Get to know your co-workers better? Connect better with your mother-in-law? Patch things up with your long-lost relative? Having some party goals can be empowering.
3. Prepare before the party. Get enough rest the night before. Visualize yourself passing up those sweets—and repeat this often. Get in the mood with music.
4. Nibble before you nosh. While still at home, politely partake of a small, healthy snack or mini-meal. Choose healthy protein (like a piece of goat cheese, a hard-boiled egg or a small piece of organic chicken), high-quality carbs (fiber-filled veggies), healthy fat (a few olives or nuts), and a piece of fruit (like a chunk of raw pomegranate.) This is your insurance policy against pigging out at the party.
5. Party before the party. While getting dressed for the celebration, listen to cheerful music. Lift your spirits so you’re in the mood for cheerful chit-chatting.
6. Bring along a “just-say-no” buddy. If you’re feeling weak of will power, come with a pal, and you can keep each other honest and loyal, so to speak.
7. Expect traps and temptations so you can rise above them. Go to that affair knowing that candies, cookies, and cakes may call out to you. But choose in advance how you’ll deal with this. Then tell a friend what you plan to do.
8. Learn if you’re a green, yellow, or red light sugar eater. Can you taste just three or four bites of a dessert or one bite of three desserts and then stop? Then you’re a green-light sugar eater, and you can slowly savor sweets at a party, if you choose. But if you’re a yellow or red lighter and find it tough to quit, then it may be best to steer clear of those culprit carbs. You’ll like yourself better the morning after!
9. Bring your own goodies. If the event’s not catered or at a restaurant, come to the affair with raw veggies, hummus dip, hard-boiled eggs, a fruit salad, a plain sweet-potato dish (sprinkled with cinnamon and flax oil) or other healthy foods. Just in case, also bring almonds or soy nuts to slip into your handbag or pocket.
10. Pay attention to the people, not the food! You’re there to make new friends, reconnect with old ones, etc. Food shouldn’t be your focus. If you zero in on the people, sugary desserts will lose their allure.
11. Be a fetcher for others. Put their coats away, get them a sparkling water, take dishes to the kitchen, etc. My fitness trainer Gina Allchin points that while this isn't exactly a work-out, doing these things will get your mind off food.
12. When in doubt, nosh on veggies. If you feel you have to eat something, then nibble on those high-caliber carbs such as raw celery, jicama, radishes, broccoli, and carrots.

As you dash off to that celebration, remember why you’re there. ‘Tis your time to play! And you don’t need food to do that!

Connie Bennett, M.S.J., C.H.H.C. is author of SUGAR SHOCK! (Berkley Books) and founder of The 21-Day, Stop SUGAR SHOCK! Diet™. Through her website (www.SugarShock.com); blog (www.SugarShockBlog.com); international KickSugar online support group; and her seminars, Connie—who laughingly dubs herself an “ex-Sugar Shrew”—has helped thousands of people around the world break free from the depressing, debilitating aftershocks of too many culprit carbs. Connie is a certified holistic health counselor (who studied at the Institute for Integrative Nutrition), and an experienced journalist (with a master’s from Northwestern University). She has contributed to numerous media outlets as The Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, TV Guide, and eDiets.com.