Pretty much any good southern girl can tell you that a holiday occurring between the months of May and September is a great excuse for a cookout or picnic. Fried chicken, bar-b-cue, hamburgers, hotdogs, steaks, ribs, potato salad, baked beans, coleslaw, corn-on-the-cob, chips, pies, cookies and ice cream, in any number of tasty, belly-busting combinations, are likely to be the fare on many a table in the hospitality-heavy states.
So what's a good dietitian, albeit recovering food addict, to do in the face of such monumental opportunity to regress? Well, this one is going to hang onto two small commitments with the potential to make all the difference between this and too many years of ugliness in the past. These simple promises?
1. To not go hungry.
and...
2. To pile on the produce.
Hoarding calories early in the day, by either skipping meals or eating much too little, won't help me say no to big portions or extra helpings at the feast, and only increase the likelihood of over-indulgence. And bulking up a hamburger with plenty of lettuce, tomato, and onion will make it more filling without adding lots of calories. Choosing a little more cucumber and tomato salad over that huge scoop of potato salad, or a nice big slice of watermelon instead of a slice of pie, will help me make the most nutrition of my calories, as well.
Change may not happen overnight, but it can happen any night (or day.) If you need to adjust your eating habits, focus on making one small step in the right direction today, even if it's something as seemingly insignificant as replacing a handful of chips with an apple.
I wish you all a very blessed and Happy Memorial Day!!! Enjoy your fellowship with family and friends while remembering the sacrifice of those whose lives bought our freedom.
Erika
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