6 Diet Pitfalls to Avoid this Halloween

As of this weekend, we are officially in holiday season. Which means lots of parties, treats, and temptations that can quickly derail you from your goals. 

But let's be real, you aren't going to avoid holiday parties or abstain from your favorite tasty traditions just to avoid that annoying end-of-year weight gain. That's what New Years resolutions are for, right??

Well, what if I told you you could easily enjoy the pleasures of the holiday season and enjoy waltzing into the New Year way ahead of the weight loss curve? 

You can! And all it takes is avoiding these common pitfalls and planning accordingly. 

1. Celebrating Hallo-week instead of Halloween.

You don't have to deprive yourself of fun holiday food in order to stave off those oh-too-common holiday pounds. You just have to recognize that you don't need to celebrate all day every day from October to January.

In fact, it will make it much more special and far more enjoyable to splurge if it only happens a handful of days instead of a handful of weeks. And your post New Years self will be thanking you profusely. 

**What's even better than choosing a whole cheat day? Choosing a cheat party or cheat meal. Get up, have a healthy breakfast, workout, prepare a healthy lunch, and then enjoy your evening party.

Believe me, it'll be way easier to work off the extra 600 calories from a couple of hours than the extra 2000 calories from an entire day of debauchery. 

2. Underestimating calories or not paying attention to them altogether. 

It's beyond easy to lose track of the less-than-healthy foods you're eating and to assume you're consuming far fewer calories than you are. This is where ignorance is not bliss. This is where the simple state of being aware can make a huge impact. 

I know lots of my clients love tracking their food when they're being good, but suddenly forget when they have an off day. Resist the temptation of thinking that by not logging your food, the calories won't count. They will. 

So do yourself the favor of actually tracking your food so that at the very least, every dietary choice you make will be an empowered decision, not an unconscious action.

3. Relying on willpower.

Going into a Halloween party without making a decision on exactly how far off your diet you plan on going, and hoping your willpower will carry you through, will set you up for about as much success as going on a road trip without deciding how far you're traveling and hoping the gas in the tank will be enough to get you there. 

Show up with a plan. Make choices while you're in a good, healthy mindset about how much indulging you'll do. Because I promise when you're surrounded by people who are mindlessly eating and drinking, having a plan to stick to will be a true saving grace.

Whether you plan on eating x amount of candy bars, y amount of drinks, or allotting z amount of "play calories," know you're numbers and stick to them.

4. "Picking" instead of serving.

If you find yourself at a Halloween party where there are all kinds of devilish treats, candies, and snacks staring up at you from a lovely table spread, resist the urge to graze.

Don't just pick one piece at a time out of the various bowls as you mingle. Or grab a candy corn every time you pass by the snack table. Serve yourself the amount you want, eat it, and then find something else to occupy you. 

5. Mindless eating.

I don't know about you, but I hate when I eat a bunch of extra calories of something I don't even really enjoy. But I ate it because it was there.  

Don't eat that Almond Joy just because that's the candy that's sitting in front of you. Save those calories for that Twix bar that makes you salivate just thinking about it. And then when you do eat that delectable dessert, savor it, pay attention to it, enjoy it. Don't shovel it down without even experiencing the flavor.

In the words of Joey from Friends, "If you're going to do something wrong, do it right!"

6. Getting drunk. 

I don't think this one takes much explaining. When you drink alcohol, you lower inhibitions, make poorer choices, and the part of your brain that signals hunger is stimulated by alcohol. Drink slow, and like everything else, be mindful and purposeful about your decisions. 

 So there you have it, the top 6 pitfalls you should avoid if you want to enjoy your Halloween without sabotaging your goals. 

And if you're really serious about committing to a healthier, fitter Halloween, don't forget to download today's freebie that will literally give you a caloric break down of common Halloween candies!

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