I don’t know about you, but my extended family (over 40 people) was all together for the 4^th of July holiday. Typically, activities are planned around what meal we are eating next. At breakfast, everyone discusses where to go for lunch. At lunch, dinner is discussed. In between meals, the hotel room is filled with fruit, candy, chips and assorted snacks – some healthy, some not. So when you are trying to eat healthfully and everyone around you is eating proverbial “junk food,” how do you handle it? Do you give in to temptation and eat the junk or do you hold to what you know is true for you and choose healthy options?

It is normal to choose either option. You must do what is best for you. The irony is that sometimes our relatives do not understand when we pick the healthy option and they feel we are denying ourselves. This couldn’t be farther from the truth but in their eyes, you’re not enjoying if you’re not partaking in the overeating by everyone else. It’s not always easy to hold true to yourself and it can take time and practice. But when you get on the scale the next morning or you know you avoided that overindulgence stomach ache, then how do you feel?

So much of our socialization is around food; that’s human nature.  Next time you plan a get-together, think about activities that do not involve food and see how much fun you all can have!  We ended up on a 3-hour stroll around the Chicago Botanic Garden – it was beautiful as well as fun & healthy!