Eat Out Eat Well

brunch

Brunch: Is It Lunch Or Breakfast – And Do you End Up Eating Both?

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brunch-calories-graphicDo you have trouble keeping the calories in check at a brunch or a buffet? It’s pretty darn hard with all of that tempting food staring you in the face. It’s even harder when there’s both tempting food and you’re with lots of friends having a good time — a classic recipe for mindless (over)eating.

A sit down brunch is a little easier to control than a buffet.  At least you’re ordering something specific and not subjected to the myriad of delectable choices at a buffet.

You still have to deal with overflowing bread and pastry baskets and multiple mimosas or bloody marys – but the best bet is to make a deal with yourself ahead of time about how many drinks and how many baked goods you will allow yourself to have.  Ahead of time is key – staring at freshly baked muffins while you decide what not to eat makes a reasoned decision pretty difficult!

Here’s Some Tips For Handling A Buffet/Brunch:

  • Choose a seat that puts your back to the buffet table or kitchen spread and preferably some distance away. How long can you sit and stare at those sticky buns without wanting one?  Not having them in your line of sight helps to keep your mind out of the “I’ve got to have it” mode.
  • Distance helps, too.  Having to get up and walk past lots of people, many of whom you know, with a plate filled to the brim can serve as a “seconds” and “thirds” deterrent.
  • Before putting any food on your plate, just cruise the buffet eyeballing all of the choices and decide what you’ll have before you start filling your plate.  Make trade-offs:  a sticky-bun and coffee instead of a couple of drinks and a second slice of toast . . .
  • What’s going to energize you and what are you going to eat the rest of the day? If you think you can eat at 11AM and have no food until the next day, bad decision.  By late afternoon you’ll probably be so hungry that you’ll head for pizza or a cheeseburger while promising yourself you’ll get back on track the next day.
  • Have a good meal that will fill you up, keep your blood sugar at a nice level, and tastes good so you don’t feel deprived. What does that mean?  Some protein and some complex carbs.  Easy on the fat and simple carbs.
  • Put your food on a smaller rather than larger plate (look for the smaller plates near the salad/fruit section) and you’ll fill up your plate and your stomach with fewer calories.
  • If you decide you really will feel totally deprived if you don’t indulge in one of those delicious baked goods, try to choose one without loads of thick buttery crumbs on top, cut it in half and be satisfied with that amount.  Put it on a separate small plate that you can easily push away from you.  Keeping it on your main plate means you’ll be nibbling at it the entire time.
  • Enforce the no seconds rule:  take what you want the first time, eat it and enjoy it, and stay away from reloads.
  • If you indulge, don’t beat yourself up – keep the 80/20 rule in mind.  Eat well 80% of the time and 20% of the time allow for some indulgences. Total deprivation never works and leaves you vulnerable to a major “raid the fridge” or “hit the bakery” attack.  Instead, plan ahead, know you’re going to indulge, choose carefully, and enjoy your choices – without going overboard.

Brunch Buffet

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eggs in cartonFace the brunch buffet and keep the calories under control!

Okay.  So it’s a brunch buffet the day after your friend’s wedding.  Do you really want to go?  Maybe yes, maybe no.  But you have to, she’s a really good friend.

Or, maybe you’re on vacation and staring down the sumptuous brunch buffet in the resort hotel.  Boy oh boy, everything looks both beautiful and indescribably delicious.  Freshly baked bread and scrumptious pastry displayed with an artist’s touch.

You really indulged at the reception the night before and your inner voice is chiding you to choose your food wisely and not blow your diet another day.

As any social dieter should do, you cruise the buffet line first just taking in all of the choices.  Wow, what a minefield of diet busters!

What to do?  What do you want to do?  What’s going to energize you and not mess too badly with the calorie count that you want to maintain?

Yes, there’s fruit and yogurt and eggs.  Bacon and sausage, too.  But, you eat yogurt everyday and those pancakes and waffles look really delicious.  So does the danish and coffee cake.  And, you really want some.

It’s decision making time.  Think.  What are you going to eat the rest of the day. If you think you can eat at 11AM and have no food until tomorrow, bad choice.  By late afternoon you’ll probably be so hungry that you’ll throw all caution to the wind and head for pizza or a cheeseburger promising yourself you’ll get back on track tomorrow.  The possible beginning of a downward spiral.

Make your choice.  Have a good meal that will fill you up, keep your blood sugar at a nice level, and taste good. What does that mean?  Some protein and some complex carbs.  Easy on the fat and simple carbs.  Look at your choices – what will fill the bill?  What are you willing to trade off?  What will make you happy without feeling either deprived or guilty?

Start with the fruit.  Not the juice, the whole fruit. Juice is sugar, albeit natural, in a glass.  Fruit is full of fiber and antioxidants.  Berries are a great choice – low in calories, almost always available at a buffet, and they can serve as a topping for yogurt or pancakes.  Next some protein.  Yogurt is a possibility – is it low fat?  Eggs fill the bill, too, but not when smothered in hollandaise sauce or cheese – want to guess that fat and calorie count?  Bacon or ham?  Plain ham is surprisingly low in fat – something bacon and sausage are not.  Plain pancakes aren’t a bad choice – as long as you don’t coat them in butter and drown them in syrup.  Top them with those berries and have some protein on the side (a slice of ham, some yogurt, a spoonful of scrambled eggs from the next chafing dish).

If you decide you really will feel totally deprived if you don’t indulge in one of those delicious baked goods, choose one without loads of thick buttery crumbs on top, cut it in half or in thirds and be satisfied with that amount.  Put it on a separate small plate that you can easily push away from you.  Keeping it on your main plate or even a smaller one that’s easily reachable means you’ll be nibbling away at it the entire time.

Still hungry?  Have some more fruit, another glass of water, some tea or coffee. No half and half, please.  Oh, try and skip the mimosas and the bloody marys.  If you must, try a virgin mary – tomato juice is low in calories and it looks just the same in the glass.  Remember that the alcohol will mess with both your calorie count and your willpower to keep your hands off the pastry and the bacon.

Now, don’t you feel full, happy, and very proud of yourself?