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Are your pants feeling a bit tight and you can’t figure out why?

It’s those mindless bites that will get you. Each one of those “shove it in your mouth without thinking about it” bites is worth about 25 calories. Do the math. If you have four mindless bites a day above and beyond your daily calorie needs that means possibly gaining slightly less than a pound a month (it takes 3500 calories to gain a pound — and yes, you need a deficit of 3500 calories to lose a pound).

Do You Do Any Of These?

Snag a piece of candy from the bowl on someone’s desk

Scoop the last bit of leftovers from the pot into your mouth

Taste the cookie dough batter then lick the beaters

Finish the crust off of your kid’s grilled cheese sandwich

Sample the bar food while having a drink

Taste the free “want to try” foods when you’re shopping

Have “just a taste” of your friend’s or spouse’s dessert

Eat the freebie cookies or candy that come with the check in restaurants

Twenty-five

Ouch! Each bite adds up to — on average — 25 calories (sometimes more, sometimes less).

Be aware of what you’re eating – especially when you’re not really eating. Most of us don’t have a clue how many calories – or even bites – we’ve shoved into our mouths at times other than meals. Unfortunately, all of those calories that we eat when we’re not eating meals not only count but add up to those pounds gained — and you can’t figure out why you gained them.

What To Do

Keep track of when and where you’re most likely to indulge in the mindless bites you shove down the hatch while you’re walking, talking, socializing, working, and driving.

The most effective method is to try to write down what you eat. That may be a pain but might serve as a real “heads-up” because a written record is hard to deny. If you don’t want to write it down (I must admit I have trouble doing that) at least be aware of your mindless bites – and decide if you want to eliminate, control, or include them in your daily calories.

Awareness is a good thing — especially if it makes your jeans fit better.

What happens when you’re invited to a “command performance” party or event with a long cocktail hour followed by a fancy multi-course sit down meal? Or maybe you’re going to a gourmet holiday lunch at a friend’s house where there will be lots of hot mulled wine, her special entree, and fantastic cookies accompanying mousse for dessert. You’ve been extremely conscious about eating well but you want to be both polite and eat some of the special foods and still be careful about overindulging on high calorie foods. How can you enjoy your food, be polite, eat what really appeals to you, and leave with your waistline intact?

What Do You Want the Result To Be?

There’s no one-size-fits-all answer since we all have our own needs and preferences. You may swoon over ten- layer chocolate cake while I can ignore it but can never pass up cheese fondue.

Part of the answer lies in figuring out what you really want the end result to be. Then you can create your own individualized plan — your own foodMAP — that you can use as a template for what to do when you find yourself in the land of food temptation.

Visualize

Visualizing a situation that you might find yourself in and then rehearsing your actions in your mind ahead of time will help you successfully navigate a whole host of food landmines and eating challenges. That’s a technique coaches use to prepare their athletes. They’re taught to anticipate what might happen and to practice how to respond to a situation. Sports performance improves with visualization exercises—so can eating behavior.

To do this effectively you have to be clear on what you want the end result to be. Is it to enjoy every kind of food available but in limited quantities – or is it to skip dessert but have a full range of tastes of all of the hors d’oeuvres? Visualize what the environment will be like, where you’re going to be, and with whom. Think about what food is going to be available, how it will be served, how hungry you’re likely to be, what your usual eating pattern is like—and what you would like it to be.

Will your host insist you try her special dessert and refuse to take no for an answer? Will you be eating in a restaurant known for its homemade breads or phenomenal wine list? Are your dining companions picky eaters, foodies, or fast food junkies? Will your host be really annoyed if you don’t finish every course at the special sit-down dinner?

Proactive Not Reactive

Be proactive. Figure out your plan in advance — earlier in the day or the night before. Visualize the situation and if there’s temptation or anxiety, close your eyes and picture it. Imagine what people will say and how you will respond in a way that will make you proud of yourself without giving in to external pressures and food pushers.

Armed with your rehearsed plan, go out, use it, and stick to it as best you can. You assume control, not the circumstances and not the food. You are firmly in charge of what happens and what food and how much of it will go into your mouth.

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Why Your Mindless Bites Are Making Your Jeans Tighter