Girl About Town: Drinks After Work?

Hello friends! If you’re like me, you’ve always got something going on – work events, hanging out with friends, family gatherings… the list goes on and on. So fitting in time to exercise, when I’ve got a jam-packed day of LIFE, or trying to manage my food calories when I’m going to the 3rd birthday party in a week can be tough! What’s a girl to do when her life is so full of people to see and places to go?! I guess I could have worse problems. In Girl about Town, I’ll share my strategies for maintaining an active social life while protecting the work I do to eat healthy and get regular exercise (because it sure isn’t a cakewalk – no pun intended!). It is my mission to spread the word about good health as a vital part of good living! So, without further ado, welcome to my blog…

Last week, I faced a tricky situation when I got an email from one of my best girlfriends, Bonnie, inviting me out that night for a drink after work with a couple of our other friends. But I knew it probably wouldn’t be JUST ONE innocent little drink...

Here’s some background on the week I had had so far: despite an extra hectic work schedule, I had made it to the gym Monday and Tuesday, and went out for a 3-mile walk/run last night when I got home from work (I’m working on becoming a runner, but right now, it’s more of a fast-walk-then-jog-awhile kind of thing). Anyway, I was feeling g-o-o-d! And because I had been on a workout roll, I was eating fruits and veggies like they were going out of style. So when I opened that email and had the thought of a night spent eating bar food and drinking lots of empty calories, for a second I felt like a deer caught in the headlights.

Here’s what I did to make sure I didn’t throw all my hard work out the window, while I still managed to go out and have a great time with The Ladies:

Plan Ahead
I went to the website of the place we were meeting at. By scoping out the menu in advance, I was able to find a low-calorie appetizer, and also check out the drink menu. This way, I wouldn’t be spending time at the bar looking at the menu and risk making an on-the-spot unhealthy choice.

Keep Friends In-the-Know
When I sent my email reply back, I told Bonnie my plan to stick to a healthy snack option, and listed the ones I thought sounded good from the menu. (At first I thought she would think I was being a stick-in-the-mud, but she actually liked my plan to order a low-cal option, and said she would order from the healthy list, too.) It’s so much easier to make good choices when you’ve got the buddy system working for you!

Make the Switch
Once I was at the bar, I ordered a glass of wine. (After all, I had worked pretty hard this week!) I savored it and when the rest of the girls were ordering a second round, I changed my drink to sparkling water. I always order mine with extra lemon and lime – it’s so pretty and refreshing, that I don’t even feel like I’m missing out on anything. (Bonus: no hangover!)

The night was great – lots of laughs (that burns calories, right?!) AND I managed to keep myself in check with just a little planning ahead. It was so worth it!

 

by JessieDavenport on 06/07/2011 | Share Story With a Friend

tags: motivation, planning, mood, strategies