• Establish a healthy lifestyle reputation from the start – Every colleague at every job I’ve ever had as an adult knows how serious I am about wellness.  Since all of this is established very early, colleagues already know I most likely won’t be eating any of the food.  If you’re already healthy and consistent, be humble, but proud and establish it with your co-workers from the get-go.

• Bring your own nutritious dish – Another option is to prepare and bring your own dish or two.  That way you’re confident that the ingredients and quality meet your standards.  Plus, you’ll avoid the haters who may label you snobby or uppity for not breaking bread with them.

• Moderation – If you’re one of those fortunate folks who possesses the increasingly rare ability to control your cravings, then those tempting whispers to sample every dessert and gorge yourself with soda will fall on deaf ears.  Assuming you’ve been relatively consistent with your lifestyle, one piece of pie will not sabotage your wellness goals.  This same mindset applies to alcohol as well since downing it in all its permutations adds empty calories (I call it “sneaky calories”), which can add up pretty fast.

• Stick to veggies, fruits, salads – If the peer pressure is just too much to handle, but you refuse to spike your insulin for the sake of being cool, then opt for a small plate of salad and fresh fruit.  Inevitably, there’s always one colleague that had better things to do than stay up late for a midnight bake-off.  So, they either whip up a quick salad, mixed fruit or just stop by the grocery store and pick a veggie tray.  Ironically (or not so ironically), these dishes tend to have the most left over once the party’s done.

• Eat something healthy beforehand – A quick snack before your party or happy hour will help to curb the hunger a little and make you less inclined to overeat the mostly unhealthy options.  Plus, having something in your stomach before happy hour will offset the drinks you may consume, if moderation is used.

• Be the designated driver – This way, you’ll not only avoid unwanted, sneaky calories from booze, you can take solace in the fact that you’re doing your friend/colleague and the public a great service.

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