“I’m going to my cousin’s quinceañera and don’t know how to track the food I’m eating there. Halp.”

^One of the most common questions I get from clients. (Ok, not specifically on how to track for fiesta de quince años, but social events of all types.)

“How do I work around situations like this – how do I track my macros accurately when I didn’t make the food?”

First, realize the following are strategies to help you salvage the best results you can from hard food situations.

The reality is, you’re still leaving a lot up to chance. If your number one priority was fat loss, by far the most effective strategy would just be to cook all your meals. (Hence bodybuilders and their Tupperware.) If you have rapid fat loss goals, you’re not doing yourself any favors by eating out often.

I get it, this isn’t a sustainable or enjoyable approach for most, so you’ll learn how to best manage these situations, rather than living your life as a hermit. Just be aware that (as with everything in life), you are likely trading-off the enjoyment of a meal for a bit slower progress.

The key here is knowing your trade-offs.

How much do you value the feeling of normalcy/being present/not worrying about macros VS. shifting your body composition?

On the far left side of the scale would be – not worrying about your meal at all, and just focusing on enjoyment, while fully accepting potentially slower results.

On the far right would be – just bringing your own home-cooked meal to said event, and knowing you’ve done everything possible for the fastest results.

In the middle is where I’ve found most online clients experience the least guilt (either from missing out on the social aspects, or from undoing progress).

Now, keep in mind there is no right or wrong answer. It’s just super important that you know exactly what’s most important to you right now, so you can leave the meal without feeling guilty.

The second thing all my online clients that get the best fat loss results have in common:

They plan ahead.

For one, they typically meal prep for all meals of the week that fall at their challenging times (times when you’re the most stressed out and likely to make a food-decision non-congruent with your goal).

But they also do a great job of planning ahead. When you know you have an event like this coming up:

Macro Plan – Plan your day out in advance the night before, a.k.a macro-planning. While you probably won’t be able to perfectly guess what’s available to eat, you CAN get a rough guesstimate. Macro-planning gives you a good idea of how you need to eat the rest of the day leading up to the event to stay on track with your goals. (Since you’re likely to be eating more than normal at the event, you’ll need to adjust your eating the rest of the day to compensate.)

Prioritize protein…again – Following the above point, if you need to keep calories low throughout the day to keep your diet in check; eat mostly protein and veggies leading up to the event. This will give you the best combination of low-calories and fullness

Intermittent Fasting – You can also play with intermittent fasting as a tool to save more calories for later. Basically, skipping breakfast, or pushing your first meal back to save calories up for later in the day. (Some people feel great with fasting, some people feel like balls. So only do it if YOU feel good.)

Pull Calories – If you really want to be sure you don’t overeat at this event, reduce your calorie intake by 100-200 kcal for a few days leading up to said event. The size of the calorie deficit you create on a weekly and monthly basis is much more important than your daily deficit. By saving up calories during the week, you’ll have a lot more wiggle room to work with at the event without hurting your progress.

Protein:

• Chicken
  
• Steak
• Fish
• Turkey
  
• Pork
  
• Dairy
• Wild Game

Fats:

(If eating fattier cuts of steak – e.g. Ribeye, N.Y. Strip – count that as fat + protein)

• Nut Butters
• Tree Nuts: Almonds, Cashews, Walnuts, Pecans, Brazil Nuts, etc.
• Avocado
• Eggs
  
• Fish
• Butter

Carbohydrates:

• Oats
• White Rice
• Quinoa
• Beans/Legumes
• Sweet Potatoes/Yams
• White/Red Potatoes
• Fruit

Set up a FREE call with me to strategize how you best body ever could be built, with individualized training and nutrition protocols – designed specifically for your goals and lifestyle.