How To Eat Healthy At Summer Barbecues

[caption id="attachment_828877" align="alignleft" width="1068"] Bigstockphotos.com/Man barbecues for friends at a table on a deck in a forest[/caption] How bad can a barbecue be for you, right? It’s just some protein and veggies grilled up, isn’t it? Sure, maybe when it’s just you and your boo grilling on your balcony. But when your friends invite you over for pool parties and backyard grilling, the dishes become far more elaborate than tri-tip and corn on the cob. And, since people tend to make way too much food at barbecues, and it just keeps flying off of that grill, you feel pressure to eat more, so things don’t go to waste. Eating at a barbecue is deceptively similar to eating at a buffet; it’s never quite clear when the meal is over, and there are a lot of different dishes to try. Here is how to eat healthy at all of those summer barbecues (so you’ll still want to go swimming after). [caption id="attachment_717962" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Get your crunch from celery and carrots

The temptation, of course, is to balance out your soft burger bun with some crunchy chips, but chips are designed to make you want more as you eat more. Get your crunch from celery and carrot sticks.   [caption id="attachment_693902" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

If you must have chips

If you just can't enjoy a barbecue without chips, bring a big bag of baked or popped chips just in case nobody else does. You could also consider making your own healthy tortilla chips by simply cutting corn tortillas into strips and lightly frying them in olive oil.   [caption id="attachment_702570" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Don’t eat these dips

Dips seem so innocent when you’re just scooping them onto your plate, one tablespoon at a time. But by the time you’re done eating, you may have had a full cup of dip. Steer clear of any sour cream or cream-cheese-based dips. If you crave the creamy stuff, make your own dip from low-fat Greek yogurt. [caption id="attachment_697726" align="alignleft" width="468"] Shutterstock.com/corn and bean salsa[/caption]

Eat these dips

Your best bet for keeping calories low is to stick to the salsa—this could be your traditional chunky tomato salsa, mango salsa, black bean, and corn salsa—you name it. These offer nutrients without plenty of calories.     [caption id="attachment_701545" align="alignleft" width="432"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Avoid the pitchers and bottles

I’m talking about the pitchers of margaritas, mojitos and bloody marys, and the bottles of prosecco and white wine. It’s impossible to gauge your calorie intake when drinking from these bottomless-style containers, and they usually hold the sugary drinks. [caption id="attachment_608331" align="alignleft" width="500"] Shutterstock[/caption]

Stick to beer

While beer may not seem like the healthier choice, you can at least keep exact track of your calories if you drink beer. Even if the label doesn’t list the calories, the Internet will. And beer doesn’t have all the sugar of the fruity drinks. [caption id="attachment_621214" align="alignleft" width="420"] Corbis[/caption]

Mingle

The biggest pitfall of any social event is forgetting to socialize, and just hovering around the food and drinks area. Make yourself a plate and grab yourself a drink you feel good about, then venture away from the table, and into the crowd. Before you know it, you could be lost in conversation, and the barbecue may almost be over. [caption id="attachment_622832" align="alignleft" width="500"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Bring your own protein

There is a good chance that burgers and hot dogs will be the only things served at the barbecue. Be on the safe side, and bring chicken, turkey burgers or salmon. If you make these in a special marinade or with a fun salsa, it won’t look like you were stepping on the barbecue master’s toes but rather just wanted to share a special recipe. [caption id="attachment_828443" align="alignleft" width="420"] Bigstockphoto.com/Chicken Satay; barbecued skewered chicken shown on white plate with peanut dipping sauce on the side.[/caption]

Go skinless

Remember that the skin on chicken can actually contain quite a bit of fat. Go for the skinless, grilled chicken, or remove the skin from your chicken.           [caption id="attachment_701534" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

If burgers call your name

If you absolutely must have a red-meat burger, then bring buffalo burgers. These contain far less fat than traditional beef burgers and are typically made from grass-fed buffalo.       [caption id="attachment_626092" align="alignleft" width="418"] Corbis[/caption]

Be selfish with the garnishes

Most people only take a couple leafs of lettuce and two slices of tomatoes for their burgers. You, however, should go to town on that garnish table, adding as much lettuce as you would to a salad, tons of tomatoes, pickles, and onions. This way, you’ll fill up on veggies and won’t need a second burger patty. [caption id="attachment_718782" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Choose one dessert

Sometimes barbecues look more like bake sales than barbecues, and it’s easy to want to try the brownies, the cheesecake, the chocolate covered strawberries and the s’mores. But let’s be honest; once you’ve had one piece of cheesecake, you’ve had them all. You don’t need to sample all of these desserts: choose your favorite kind, get one piece of that, and call it a day. [caption id="attachment_825503" align="alignleft" width="420"] Bigstockphoto.com/White plate full of delicious raw protein balls. Healthy sweets for sport people. Homemade dessert. Raw sweets made of nuts coconut dates and cacao[/caption]

Or make a healthy dessert

There are some pretty delicious, gluten-free, dairy-free, high-protein dessert recipes out there. Some are healthier than most breakfast bars—make some so you can avoid the cheesecake temptation entirely.     [caption id="attachment_716418" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Remember not all salad is real salad

For example, potato salad, macaroni salad, Jell-O salad. Don’t make the mistake of considering these one of your salads, and then grabbing another item as your starch/carb. Your macaroni salad is your carb. And on that note, if you’re going to have the macaroni salad, then you should skip the bun on your burger. [caption id="attachment_822798" align="alignleft" width="900"] Credit: Bigstock[/caption]

Skip pre-mixed salads

If your friend already mixed the dressing into the salad, you’re better off staying away from it; who knows how much dressing she added, and how heavy a dressing it is. Instead, make your own large salad, and bring a bottle of dressing on the side. [caption id="attachment_704165" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Beware of sneaky add-ons

Like candied walnuts, fried onions, blue cheese crumbles, bacon bits, croutons, crunchy noodles—you get the idea. Eat a salad that doesn’t have these or, if you can’t, then just pick these toppings out.   [caption id="attachment_822940" align="alignleft" width="401"] Bigstockphotos.com/Open tin cans of corn, beans and peas isolated on white[/caption]

Don’t ignore the beans

If you didn’t bring a healthy protein and there isn’t one available, see if anybody made a bean dish. These contain protein, and fiber, and even count as some of your vegetables.       [caption id="attachment_701538" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Corn is your friend

Not only is corn a vegetable that contains nutrients, but it also takes a while to eat. That’s a good thing since it will slow down the rate at which you’re inhaling food.       [caption id="attachment_713126" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Make baked sweet potatoes

You can wrap sweet potatoes in foil and make “baked” sweet potatoes on the grill. These have more fiber and vitamins than traditional white potatoes.       [caption id="attachment_701550" align="alignleft" width="420"] Image Source: Shutterstock[/caption]

Make kebabs

Bring some skewers and once you have your grilled meat and veggies, chop them up and make kebabs. This way, you can ensure a good veggie to meat ratio (think two chunks of veggies for every chunk of meat).

The post How To Eat Healthy At Summer Barbecues appeared first on MadameNoire.