Clean-Plate Club

On the Go

If there’s another “secret” to weight loss and maintenance, it’s avoiding grab-and-go situations. High-fiber, high-fluid foods like whole-grain cereals, soups, vegetables, and fruits typically require some effort to eat, Husu says. They force us to sit down to eat, which slows us down and gives our brains time to absorb signals of satiety from the stomach.

With a little planning, good eating can be squeezed into the same tight schedule and social situations that led to binge eating in the past. Here’s how Husu recommends executives handle meeting-packed days, travel, and the hotel buffet table:

›››  Pack a lunch. “Grab a peanut-butter sandwich and a piece of fruit, and you’re good to go,” Husu says. It’s a meal that doesn’t require access to a refrigerator, can be eaten in minutes, and, if you used whole-grain bread, provides that balance of protein, fat, fiber, and carbohydrate that you need.

››› Facing a dreary hotel continental breakfast? Opt for the bagel, yogurt, and fruit instead of a Danish.

›››  Stow away snacks. When you travel, Husu recommends that you take along protein bars or nuts and dried fruit. From a vending machine, grab the packet of tuna with crackers. Even the peanut butter– or cheese-filled crackers are a pretty healthful choice, she says. Eat a small snack in your hotel room to take the edge off your appetite before you go to cocktail receptions and dinners.

›››  Back away from the buffet. You’ll find the trifecta of diet busters at your average meet-and-greet: You’re maybe a little stressed as you’re trying to mingle; you’re making diet decisions on the basis of what floats by or is easiest to pick up; and the satiety cues that would normally signal you to stop grazing are disrupted by eating on your feet. “Pick the salmon, the vegetables, and some whole-grain crackers, and go sit away from the buffet table,” Husu says. “Otherwise there’s too much of a temptation to eat too much too fast.”

Embrace Your Appetite

Husu says that if we really want to lose or maintain our weight, we need to put food back into our day where it belongs. “A lot of people will say to me, ‘If I eat in the morning, then I want to eat all day,’” she observes. “I say, if you’re hungry when you wake up, that’s what you should be feeling. And the same goes for lunch. They’re the two most important meals.”