If you love being outside, if you love hanging out with friends and if you love discovering new places to eat and shop you may be a frequent visitor of street fairs, county fairs and state fairs. I love a good deal, I love being outside when the weather is warm and I love eating good food – so I am a frequent visitor of street fairs. However, when I get home I almost always regret everything that I eat.
Two weeks ago I went to the Ukrainian Festival in Toronto and I really had to hold myself back from over eating because everything looked and smelt so good. I don’t know about you, but my eyes are always bigger than my belly.
Some of the best food that I have ever tasted was at a street fair from fresh juice, burritos and veggie dogs (I’m a vegetarian). Street fairs are so much fun and we don’t have to avoid a good street fair just so we don’t over eat, all we have to do is learn how to enjoy a street fair and eat healthy while there.
3 tips to eating healthy at a street fair
1. Go in with a set plan. Over spending and over eating at a street fair or outdoor festival is so easy because everything is usually inexpensive and we feel less guilty about making smaller purchases. We tell ourselves “Oh it’s OK to buy that bracelet because it’s only $5” or “We can drink that smoothie because it’s only $4”, but those little amounts of money can quickly add up to a lot. Before you go to the fair make a list of everything that you need to buy and don’t let yourself buy anything else. Make your primary purpose to be enjoying the outdoors and time with your friends, not shopping.
2. Only bring a limited amount of cash. Street fairs are usually a cash only business so the more cash you bring the more money you will spend. So often we buy something just because it looks good or because it’s cheap, not because we are actually hungry – that’s a bad habit. Keeping a limited amount of money in your wallet and leaving your debit card at home will help avoid over eating and over spending.
3. Don’t go alone, bring your workout buddy. Shopping and eating with a friend can help you eat and spend less because they will be the devil (or angel) on your shoulder telling you to avoid eating unhealthy snacks. It’s also a good idea to visit a street fair before your workout so that you will think about your upcoming workout before you eat. If you go for a run and then walk around at a street fair you will most likely convince yourself that you can eat anything because you just worked out. That’s a bad idea.
What is your favourite healthy eating tip?
Photo by TahnyaKristina
