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1) Buy Candy Late
Having tempting candy around can be a big diet challenge. There’s no logical reason to purchase candy in advance of trick-or-treat night. Resist the urge to buy a bag of Skittles a month before the big night. By only storing the goodies for 24 hours, you can save yourself a lot of temptation. Also, you can usually find big discounts on candy sold that late.
2) Buy Candy You Don’t Like
Keep cravings at bay by purchasing treats that won’t interest you. Select trick-or-treat candy that you don’t personally enjoy. Then you won’t be tempted to eat it. Not a coconut fan? Buy coconut-filled chocolate candy for your trick-or-treaters. Or maybe nut-filled treats don’t tempt you — Snickers or peanut M&Ms may be a good solution for your candy dish.
3) Store Halloween Treats Out of Sight
We’re much more likely to dip into food, regardless of whether we’re hungry, when it’s within view and in 2 yards’ reach. So, store treats in drawers, behind doors, on high shelves, or in out-of-the-way pantries. Better yet, resist the temptation to open the bag. Once it’s open, it’s too easy to slip in for a quick bite.
4) Take Time to Enjoy Your Halloween Treats
You can still enjoy the season’s treats by taking time to savor them. By slowly eating your treats, you’ll have a better handle on how much you’re eating, plus you’ll really appreciate the goodie. Just as you do for meals, sit, eat, savor, enjoy. Multitask if you must, but not while eating your Halloween treats to avoid mindless munching!
5) Make Your Own Halloween Treats
A Halloween Party is going to be full of tempting treats. Bring your own dish that you know you can healthfully enjoy. Be sure to bake shortly before the party rather than in advance so the dish won’t tempt you for days. Divvy up any leftovers right at the party — don’t plan to take any home with you.
6) Pack Sugar-Free Chewing Gum
One simple, cheap strategy that works wherever temptation strikes — at home, the workplace, or while shopping — is to keep a stash of sugar-free gum on hand. Faced with a temptation — say, a sweet-smelling candy aisle or a pan of goodies awaiting departure to a party — you can pop a piece of gum, deflecting temptation with bit of sweet chewing.
7) Handle Halloween Temptation at the Workplace
In a meeting where treats are served? You’re a captive candy audience. It’s really, really difficult to pass up treats when someone brings them to the morning staff meeting and plops them on the table. If you just can’t resist, sample one small goodie or even just a bite-sized piece. If your workplace is a Halloween-treat offender (either before the season when coworkers are shopping or afterward when they dump their extra treats on the office), then hold off people by stocking the communal treat dish yourself. Another strategy is to reroute your normal walking path if you pass baskets of tempting candy. If you don’t see it and aren’t reminded of the treats, it’s a lot easier to say no.
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