Whether it’s your aunt, grandmother, mother, or spouse, each family has at least one food pusher. You know who I mean, the person who loves to host family meals and always cooks as if an entire infantry regiment is supposed to march in and sit around the table with you.
The food pusher is insanely proud of her (or his) cooking and usually makes sure to mention to everyone how hard she worked to prepare all the dishes that you see on the table before you.
Lack of food is never a problem when a food pusher is cooking. On the contrary, too much food is usually the case and it’s quite easy to find yourself overwhelmed by the choices you see laid out on the table before you.
It’s also easy to find yourself stuffed beyond comfort at the end of such a meal. This can also mean that you’ve consumed a massive amount of calories, far more than your body really needs, and certainly more than your diet calls for.
The problem is that saying no to a food pusher is one of the easiest ways to hurt their feelings and perhaps start a scene. In some cases, food pushers are slow to forget such an insult and this can lead to a lingering resentment on their part. Not something you want to face when dealing with a family member you will meet over and over again.
Which leaves us with the problem: how to say no to a food pusher without looking like the ‘bad guy’ yourself? Here are a few tips:
1. Compliment about Every Dish
The thing a food pusher wants more than anything else is to be complimented about the food they serve. They worked hard for it. They want to be appreciated. Complimenting profusely will make them feel good about the food. So, tell them how good everything is: how the food looks, smells, and even how beautiful the dishes and table cloth is.
2. Ask them for the recipe and the cooking
One more way to show a food pusher how much you appreciate their food is to ask questions about it. Get each and every recipe even if you never intend to use it. Ask questions about how the cooking is done, where they buy the ingredients, what their “secrets” are and so on. It doesn’t cost you any calories to talk and ask questions so do so.
3. Say You’re Leaving Room For The next Dish
The problem with a food pusher is that he or she is always offering your more and more food. To just say no may be insulting. A better way is to say that you’re leaving room for the next dish which caught your eye. You can play this waiting game all the way to the dessert. Just say how good you know the next dish would be and you’ll be fine.
4. Take a litte from everything
A food pusher wants you to eat every single dish that he or she have prepared. So, indulge them. Try everything they have on the table, but take a little, just a little. Don’t eat too much of everything to avoid stuffing yourself. Try everything and you’ll be fine.
5. Take a long time to eat
If you take a little longer to eat your meal, eventually the time will come for the next course to be served and your plate will need to be replaced. Although this isn’t the most diplomatic way to deal with a food pusher, it can still work.
In Conclusion
Dealing with a food pusher can be hard but it can be done. Don’t let anyone ruin your eating plan for you. If you’re working hard to lose weight, there’s no reason why you should do away with your efforts for anyone else.
Do you have any more tips on how to deal with a food pusher? Leave a comment below and share them…