12 Tricks to Help You Survive Halloween Without Gaining Weight

There are some things that you can do to make Halloween not as frightening and here are just a few of them:

Eat dinner. Don’t go into the trick-or-treating hours with an empty stomach or you’ll fight the urge to give in all night. Instead, have a filling dinner and you’ll be less inclined eat the whole bowl of goodies.
Keep a bottle of water by your side. Going into Halloween thirsty is just as dangerous as going in hungry as the cues for these two are often confused, so stay hydrated during the course of the night. Every time you feel like nibbling, take a drink instead.
Hand out non-candy items. Just because this particular holiday usually involves sweets doesn’t mean that you can’t buck tradition a bit and hand out non-candy items. Not only will it protect you from having goodies in the house, but it will help the little ones protect their health too. Some options to consider include necklaces and rings, pencils and little tablets of paper, and small Halloween-themed trinkets like glowing pumpkins or fake spiders.
Pass out healthy treats. Another way to keep sweets out of your house at Halloween is to pass out healthier goodies instead. How do you make healthy food something that kids can enjoy? Label a bag of grapes “Spider Eggs” or hand out little boxes of raisins labeled “Bat Droppings.” Be creative and see what you can come up with.
Buy candy that you don’t like for your trick-or-treaters. If you want to stick with passing out candy for Halloween, at least choose items that you can resist. For instance, if you’re not fond of gummy worms, then pass those out. Or if you have no problem walking past a bag of chocolate covered peanuts, then that is what you should consider for your basket of treats.
Don’t buy your goodies until the day of Halloween. One of the worst things you can do for this holiday is buy your goodies in advance. This makes them even harder to resist because they are just staring you in the face and it also increases the likelihood that you’ll eat them all and have to go out and buy more anyway. However, if you delay your purchase to the day of Halloween then you will reduce your temptation period, making it easier to say no.
Remove all of the leftovers from the house immediately. Once Halloween is over, you want to make sure you get all of the leftover treats out of the house as quickly as possible. Send them home with your last trick-or-treater or take them to work the next day and let others have them. It doesn’t really matter where they go, just get them gone.
Set aside one treat for the end of the night. Remember that it isn’t one goodie or treat that is harmful to you; it is when you devour the whole bag. As long as you have a reasonable portion, then it is okay to indulge a little. You may want to wait until the end of the night to do it though so that you’re not tempted to go back for more.
Have healthy snacks available. This idea allows you to satisfy your urge to munch without doing damage to your waistline. Some great options to consider are veggies and hummus, apple slices sprinkled with cinnamon, and Greek yogurt.
Wear a costume that covers your hands. Just because Halloween is traditionally for children doesn’t mean that you can’t enjoy it too. Dress up in your favorite costume that covers your hands, making it impossible to eat during the course of the night.
Invite people over so it isn’t just you and the candy dish alone. Make it a party by having friends and family over to pass out treats with you, decreasing the amount of time that you will spend alone with your goodies and reducing the likelihood that you will eat more than you hand out.
Don’t pass out anything. Remember that you do always have the option to bypass this holiday entirely and not participate. It may not be the best option for you, but it is still an option nonetheless.
These are just a few options that will make Halloween easier to handle. What tricks do you use?