Summer brings up special memories for a lot of people. Memories of fireworks, of long days at the beach, and of warm nights with friends. All too often those summer memories are associated with foods, and that can make a trip down memory lane just as dangerous as a trip to the local buffet.

Food always has a way of providing comfort and bringing people together, but when you are trying to get healthier and are working with a medical weight loss program, allowing that food to take control of your nostalgia is not a good thing. Every season has its special meals that bring temptation alongside memories. From the cookies and cakes of the winter holidays to the sweets at the summer barbeque, learning how to avoid those temptations can help you maintain a healthy weight level year round.

How to Make Summer Healthier

The sweets of summer do more than bring back memories. A nice tall ice cream cone on a hot summer day helps to cool you down, and satisfies your sweet tooth. In Los Angeles, cooling down on a hot summer day is often hard to resist.

Rather than fight the summertime sweets, it is a better idea to find healthy alternatives that you can enjoy all season long. Here are a few ideas to help you resist the temptations:

• Try fresh fruit: There are plenty of summertime sweet fruits, like watermelon and berries that are much healthier than an ice cream cone. For an icy treat, throw grapes or berries in the freezer and then take them on the go for something to munch on.
• Erase the frosting: If you are going to have a little bit of cake at one of the many summer barbeques, try cutting down on the sugar and calories by knocking off the frosting before you take a bite.
• Cut down on the sauces: Speaking of barbeque, you may not realize that brown sugar is one of the most key ingredients in most barbeque sauces. You can keep to your medical weight loss diet much easier with a piece of grilled chicken by skipping the BBQ sauce that often gets draped over it.
• Say no to alcohol: There are two reasons that cutting out a drinking habit is a good idea during your weight loss program. To start, every beer you drink packs a lot of sugar and calories. Secondly, once you have a few beers, you are a lot more likely to make food choices that you might not make without the beverage’s influence.

Staying conscious of the tempting treats this summer can help you to avoid falling into another seasonal trap of extra calories. If you are ready to get moving more this summer, switch the sedentary barbeque atmosphere into a friendly game of football or soccer!