Wedding season without starting over

What actually works

Do not arrive hungry.

Skipping lunch to 'save room' is the single most reliable way to eat twice as much at 10 pm. A bowl of curd or a glass of chaas before you leave costs about 80 kcal and changes the whole evening.

Starters are the meal.

At most Indian receptions the starters run for two hours and carry more oil than the main course. Take from the tandoor counter and let the fried tray pass.

One plate, sitting down.

Standing and grazing has no end signal. A single seated plate does.

The next morning is the lever.

Not a fast — a normal breakfast with protein, a normal lunch, extra water and a walk. Compensating with a starvation day is what turns one heavy night into a bad week.

Mithai boxes have a shelf.

The box on the kitchen counter gets eaten because it is visible. Move it, give it away, and the problem largely solves itself.