Pick A Healthier Picnic
Make the most of picnic season – the guilt-free way. Nel Staveley shares six top tips
So far, touch wood, this year’s summer has been impressive. There’s been the odd shower, but there’s been plenty of sunshine too, and hopefully it’s set to continue.
And what better way to celebrate the glorious weather than with a picnic?
And yet, according to a recent survey by Pork Farm, around five million children in the UK have never been on a picnic. That’s right. Never. Been. On. A. Picnic.
If that’s not enough to make you scrabble to the back of the cupboard for that elusive blanket/plastic glass set/hamper, then nothing will.
Except, of course, ‘picnic guilt’ – the strange unnerving feeling that however lovely it is to be outside, it’s not quite so lovely you’re eating your bodyweight in scotch eggs/getting sunburnt/generally being a bit unproductive.
But don’t worry, those niggles can be easily banished, just follow these tips for healthy and fruitful picnicking…
:: Banish over-eating guilt
Your ‘normal lunch’ is a sandwich. Your ‘picnic lunch’ is sausage rolls (3 for 2 offer), vats of dips (3 for 2 offer), crisps (3 for 2 offer) and “a few sweet things, just in case” (3 for 2 offer). Of course, a picnic should be a special event, and everyone needs some treats in their life. But it’s easy at picnics to just keep on delving into all of the packets and pots with no sense of what it’d actually look like all piled up on a plate. So go fancy; stick to what’s on your (paper) crockery and keep some sense of portion control. Packing some crudites (raw carrot, cucumber sticks, chopped peppers) and some healthy dips to nibble before raiding the crisps is a good idea too.
:: Banish over-spending guilt
In the same vein as over-eating picnic guilt, comes over-spending guilt. All those offers, all that “just in case” food, and you’ve suddenly splashed a weekly food budget on one afternoon. It might sound a little organisational overkill for what’s meant to be a spontaneous and easy activity, but before you buy, text your other picnic attendees to agree who’s buying what. Not only will you end up spending less, you’ll also not have to nibble your way through eight packets of identical sesame breadsticks.
:: Banish lazy guilt
You’ve battled through the crowds, you’re the right distance from the park toilets, and for the rest of the afternoon, you’re not moving from your perfect spot… Avoid the temptation for picnic inertia by taking along a Frisbee, a rounders bat and ball, or even just a tennis ball for a game of catch. Instilled from childhood/evolution, it’s very hard to resist seeing a ball and not “having a quick throw”. Keep this up for half an hour and you’ve burnt a couple of hundred calories.
:: Banish lazy-brain guilt
It’s not all about physical laziness with al fresco dining – you also while away half a day and yet the book/newspaper you brought along remains completely untouched. It’s a problem easily solved though; don’t take your culture on your picnic, take your picnic somewhere cultural. Great examples include the open-air cinemas, concerts and plays across the nation every the summer.
:: Banish social guilt
Everyone has that list of people they feel they “really must see”, but work/commuting/children/life inevitably gets in the way. Which is where the picnic fairy godmother floats in and waves its ‘social life sorted’ wand. Because while someone might be irked if you arranged to meet them for a drink in a pub and 25 other people were jammed round your table; they turn up at your picnic with 25 other people jammed on your blanket and they simply smile and shrug that more is merrier.
:: Banish too much booze guilt
The pros of picnic alcohol (cheaper than a bar, bigger measures and no having to wait to be served) quickly descend into cons – in other words, you’re drunk very quickly. Add to that the fact that you’ve (in theory) got the sun shining and you’re a bit dehydrated, and it’s game over. We’re not trying to trample over your fun here, but we do suggest perhaps pre-preparing a jug of Pimm’s at home rather than just slopping it in your glass when you’re there; and sometimes not slopping any Pimm’s in and just having a glass of lemonade.
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