Dear Basya,

Now that Shabbos is ending earlier, I want to know what to do about melave malka. Motzei Shabbos is a time that my whole family gathers together, which of course means FOOD! How am I going to resist all the pizza and French fries, bagels, cream cheese, cheesecakes and other treats? I don’t want to start gaining back the weight I lost!

Dear Nervous,

Winter Shabbosim are here, which means long Motzei Shabbos, but it also means no more endless Fridays! This should make your weekend feel more manageable because most people will be pleasantly surprised at how much easier it is to stick to their food plan over Friday and Shabbos. And after a great Shabbos you are less likely to want to mess everything up by overindulging on Motzei Shabbos.

On our plan we allow one slice of pizza per week, so many people save their slice of pizza for after Shabbos. We also allow a treat, so people save this treat for their melave malka as well. A big salad, a slice of pizza, and a diet ice cream is a great meal that will leave you satisfied and not feeling deprived. If you don’t want to eat pizza, or are afraid that you won’t have the self control to stop at one slice, you can make a homemade pizza using a low-calorie wrap, sauce, vegetables and an ounce or two of low-fat cheese, depending on your plan. Diet drinks and a bowl of vegetable soup can help fill you up as well.

Get into a good Motzei Shabbos routine early on in the season so that it will become a habit for you. Good luck!

Basya Kovacs is a nutrition counselor at Nutrition by Tanya, and is the manager of multiple locationsincluding the Monsey and Clifton locations. Nutrition by Tanya offers personalized and practical weight management and nutrition counseling for men, women, and children, with thirteen locations as well as a full line of food products, personal training, life coaching and even a cafe! The newest edition to the TAP product and service line is Cooking with Tanya, our beautiful full colored cookbook, available wherever Jewish books are sold. The office can be reached at 844-TANYA- DIET.