How to feel good
in Your Body
This Summer
Without Giving up what makes it fun
This isn’t about being good.
It’s about feeling good —
In your clothes, in your choices, in your life.
This guide gives you a way to move through food, plans, and summer chaos, actually feeling like yourself — without bouncing between deprivation, or starting over every Monday.
What's In
This Thing?
Intro
The gap between advice and real life
The Core Moves
Strategies for any summer moment
THE Plays
Real-life scenarios
(Cookouts, Beach Days, Summer Fridays, & Festivals)
Host Moves
Design better gatherings (without making it weird)
NOLO + Mocktails
Drink smarter without killing the vibe
Summer Classics
Summer’s favorite party foods and how to up-level
Recovery Plays
What to do when it all goes sideways
A Note
On How to Use This Guide:
Skim it. Screenshot it.
Come back when you need it.
Use what fits, skip what doesn’t.
Not a checklist - a toolkit.
Use it your way
Just please remember, this guide is for
your personal use only, and not for resale or redistribution.
Well-ish
Our word for intentional living that still
leaves room for dessert.
It’s flexible, real, and built to survive actual social
situations—not just the ones that photograph well.
It knows when to rally,
when to redirect,
and when to eat before the party.
Cookouts with nothing green but a sad veggie tray.
“Quick hangs” that stretch into five snack plates.
Drinks in hand before you’ve checked in with yourself.
Summer Brings
Energy
Possibiltiy
Play
And also: Chaos.
That's where this guide comes in.
Not a Detox.
Not a hot girl summer checklist.
A playbook for navigating the season—
without ghosting your goals or your social life.
These aren’t one-size-fits-all tips
for a perfect summer.
They’re structures. Habits. Anchors.
The kind that hold when the snacks hit early and the grill’s running late.
We've All
Heard The Tips.
The Gap Lives
Between Good
Intentions &
How Life
Actually Goes.
This Guide Was Built For This Season. But the Way It Works?
That's forever.
Core Moves
Plan like a real one.
Four solid moves to permanently stick in your toolbox.
This isn’t another set of rules. These are 4 clutch strategies you can bring to almost any social situation. Less restriction, more ways to creatively say yes.
These are foundations you’ll see show up again and again in the real-life scenarios later in the guide—because they actually hold up.
MOVE 1:
MOVE 2:
Plan for the Real,
Not Ideal, Day.
Press Pause
The most underplayed wellness move of all time? Planning.
Not setting intentions.Not manifesting good energy. Not “seeing how it goes.”
Just… planning.
This isn’t about being rigid. It’s about looking at your actual life—your real calendar, your real appetite, your real chaos—and getting honest about what it’s going to take to make it through the day without having to resort to the quick thing because you didn't have a better option.
We’ll show you what this looks like in different scenarios later in the guide.
But if you skip this step, none of the others really land.
Most bad choices don’t come from lack of willpower. They come from momentum.
You're mid-conversation, or mid-reach, or standing in the kitchen casually grazing your way through dinner before dinner even starts—and then wondering why you feel off later.This move is simple: pause.Before you grab, sip, agree, or reload, ask:
Am I hungry?
Do I actually want this - or is it just here?
How do I want to feel in an hour?
That’s it. That’s the pause.It’s not about saying no.It’s about not defaulting to yes.
You can still choose the cupcake, the cocktail, the second plate. But it’s you choosing it—not the room, the table, or the person handing it to you.
MOVE 3:
MOVE 4:
Trick Yourself
(On Purpose)
Setup Your Support
This is where you stop trying to force willpower and start working with your brain instead of against it.
You already know what happens when you eat a skimpy lunch and pretend it’ll hold. You end up snacking your way through the next six hours.
This move is about designing your plate—visually and physically—to keep you full, satisfied, and interested in what you’re eating.
You’re not “being good.” You’re being strategic.
Enter: Volumetrics
You build plates that look full. You load up on color, heat, crunch, fat, acid, herbs.
You stretch the volume of your meals by stacking non-starchy vegetables and protein so your plate feels like a full experience—not a sad diet workaround.
You’ll see it throughout this guide (and every guide) for a reason.
It tastes good. It looks good. And it works.
And over time?
You won’t need to “trick” yourself at all. You’ll just eat in a way that works.
You can have all the right intentions—but if you’re hovering in the kitchen while everyone’s passing drinks and pushing snacks, you’re not just fighting hunger—you’re fighting gravity.
In real life, you’re not just dealing with food.
You’re navigating old habits, shared routines, and people who remember a version of you that maybe you're trying to outgrow.
Support means having a structure that holds when the moment hits.
Sometimes that’s physical—like moving out of the food zone or bringing a dish you actually want to eat.
Other times, it’s relational—like setting the tone early with someone you care about, or designing a new ritual to replace the one that doesn’t fit anymore.
We go deeper on how to have those conversations in our Switch the Script quick guide.
But here's the point:
If support’s not built in, odds are you’ll default to whatever’s most familiar whether or not it still works for you.
Support doesn’t have to be loud, And it makes a difference when it's there.
See these moves in
action in our Plays section
The Plays
The Cookout 🍻
The Setup:
You’ve been invited to a backyard cookout. It’s casual. No official RSVP.
Just “swing by whenever.” You know what that means:
Hot sun, paper plates, five types of chips, maybe one sad salad, and absolutely
no plan.
The Pattern:
You don’t eat much beforehand—thinking you’ll “just have a little something there.”
You show up late, you’re hungry, and before you even make it to a seat, you’ve already had a handful of chips, a cake pop, and a drink someone handed you.
What Pulled You Off Center:
-
No real plan
-
Not being realistic about inevitable hunger + tasty looking treats
-
No buffer between how it could go and how you wanted it to go
🛠️ The Pivot
📅 **Move 1 / Plan for the actual day**
Eat a full meal with protein and greens before you go—even if it’s early. Don’t rely on someone else’s grill to align with your needs.
⏸️ **Move 2 / Take a beat**
When you arrive, pause. Grab sparkling water or say hi to a friend first. Don’t let your first interaction be with the chip bowl.
🎨 **Move 3 / Trick yourself**
Use Volumetrics to build a plate that looks indulgent—volume, color, crunch - and actually supports your rhythm. Think: burger patty, lettuce, tomatoes, onions, mustard slaw, and a mountain of grilled veggies.
📣 **Move 4 / Set up support**
Bring what you wish would be there. Bonus if it looks amazing. A “rainbow board” or protein-packed dip signals you’re not just showing up—you’re shaping the space.
The Beach/Boat Day 🏖️
The Setup:
You’re headed out for a long day on the water. Beach, boat, lake float—whatever the vibe, the core elements are the same: sun, no shade, minimal structure, and a cooler possibly packed by someone else.
You're probably in a swimsuit. You didn’t eat much before going (because, swimsuit), and you’re hoping whatever you packed—if anything—will “work itself out.”
The Pattern:
You get there feeling fine, but four hours pass in the sun, you’ve barely eaten anything real, and you’ve been sipping drinks or canned mocktails that spike your blood sugar without actually hydrating you.
Now you’re hot, shaky, irritable, and ready to eat whatever someone pulls out of a soggy Ziploc.
What Pulled You Off Center:
-
No real food packed (or nothing with staying power)
-
Dehydration disguised as hunger
-
Social pressure to match other people’s energy
-
Once again, winging’ it
🛠️ The Pivot
📅 **Move 1 / Plan for the actual day**
This is not a “play it by ear” day. Pack real food with protein and salt (not just fruit and crackers). Think: hard-boiled eggs, chicken wraps, trail mix with actual nuts—not just sweet filler.
⏸️ **Move 2 / Take a beat**
Before reaching for whatever someone offers you, ask: Do I want this, or am I just hot and empty? Drink electrolytes first, then eat.
🎨 **Move 3 / Trick yourself**
Make your beach food feel indulgent. A huge chopped salad, frozen grapes, turkey roll-ups with pickles and mustard. Pro tip: Wrap your snacks like a treat. Presentation keeps you out of deprivation mode.
📣 **Move 4 / Set up support**
Let your friend know you packed what you need. Share if you want to—but don’t rely on the group cooler unless you stocked it yourself.
Summer Fridays ☀️
The Setup:
It’s Friday. The workday is light, your inbox is quiet, and someone suggests lunch. Or happy hour. Or “just popping by” a patio spot. Next thing you know, it’s 6 p.m., you’ve had three little things but nothing real, and someone’s suggesting a second stop.
The Pattern:
You start with a drink or a snack, thinking it’s light and chill. But nothing is structured, there’s no actual meal, and the food is more of a grazing situation than nourishment.
You tell yourself you’ll eat dinner later.
But by the time you get home, you’re starving, tired, and ordering something that doesn’t feel good—because the day got away from you.
What Pulled You Off Center:
-
Unplanned social stacking
-
Not eating real food early
-
“I’ll eat later” syndrome
-
Letting the day be decided in real time
🛠️ The Pivot
📅 **Move 1 / Plan for the actual day**
If you know Summer Fridays are a thing in your world—build for them. Eat a solid lunch. Don’t go into the afternoon light on fuel.
⏸️ **Move 2 / Take a beat**
If something spontaneous pops up, cool. But check in first: What have I eaten today? Do I need something grounding before I say yes to this?
🎨 **Move 3 / Trick yourself**
If it’s just bar bites and iceberg, don’t give up—get creative. Look for protein, fiber, and anything with crunch or color. Even orange slices and bar garnish count. Work with what’s there—and if it’s dire, hit a convenience store and build your own rescue plate.
📣 **Move 4 / Set up support**
Decide your cutoff ahead of time—and stick to it. Tell your coworkers or accomplices, “I’m out by 6.” Set an alarm. Have someone call you. Make a plan that helps you leave when you said you would.
Festivals 🎫
The Setup:
Could be an evening concert in the park, a Saturday art walk, or a multi-block food and music situation. In most cases—it’s hot, unstructured, and full of sensory chaos.
There’s walking, standing, lines, smells, and usually… not a lot of real food planning.
The Pattern:
You don’t eat much before—you’re saving room, trying to stay “light,” or rushing to get ready.
You show up and suddenly everything smells amazing. You’re hungry, distracted, maybe sipping a drink, and now decision fatigue kicks in.
You grab whatever’s there. It tastes good. You overdo it.
What Pulled You Off Center:
-
No plan, 95° heat, and funnel cake fumes = game over.
-
Heat + social pressure + distraction
-
“Once in awhile” foods
🛠️ The Pivot
📅 **Move 1 / Plan for the actual day**
Eat before. Seriously. Whether it’s a 3-hour evening event or an all-day thing, show up with real food in your system. If there’s a vendor list, scan it and choose ahead of time what you’ll go for if you want to eat there.
⏸️ **Move 2 / Take a beat**
Once you arrive, hold off a second. Walk around. Grab water. Get a read on what’s actually available. Don’t lead with hunger.
🎨 **Move 3 / Trick yourself**
If you’re ordering something fun, make it look and feel like a full meal—not just handheld sugar. Get the taco plate, not just chips. Choose grilled meats or veggies over deep-fried filler. Make it colorful and satisfying.
📣 **Move 4 / Set up support**
Bring someone who doesn’t sabotage your goals, or use the Switch the Script insert to let them know ahead of time you’ll be skipping the deep-fried Twinkie this year.
