You don’t overeat all week.  You even lost a pound!  But now it’s Friday Night and the toughest two days known to dieters are about to start.  The

strategy?  Plan ahead just as you would during the work week.  Here’s how to eat, drink and be wary (even on Saturday night.).

IN THE DRINK Don’t think of Friday’s 5 p.m. get together with friends as just an appetizer:  Consider it dinner and make it a slim one.  If you must sip spirits, go with a wine spritzer (55 cals.) or a light beer (65 cals.), followed by a diet soda, sparkling water or club soda with lime (1 cal.).  Set yourself a four-drink maximum:  two alcoholic, two non.

For hors d’oeuvres, much on plenty of veggies (carrot sticks, broccoli, endive, green, red and yellow peppers, etc.)  dipped in spicy mustard, salsa or cocktail sauce–for example, two chicken kabobs (80 cals.), two tiny pizza rolls (70 cals.) and two bread sticks (50 cals.).  A few slices of apple, a handful of grapes, or a sweet pineapple ring (30 cals. per choice) put your happy Hour calorie tab at a mere 394 to 414.

GETTING A GRILLING  Coping with a Saturday-evening cookout is simple if you make your two earlier meals low in calories.  A cup of whole-grain cereal, half a banana and a cup of low-fat milk make a light (259 cal.) but satisfying breakfast.  Lunch-a slim sandwich like turkey, lettuce and tomato on rye, with plenty of mustard and just a dab of mayo (225 cals.)  fills you up, but still leaves room for the P.M.  To help take the extra edge off your appetite, sip plenty of club soda or diet soda throughout the day.

At the barbeque itself, set a 700-cal. limit.. definitely not a mission impossible if you listen to this advice:

·         Don’t show up ravenous.  Eat a piece of fruit of half a bagel about an hour before the party.

·         Offer to bring food and/or drink–then make your contributions diet-right.  Idea: Buy soft corn tortillas, cut them into ten triangles each, bake in a 350 degree oven on a cookie sheet until slightly crispy.  Each chip is a measly 6 cals.

·         Stay sober.  Alcohol, which stimulates the appetite, can relax you so much that you may lose eating control.

·         Forget about hotdogs and greasy ribs.  Better:  A barbequed chicken breast (sans skin) is only 140 cals., while a grilled burger piled high with lettuce, onion and tomato–tallies a low 275 cals.  If you’re throwing the party, prepare low-calorie chicken by removing skin, brushing with barbeque sauce and baking in a 350 degree oven for 30 mins.  Dab on more sauce and grill out doors for 30 additional minutes.

·         If you must have dessert, a slice of fruit pie– without the crust– has only 125 cals., and watermelon (a forever summer favorite) packs only 110 cals. per hefty wedge.

IT”S NO PICNIC  Don’t be a pig on a blanket.  Instead of buying fries from the beachfront food stand, try these recipes for a take along Sunday lunch.

The day’s deli special:  Bring some of last night’s leftover grilled chicken or hit the local delicatessen up for turkey-ham or turkey-pastrami (only 35 cals. a slice).  With a hard roll, lettuce, tomato and mustard, this sandwich is a real diet steal for 250 cals.

Bearing fruit:  Brown-bag homemade fruit salad (add a little club soda for extra tang); one cup is about 60 cals.  Or tote some nonfat yogurt (90 cals.) and stir in a few fruit slices.

Pasta-bilities:  Avoid mayo-based salads they’re high in fat and spoil too easily in the hot sun.  This vegetable-pasta recipe is a alternative that’s safe for your shape:  Heat up a package of Oriental-style frozen vegetables and toss with cooked corkscrew pasta.  Citrus on the rocks:  Slim down a classic warm-weather cooler by squeezing fresh lemon juice into mineral water and adding either a teaspoon of sugar or a packed of artificial sweetener.

TRADE SECRETS  We think it’s a fair exchange:  First you do the exercise, then you reward yourself with one of these definitely undietetic summer snacks.  (Just remember: Don’t eat what you haven’t already earned once you postponed your workout, you may be tempted to skip it altogether.)

·         1 hour walk on the beach-1 cup bannana daiquiri (249 cals.)

·         30 minutes lap swimming-5 T chocolate fudge (285 cals.)

·         1 hour bicycling-10 fried onion rings (350 cals.)

·         1 hour playing singles tennis=1 vanilla shake (355 cals.)

·         2 hours mountain climbing=1 pint Haagen-Dazs ice cream (1000 cals.)

·         1 hour roller skating=1 cup guacamole & 10 tack chips (520 cals.)

·         30 minutes scuba diving=1 slice cheese pizza (187 cals.)

·         1 1/2 hour canoeing=9 fried oysters (735 cals.)