Navigate the Holidays without Gaining Weight
What are your favorite holiday foods?
Do you ever feel guilty about eating those dishes? Or, do you deny yourself food on holidays and feel resentful that you are missing out?
I’ve been there and it’s not a good place. You might feel like you are standing outside looking in to the gathering—not fully immersed or present in what is going on because you are so concerned about calories.
You are a hardworking, roll-up-your-sleeves kind of parent. You of all people deserve to enjoy all the aspects of the holidays, especially the food! I want you to savor the special days ahead (and your favorite dishes) by using the principles of intuitive eating.
Intuitive eating is a non-diet approach to help you create healthy food habits—even during the holidays. Even more, intuitive eating encourages you to never feel guilty about your food choices or bad about eating again.
Let’s look at three principles to help you successfully navigate the holidays with intuitive eating.
Principal #1 Make Peace with Food
Give yourself unconditional permission to eat. That’s right: call a truce and stop the food fight!
If you tell yourself that you can’t or shouldn’t have a particular food, it can lead to intense feelings of deprivation that build and build, resulting in uncontrollable cravings. Then, the cravings turn into “giving in” and binge eating those forbidden foods. The result is overeating and overwhelming guilt.
So, when the food is ready (and good job getting the food hot and on the table at the same time) don’t survey the options and think, “I could never eat that” or “That’s just for the kids.” No, with intuitive eating, you can enjoy the mashed potatoes or pumpkin pie (with whipped cream) along with your family.
Don’t feel guilty about your food choices; instead, eat and enjoy those special holiday foods!
Principal #2 Listen to your Body
I want you to discover the “Satisfaction Factor.” The Japanese promote pleasure as one of their goals of healthy living. In our fury to be thin and healthy, we often overlook one of the most basic gifts of existence—the pleasure and satisfaction found in an eating experience.
When you eat what you really want, in an environment that is inviting and conducive, the pleasure you derive is a powerful force that helps you feel satisfied and content. By embracing the experience, you will find that it takes much less food to decide you’ve had “enough.”
Listening to your body might take practice. Rather than racing through your meal just in case one of your kids needs you or there is some task in the kitchen, slow down. Those things can wait while you enjoy your meal, be present in the moment, and stay attuned to your body.
During the holidays, take pleasure in your food and your environment. Then listen to your body when it tells you that it is satisfied.
Principal #3 Honor Your Feelings Without Using Food
Along with joy and excitement, the holidays can also trigger negative emotions—like anxiety, loneliness, boredom, and anger. Over time we develop certain ways to cope. Some of which may be unhealthy or unhelpful, creating a domino effect of other negative feelings.
It is essential to have a strategy to navigate these feelings and find ways to comfort yourself, nurture your emotions, and resolve your issues without using food. Ultimately, food won’t fix any of those feelings. It may comfort or distract you in the short term, but food won’t solve the problem. If anything, eating to satisfy emotional hunger will only make you feel worse in the long run.
Rather than using food, think of healthier ways to mitigate your stress, anxiety, and anger like getting good sleep, exercising, taking a long walk, journaling, talking with a friend or professional counselor or prayer/meditation.
If your stress is coming from all the extra “work” surrounding the holidays, get your kids involved! Turn doing dishes into a dance party (hey, that exercise and family time), let the kids help with the cooking (sure, it will be messy—but fun), and see who can pick up the most toys in the shortest amount of time before the guests arrive!
Intuitive eating allows you to trust your instincts and form new, better habits. Now, gather your family and friends and go enjoy those holiday meals!