Thanksgiving is nearly upon us! Then there's Christmas, New Year's, and all the shindiggin' in between! In this post I'm going to give you a few holiday nutrition tips so that you can enjoy your festivities without the stress. This is meant to be a fun and happy time of year filled with connection with our loved ones. Let's reduce holiday food anxiety by remembering these key things:
Food is more than just fuel for your body.
There's your preferences, your family's traditions, cultural traditions, food availability, and much more that matters when it comes to what you eat. Not to mention the enjoyment value because that's important, too!
I know holiday food anxiety can be centered around the worry that you'll totally lose progress towards your health and wellness goals. The truth is that one day of relaxed eating choices is NOT going to ruin your progress. It's not going to derail you, either, as long as you simply continue your normal healthy habits the next day. Even if a couple days pass of not great eating you're one decision away (followed up by action) from getting back to healthier food choices. You DO have control.
Your self-talk matters.
This is key to letting yourself enjoy the festivities without the stress. If you're beating yourself up for getting a second plate of food or eating multiple desserts, then you're denying yourself the opportunity to enjoy what's in front of you-both the food AND the people. Plus, if you keep the crappy self-talk up that could lead to the "HECK IT" attitude where you throw it all to the wind and find yourself on the path of having to start all over again. Don't beat yourself up and feel guilty. Enjoy what you eat and remember you can go right back to healthier options the next day.
Your mindset matters.
I've already talked about this, but to really nail it in, if you have the mindset of
"I can choose differently right now"
rather than
"I haven't been perfect so I might as well give up"
then you'll be able to dive right back into your normal healthy habits so much more easily. Don't stop your overall wellness plan simply because it's the holidays. Just make modifications when necessary.
There are not "bad" foods and you're not bad for eating what you might consider a "bad" food. Some foods are simply less nutritious than others. You'll save yourself time, and make more progress, if you let go of guilting yourself about eating 2 or 3 desserts at thanksgiving dinner. It's what you do MOST of the time that has the biggest impact.
As a little side note, just because something tastes good does not mean it's super unhealthy for you. Recently someone told me that part of a diet protocol they once had was basically if it tastes really good it's automatically bad for you. This is complete and utter BS. Homemade tacos taste delicious and they're good for you.
Now that we've gone over the mindset part of things, let's talk about the actual actions pertaining to mindful eating during the holidays so you can enjoy the festivities without the stress.
These are some ways that you can make sure to not end up in that state of stuffedness that makes you feel like you're going to burst:
Eat slowly and pay attention to the taste of your food. This will help you be more aware of your hunger and fullness cues. Let's aim for satisfied and not stuffed!
Once you finish your plate allow some time to go by to see if you're truly still hungry or not.
Take a 10 minute walk after you eat to help with digestion- especially if you did end up in the "stuffed" territory.
Use your hand as a gauge for portion sizes- palm of your hand for protein, cupped hand for carbs, fist for veggies, thumb for fats.
Taken from https://www.precisionnutrition.com/hand-portion-faq
You'll find that when it comes to reducing anxiety and stress around eating at holiday shindigs it mostly comes down to your self-talk and mindset. Applying the tips up above will go a long way towards helping you to enjoy your holidays more, enjoy your food choices without guilt, and support you in staying on track with your health and wellness goals!
Комментарии