The holiday season brings so many opportunities to get together with the people you love, socialize, build your community, enjoy delicious foods and traditions, and celebrate various religious or cultural festivities. However, the holidays can also bring up a lot of tension surrounding food and health. Holidays can discourage many from their goals, encouraging unhealthy habits or mindsets. So how do we still enjoy the holidays without worrying about food or building harmful mentalities?
Determine your Priorities
First, you have to figure out what is it that you care about. Do you care more about maintaining your fitness goals? Being present with your loved ones? Enjoying your favorite holiday traditions? The nutritional quality of the food? In order to avoid letting food dictate your day or week, first you’ve got to figure out what you want from your day. Once you determine what you find to be important, you can let go of the things that are less important and figure out how to make the holidays work for you.
Prioritize your goals
Once you’ve established what is most important to you during the holidays, the next step is to figure out how to prioritize those things. If eating healthy and maintaining your fitness goals is most important to you, bring a dish to the dinner that you know you’ll enjoy and aligns with those goals. Prioritize the protein on your plate or the vegetables. It doesn’t have to be all or nothing. If enjoying time with your family or holiday traditions is most important to you, focus on the quality of the food you’re enjoying and the time spent with your loved ones rather than fixating on what or how much is on your plate.
Find the compromise and balance
If you were hoping to enjoy your traditions and maintain your health at the same time, there are often so many ways to make healthier alternatives to classic and traditional dishes. Sometimes, you’re not the one making the food, or you really don’t want to compromise on the quality or taste of the dishes you love. This is where finding balance becomes important – remember, it’s not all or nothing. There is no such thing as “bad” foods; fats, carbs, vitamins, and protein are all important parts of your diet. However, figuring out how to balance these nutrients, learning proper portion sizes, and taking time to savor and enjoy your food can allow you to enjoy the dishes you love without guilt or unhealthy mindsets.
Set reasonable expectations
Finally, you have to keep in mind that one day doesn’t undo weeks of progress. You may feel bloated or sick after a heavy and hearty meal, but that doesn’t mean you’ve failed or messed up in any regard. If you remain consistent in your goals throughout the week, that progress doesn’t go away because you decided to enjoy one day of holiday foods with your loved ones.
If you feel like your eating habits are out of control or you struggle with food, visit the National Eating Disorders Association website for more information.