It’s that time of year again. Supermarket shelves are groaning under the weight of a thousand candy canes and you can’t turn a corner without being assaulted by the scent of tempting (but oh, so delicious) festive treats.
Yes, it’s the holiday season. And, as memories of last Christmas dance through your mind (think plates of turkey piled high with stuffing and bowls of pudding swimming in custard) the cold, hard panic of “I’ve been so good with my eating, how will I survive this month-long food-fest?” is starting to kick in. So to help you brave the invasion of sugar coated treats as they make their way from supermarket shelves into your home, I’ve put together a five-point Festive Season Survival Guide.
Are you ready to start your New Year fitter, healthier and happier than ever before?
Let’s go!
So often we think that if one is good, then ten must be better. But, when it comes to holiday treats, less is DEFINITELY more. Tune in to what your body wants to eat. Is it really eighteen chocolate Santas? Or could it be that your body is calling for some Super berry and cacao Granola Bars or some Healthy Fruit and Nut Slice? You don’t have to eat all the chocolate in the world just because it’s been moulded into the shape of Santa, cute though it may be! Chocolate isn’t going anywhere. It will still be available long after the holiday vibes have gone.
Those Festive treats will get discounted a day or so before the big event. Don’t get sucked in. You don’t need them, it’s not a bargain and you’re not saving money.
Walk on by, baby! Leave them on the shelf. Buying more sweet treats just in case you run out later has never worked in the past and it’s not likely to work now. What it will do is set you up with a belly-ache and a head full of regret. Don’t do it.
Sticking with your regular meals, workouts and meditation practices will signal to your body that everything is ‘A-Okay’ which, in turn, will help you stay in your regular daily rhythm. The minute we abandon our healthy habits, our body knows something’s up. Don’t fall for the old “It’s the holidays so I’ll eat all the festive food in the universe” mantra, believing that you can “start again” on January 1st. This is your life. You can’t “start it again”. If you normally walk the dog every morning, keep doing it. If you normally do yoga, stretch and make a healthy breakfast… then keep doing it. Let your body know that everything is in order and there is no need to skip off into Chocolate Boogie Wonderland.
F.O.M.O stands for Fear Of Missing Out. If you find yourself gravitating around the refrigerator looking for that extra slice of Christmas pudding, ask yourself if you really want something sweet to eat or do you need a little sweetness in your life? Are you eating because you’re truly hungry or because you think you won’t see pudding again for another twelve months? What is the real reason behind the pudding obsession?
Sometimes, despite our best intentions, the temptation to overindulge sinks its sugar-coated claws into us and we end up eating just a little more than we had intended. Don’t worry. It happens to the best of us. So, before you decide to polish off the remains of that honey-glazed ham, here are some tips to help you reset and recalibrate:
Set yourself free. The fact of the matter is that you are free to eat whatever you choose. Your only job here is to decide if it’s beneficial for you to do so.
Don’t beat yourself up. It’s done. And until someone invents a way to turn back the hands of time, there is ZERO point in you hating yourself or your body. Kiss guilt and shame goodbye and get empowered. Learn the lesson and move on.
And speaking of moving on… Don’t binge and don’t deprive yourself (seriously, has this EVER helped in the past?!) Stop letting food be the boss of you. Move your body. Catch up with a friend. Do something to reset your mind for success so that you can glide through the holidays on a cloud of calm control rather than a flurry of false resolutions and stale candy cane.
Got a groovy empowering habit or a snazzy way to beat the holiday binge? Post below and share the love!
Kylie Pax is an Emotional Eating Strategist, qualified Holistic Health Coach with the Institute for Integrative Nutrition in New York and holds a certificate in Weight Loss Nutrition.
Kylie is the creator of the Ditch the Diet Online Bootcamp. This unique program provides women with the tools, systems and strategies to overcome the mental challenges behind emotional eating, such as “Why is one piece of chocolate cake never enough? In fact, why is the entire chocolate cake never enough?!”
Ditch the Diet Online Bootcamp is aimed at eliminating diet drama by creating a permanent lifestyle shift. No tricks. No fads. And definitely no diets. You can find Kylie on Facebook and Instagram or visit her website.