If you are trying to eat healthier and lose a few pounds, you might approach the holidays with a slight sense of dread.
You might be worried that from Thanksgiving to New Year’s, there will be many more temptations to pull you off course, and you may be faced with gaining a few extra pounds.
If this is a concern to you, I would offer you this. Overindulging doesn’t happen TO you.
If we choose to experience the holiday season as if those temptations have control over us, as opposed to us having control over them, you might very well end up regretting some of the decisions you make.
But if we remind ourselves that food and parties don’t have the power to cause us to overeat, and that our power resides firmly in our choices, we don’t have to feel powerless in these environments.
I would encourage you to ask yourself, what foods and beverages do I love to enjoy during the holiday season, and how can I plan ahead for them?
What events do I plan to attend and what will my strategy be to avoid overindulging?
What decisions can I make ahead of time that I can feel good about that will give me a greater sense of control, like not arriving to the party starving, or deciding on the number or portion size of desserts ahead of time.
The only thing that can potentially harm you is the belief that it’s out of your control.
And you may even decide ahead of time that there are certain events that you choose not to closely monitor your choices, again, it’s a choice that YOU get to make.
Holidays are special and should be enjoyed. You are what you do MOST of the time, so remember that a few events don’t define whether you succeed or fail at your goal.
As long as we don’t buy in to the belief that there is no use trying to eat healthy during the holidays because it’s just too hard, you may be surprised at what you can accomplish.
Who knows, when we decide to keep our eye on the ball during this season, we might even drop a few pounds.