5 Things You Don't Have to do to be Healthy During the Holidays

As we start to navigate into this time of the holidays there are a lot of different things that come up for each and every one of us. One of the ones that is often emphasized is the food that is going to be consumed.

There is a constant dialogue about all of the things that you SHOULD do during the holidays in order to feel your best and be considered “healthy”.

The thing is a lot of this dialogue comes out of stress and overwhelm instead of actually looking at overall health. We are here to dissect the dialogue that is out there in order to help each of us understand what will ACTUALLY support our overall body and health.

Here are 5 things that you DON’T have to do to be healthy during the holidays

Fast Before Dinner

when we restrict during the day in anticipation of a big meal it becomes a self fulfilling prophecy - if we don’t eat enough in the day, our body is going to have a physical reaction where our blood sugar drops - this leads to cravings for sugar as well as an inability to feel full as our body tries to compensate for this drop
If we let ourself get into this state it will actually lead to us overeating later in the day
When we keep our body in a nourished and balanced state during the day then when we go to eat at a meal later in the day we will be able to tell when we are full or when we don’t want to eat anymore instead of our body driving our appetite from a panic and depleted state

Avoid Social Engagements

While food can take the forefront in the holidays - it is not the only thing that is influencing our overall wellbeing. When we feel more comfortable in our bodies and more in control this is something that can influence the way that we are eating and making choices for ourselves. Make sure that you are not letting the food dictate your decision of the day. Do some things in the day to help yourself to feel good mentally so that you can feel good going into any meals. Remember that being around people that you love can be a really positive thing for us overall. It does not have the be dictated by food. Those events are nourishing for our nervous system and can lead to their own positive impacts on metabolism and nervous system function.

The most important thing to remember is that it is the little things that make the biggest difference in how you are feeling. Our health and how we feel is not all or nothing. It is a collection of all of the small things that we do each day to support ourselves. The holidays are no different.

Adopt a new way of eating - be a vegetarian, avoid carbs etc

- Often adopting a new way of eating is a way to create a restrictive mindset feel “acceptable”
- It is a way to put limitations on ourselves so that we aren’t eating things that we might “overindulge” in
- Our holiday diet DOES not need to be anything different than our day to day diet
- The holidays do not change who we are and how we have the ability to nourish ourselves
- at the end of the day you get to choose what you eat and not eat
You don’t have to have something that is going to make you feel sick just because someone else made it and wants you to
- You don’t have to eat if you are not hungry
- Even when it doesn’t feel like it you have the power to choose how much or how little you want to eat
- You have control and food does not

Over-Exercise

- The most important thing for our body and health is BALANCE
- the holidays tend to portray this idea of all or nothing
- where we always need to be compensating for the food that we are eating
- The best way to eat properly is also to support our body properly. When we overdo it with exercise this actually puts our body into fight or flight and makes us crave more sugar and carbohydrates to help get our energy back
- When we can keep our body in balance by doing activities that support our overall energy level and nervous system this can actually support a safe environment for us to decrease cravings and eat in a way that is the most supportive for us - Whether you exercise or not your body still needs food to run - non-negotiable

Skip Dessert

Restriction is not something that is easy for our body - each time we put limitations on what we are allowed to have and do there is a response in our body of rebellion. When we don’t allow ourselves to have something that we want eventually our nervous system will override us and this can often lead to binging or overeating that specific foods. When we live from a restrictive place this creates the idea that if we let ourselves have a small amount of something we will never have it again so we might as well eat it all in that moment so that we can enjoy it the most. When we give ourself permission to have something, this can actually prevent us from overheating. We have the option to have the food the next day if we want it or the day after or the day after so there is no need to have all of it today. It is okay to let yourself eat something that allows you to feel good.

At the core food is there to nourish us. The most important thing to remember is that it is the little things that make the biggest difference in how you are feeling. Our health and how we feel is not all or nothing. It is a collection of all of the small things that we do each day to support ourselves. The holidays are no different.