Healthy Holiday Habits

It's that time again! The holidays are just around the corner. Many of you are already anticipating not fitting into your clothes starting around Thanksgiving. If you are one of those people who believe that there must be a better way than eating your way from Thanksgiving through the New Year, this information is for you.

The following tips are designed to enable you to feel on top of your health, food, and body game at a time when it appears that cookies, cake, and pie are everywhere you turn. However, a little control, a little technology, and some positive self-talk can make a big difference. At the end of the day, feeling better and more optimistic about the choices you make and your ability to produce results will be a wonderful addition to the holiday cheer that you share with your family and friends.

1. Be as aware as you possibly can around food. Bring conscious attention to your thoughts and actions. Avoid "going unconscious" and slipping into unwanted behavior that will bring unwanted results. Pay attention. This is also called "mindfulness."
2. Visualize during a portion of every day the healthy, fit, in control person living in your body that you want to be. Use these images of you in your beautiful body to get you through a room full of desserts and other people eating. (It's okay to even be a little big smug about this, but just to yourself.)
3. Know that just because you start eating does not mean that you cannot stop. With practice, a few bites can satisfy you, and you can stop at that. Avoid having a meal become a run-away train of uncontrolled eating. Learn to throw a mental switch that signals you are complete.
4. Listen to your self-talk.
5.  Hear yourself making encouraging remarks to guide you through a health-oriented holiday season. By the same measure, notice any self-destructive self-talk, which is just as useful to be aware of. If you hear yourself saying that what you eat doesn't matter, as an example, catch the thought and rethink it. Train yourself to be aligned in your thoughts and your goals. Loving thoughts yield loving actions. Determined thoughts yield determined actions. "I am in control of my food choices" is a good place to start.
6. Move! Exercise! Stay active! This is important with the demands on your time and the changes to your routine. If you find yourself saying that you can't get outside because you only have 15 minutes, go take the 15 minutes and walk briskly. Take the dogs out more. Find excuses to move, rather than making excuses not to do so. Notice how you feel when you do exercise and let those inevitable good feelings guide you to take action, literally. The difference between no movement and fifteen minutes is significant.
7. Choices, choices, choices. Do you really need that bread on top of the mashed potatoes and gravy? Wasn't one dessert plenty? Do you really need more? Ask yourself what choice would serve you and your body best. Learn to have this intelligent dialog with yourself. Instead of going on auto-pilot and reaching for seconds on dessert, pause and remind yourself that one is plenty.
8. Be careful around the social aspect of eating. Just because you enter a room where everyone is eating, it may not be time for your body to take in more calories. Have some bubbly water, which is extremely refreshing and be careful to avoid piling more food on to an already full belly. Be your own boss around what you eat and avoid succumbing to peer pressure. Be prepared for the family member who makes sure that everybody is eating enough when you are not hungry.
9. Tune-in to your body. With practice you will learn that feeling stuffed is not worth it. Eat for nourishment and enjoyment, but do not over do it. Eat slowly, sensuously and with mindfulness so as to be more sensitive to cues that you are approaching fullness. Enjoying and savoring your food more means eating to overeat less.
10. Have an occasional meal replacement. Left over pumpkin pie for breakfast is really not worth it. A protein smoothie will make you feel a lot better. Even with a house full of rich holiday foods, you have every right to eat your yogurt and blueberries instead of something far richer just because it is in sight.
11. Take your nutritional supplements. This is especially important if your diet is temporarily compromised. You should be nourishing your body always. Daily. You are worth it.
12. You can choose "correction mode" with no stress or beating yourself up. The hours following, or the day following what you feel may have been over-indulgence, can be a wonderful time to honor your body with healthy habits. This is most effectively done while avoiding any punishment or criticism toward yourself. Keep it positive when you choose to make a correction. "I choose to correct now" is better than blame or harsh words to yourself.
13. It always adds to your overall success during the holidays to make food choices based on health and nutrition. This is true even if some of your selections are less than desirable. You can make a difference without being perfect! An apple or a piece of fruit even once when cake and pie are offered counts. Each healthy choice counts! Even if your eating patterns change during the holidays (which they most likely will), selecting food based on artery-friendly fats (instead of trans-fats), whole grains (instead of processed foods), fresh, whole foods (instead of low-grade "junk" food), a nibble of dark chocolate (instead of the heavy duty desserts), sparkling water (instead of eggnog) will add up to a successful, beautiful, healthy you during the holidays, and you will feel even more terrific about yourself.
14. Focus on what you want to create rather than on depriving yourself of what you cannot have. This shift in mindset will help you enjoy holiday eating and celebrating more than if you dwell on deprivation, or what you cannot have.
15. Drink plenty of water. This will make a world of difference to stave off socially induced hunger. It also gives you something to enjoy with your mouth.

Here's to the healthiest holiday season ever. You can do this. You are worth it. The world is a better place when you take better care of yourself. You may even inspire others, which would be an exceptional gift to give those you love. Being a role model for others often reinforces your own good habits. 'Tis the season to be healthy!

Rosie Bank has been helping people live more successfully in their bodies for her entire career, which began in 1975. For over thirty years she was a body-oriented therapist (Rolfer), yoga and movement teacher.

 Since 1999 her expertise has been in weight management and nutrition. Rosie is a Certified Nutrition and Wellness Consultant (AFPA) and maintains a practice, counseling groups and individuals in person and via webinars. Rosie's monthly webinar is entitled Feel Great Lose Weight. She has an on-line, self-guided Health Assessment and Advisor that is excellent for showing her clients what direction they might take to address health goals and health concerns.