How Do You Handle the Nightmare of Holiday Eating?

It can be hard

I know the Winter holidays are still a little ways off, but for some reason, they always seem to creep up on you all of a sudden. Holidays can be filled with family get togethers, joy, stress, button pushing, and lots of food. If you are someone who struggles to be “good” with your eating habits, the holidays will test you, for sure.

I have tried many tactics in the past:

• starving myself before get togethers
• trying to only take a little of everything then having a little more, and a little more
• eating WAY too much and feeling like garbage afterward, both mentally and physically

As a lifelong stress eater, holidays are tough. If buttons are going to be pushed, it’s your family members who will push them. Bracing yourself with food is a tactic I have used many times over the years. Unfortunately it doesn’t keep those buttons from being pushed by the people that installed them. It only makes you feel worse and adds to your stress.

Have a plan

The only thing that I have found to keep me from overeating at holiday gatherings is having a plan. This plan involves controlling what I can control and letting go of the rest.

So what can you control?

1. Yourself and your actions.

That’s the whole list. Everything else is out of your control. You can’t control traffic, weather, or what someone else will do or say. All you can control is you. Knowing this, however, gives you the stability you need to handle the season and it’s eating uncertainty while lowering your anxiety.

Before

Before a family gathering, take some time to regulate yourself. That might look like going for a walk or getting on your yoga mat (or both). Journaling is an effective way to process any feelings you might be having, no matter what they are. Make sure you get enough sleep the night before, or nap before you go. While these won’t prevent stress from happening, it will increase your capacity to handle it.

Let go of the anticipation of the day and the stories that you create about what could happen. These things may or may not actually happen, and is a waste of your energy imagining “what if.” Things often go in ways that you could never anticipate. All you can do is focus on yourself.

Make sure you eat nourishing foods beforehand. Starving yourself before the meal only leads to eating too much later, and feeling like crap. Eating normally gives you more control when you get to the gathering because you aren’t empty. This also adds to feeling regulated and calm. Feeling starved only adds to your stress.

Think up ways you will handle challenging family members. Just because it’s the holidays doesn’t mean you need to give them all of your attention. You can talk to “Aunt Betty” for a few minutes then excuse yourself and walk away. Alternatively you can give her a nod from across the room then turn your back to talk to someone else. Avoiding her completely is also a valid option if spending time with her stresses you out.

During

As an introvert who gets drained by “peopling” for too long, having an out helps keep my stress levels down. Stress is the #1 thing that will make you eat more than you want to, so managing your stress is your priority.

Duck out into the bathroom or an empty room for 10-15 minutes and recharge your batteries in the silence. Make your own wellbeing a priority over the comfort of your family members. It’s okay to take a break if that’s what you need. Doing it multiple times may allow you to spend more time with your family in a way that feels nourishing instead of draining.

Look at the food spread ahead of time. You can ask your host what they plan on serving to give yourself an idea of what to expect. This allows you to let go of worrying so that you can deal with what’s actually there. If there will be foods you have trouble saying “no” to, that’s fine. Take a little and try to sit at the opposite end of the table or room from them. If they are near you, pass them to the other end, or move them into the kitchen away from arm’s reach.

While it can be challenging when there are conversations going on, try to apply mindfulness to eating. Eat slowly and chew your food well. Tasting the delicious holiday food will help you eat less of it because you will derive more satisfaction from each bite. We eat too much when we’re not paying attention to the food or how we feel. Pause periodically and notice if you are still hungry or are done eating for now.

After

Most importantly, know that this is just one day. One day of overeating won’t undo your regular healthy diet. Whether you ate a reasonable amount, way too much, or somewhere in between, it’s one day out of the year. If you add up all the holidays where you might encounter unhealthy food, it might be 10 days total out of 365.

Having this perspective might allow you to enjoy the day with less stress about ruining your health. Deriving joy and pleasure from food is your right as a human being. What matters is that you allow yourself this pleasure without guilt or shame.

Once the day is over, take note of how it went. What could you have done differently? What made things easier for you? I find mindset is everything when it comes to managing things that throw off your normal schedule. The more you can control what you can, the easier it is to let go of the things you can’t.

Support before the holidays

Intentional Eating: Finding Peace and Balance in Your Relationship with Food starts in 2 weeks! Get mindset support before the holidays so that you feel more in control during what can be the most stressful time of the year. This 6 week online coaching program is limited to 5 people to provide a supportive environment to discuss your current relationship with food and cultivate a better one.

Explore your causes of emotional eating and learn practical strategies to have more control over your eating habits. Discover the best foods for your body and how to have great energy every day. Let go of shame and guilt and feel confident in your choices. Cultivate kindness and compassion for yourself.

I realized how I let other family members have their preferred menu/food while I subjugate my preferences, then — amazingly enough — feel deprived. ~CM

The biggest shift in behavior has been better weekly planning. Shopping and cooking with a plan and intention has made the week less stressful when it comes to food choices. ~RB

Anyone who would like to engage with a knowledgeable leader and like-minded women about ways to think about our healthy and not-so-healthy mindsets related to food would get a lot out of this program. Janine fostered a supportive environment where we felt comfortable to share the “stuff” — patterns, experiences, fears — and provided practical ways to shift our beliefs and behaviors. I’m excited to have a more informed perspective on how yogic principles can be applied to food and have been able to apply them to other aspects of my life. ~KP

Click the button below for more information or to sign up! We start Wednesday, September 24th at 7:30pm ET.