It’s Christmas week again. Didn’t we just have that?! The time just flies the older I get.
Anyway, we hosted my side of the family over the weekend. 17 people in the house means a lot of food is around. We keep the main food bar full of healthy options, but there are trays of goodies and many choices of alcoholic beverages. I am a health nut, I am a nutrition coach, I am a fitness trainer, but I am a human being that likes an indulgence once in awhile. When there are many options of a peanut butter-chocolate combo, I feel like a magnet just pulls me over there, and I have to make a decision. “Choose wisely” is what I hear in my head. “Enjoy.” So, I do. A little bit. And then, I move on.
It used to be, in my formerly overweight-don’t-care-what-I-eat phase of life, that I’d visit the goodie section every time I walked by. Or, I’d eat until I was way too full. Mindless. Who knows how much I ate? Now- I’ve worked way to hard to just blow it and also feel miserable later from overdoing it. These days, I try to teach my kids some level of self-control and choice.....”If you eat too much, how does that feel?” Or, “Oh, you don’t feel good right now? What do you think caused that?”
I recently read an article about a woman that lost a tremendous amount of weight and she learned this strategy from her coach: “When in a tempting situation, I make myself STOP. CHECK IN with myself and my thoughts. CHALLENGE myself on what I want to do and why. And, MAKE A CHOICE.” Fantastic, right?
Have an indulgence meal. Enjoy yourself without the guilt, but know what you are doing. Make choices. Know what it feels like and what you may do differently going forward. Be aware and mindful- “Is this worth it?” YOU are worth it.
