Handling Holiday Food Tempation... Willpower Vs. Lifestlye Choices

Tis’ the season when the temptation of Holiday goodies and beverages deem too powerful and people cave in to all of their eating desires. There are those however, who claim to have incredible will power and resist the urge of treats until they just can’t take any more and cave in.

The result? Two weeks of people gorging on treats and the freak out that occurs at the scale immediately after New Year’s Day. Typically this is when my hotline begins to bling and in an instant I’m in the busy season helping clients “work off” all of the holiday cheer. What if there was another way to beat the dreaded 10 lbs from all of the feasting? What if you could actually eat, drink and be merry without gaining extra weight? Would you be interested? Of course you would! Who wouldn’t?

Is it an herb, a tea, a sleep meditation that will quell the cravings of all of those cookies? No! Of course not. The key to enjoying all of your favorite treats without gaining holiday pounds is to have a healthy eating lifestyle. Wa-wa. I bet you thought I was going to offer some magical solution. Definitely no, my friends. Going into the festivities of the season with a healthy food relationship will always be the best offense. Let me expound on this for a minute. If you practice healthy food behaviors 50 weeks out of the year, the likelihood that you fall off the wagon for two is not very likely. Your body has become accustomed to eating really healthy, nutrient dense foods and the moment you introduce those special treats the body recognizes it immediately. Some people are more intune than others of course, but trust me you’ll feel it. For example, when I eat foods with refined sugars my skin breaks out in hives and I become very, VERY itchy. I have the motive to continue eating clean while sprinkling in my favorite treats, otherwise I end up looking like a holly bush! I’ve heard people describe feeling sluggish or describe feeling hungover all of the time after indulging in not the healthiest foods.

There is a difference between lifestyle and willpower and it’s important to be aware of the difference. Willpower simply implies that you can say “no” when you want to say “yes” to that frosted cookie and spiked eggnog. By the third offering of cookies and spirits, that will power has been worn thin and the next thing you know you’ve eaten 10 cookies and gulped back a half a gallon of eggnog. Not a pretty situation. Binge eating is very real and can result from denying those tempting foods for too long. I’ve had many clients over the past that are all or nothing when it comes to eating behaviors. Hell, I’ve engaged in it! While my situation resulted in years of oscillating between Anorexia and Bulimia, it can still cause distorted eating behaviors with long term effects. Bottom line, allowing yourself to enjoy the foods you love is just as important as eating healthy 80% of the time. Willpower will only take you so far, but lifestyle will carry you through any situation. Lifestyle is when you are offered cookies and out of the three times, you take up one of those offerings and don’t feel remorse for doing so. You know that one cookie won’t break the bank and tomorrow you’ll be back on the spirit path of clean eating. Lifestyle will allow you to make better choices constantly, not just at that moment.

Changing your lifestyle will take you a long way. It’s pretty safe to assume that if you’re eating pretty clean, then you’re also engaging in other healthy behaviors such as exercising and self care. In my family, working out is always on the agenda; it's just a matter of when and where. I’m incredibly blessed to have a sister and brother in law that support healthy lifestyles. We workout together in the parking lot of our mom’s condo or at the local CrossFit gym. No matter where, workouts will happen. Better yet, our entire family knows we will be working out and respects our time to do so. Mom has even jumped on the bandwagon with us! For the past few years we have gone on nice walks in nature preserves together as a family. We have created a lifestyle that carries through the year, including holiday time. When January rolls around and I bravely get back on my scale, I know any weight gained is most likely from water retention and not necessarily from fat. Even though I indulged in birthday cake, cookies and champagne, the repercussions are small and easily rectified through clean eating and exercise. Lifestyle for the win!