This time of year, we get a lot of nutrition advice on how to handle holiday meals. Although some of them can be really helpful strategies (check out Your Top Thanksgiving Questions Answered), when we put all of our effort into hacking these single meals, we can miss the point altogether.
The fact of the matter is our bodies are resilient and pretty freaking amazing. They can handle an indulgent meal. Trust me on this. The problem is not these individual meals. The problem is when we put pressure on ourselves to eat perfectly, fall short and then use it as an excuse to quit until the first of the year.
There are 42 days between Thanksgiving and New Year. That is 126 meals. I am not as concerned about what you eat on the special days. I really want you to focus on what you are eating at all of those meals in between.
As we talked about in Decision Fatigue, the reason that these season starts to crumble is we are spread too thin and stop doing the preventative things that make life so much easier. Things like getting to the grocery store, or getting more sleep, or making exercise a priority. So instead of putting hours of energy into how to eat only air and sadness instead of mashed potatoes, switch gears and focus on the behaviors that impact MANY meals, not just one.
If you want to make big changes you need to focus on the big picture.
More importantly, the only reason you are reading this is because you want to figure out how to eat to live the life that you want to live. That should include holidays and connecting with people you love and making pie with your kids. The idea is not to eliminate these special occasions, it is to protect them.
I hope that is helpful! We will continue to talk more tips, mindsets and strategies for the holidays, but I really wanted to make sure we didn’t lose sight of the big picture. You have a big a beautiful life and that is really something to be thankful for. Also, mashed potatoes.
