Diet Survival for the Holidays
The holiday season can be a month-long minefield of temptation. Starting on Thanksgiving day, it seems that mounds of food can appear out of nowhere and sit there seductively on platters and fancy canape plates, just waiting for you to succumb to their gravitational pull.
And after Thanksgiving has come and gone, the Christmas cookies and fudge and little gift wrapped fruit cakes start to pop up from every turn. Even at work, it seems that everywhere you turn are baskets of sparkly, sweet smelling goodness and freshly baked treats. I can dodge the cookies, but I get stopped dead in my tracks by ribbon candy. I can't walk by it. I have to lift the lid and marvel at all the pretty colors and wonder aloud about the flavors. I can't decide whether I want lime or peppermint or maybe that dark red striped one that I can never identify.
Part of the problem is that most of these wonderful foods only appear once a year. If you don't eat them now, you won't see them again until next year. But just because cut-out cookies and ribbon candy are rare and elusive treats doesn't mean I have to eat all of them whenever I see them. I have to decide what is essential. Family is important. Gathering together is also important. Celebrating the reasons for the season is vital.
Can all the hard work I do all year for my health be undone with a single cookie? No. So I'll pace myself and maybe try a small piece of a few things here and there. Just enough to feel included. I don't want to be spartan about it. I just want to keep my focus on being healthy. I'll celebrate my friends and family. I'll take more walks and get out into the fresh winter air. I'll balance the sweetness with healthy choices like salads and vegetables. And as for the ribbon candy? I'll just back away... just back away.
photo by Emiliano Spada
Comments
Wonderful article and although I don’t celebrate the holidays the temptations are a daily occurance. Wish you well on staying healthy and keep them coming.
Remember how mom spent the night before and all day during the holiday preparing all those fancy dishes and festive treats. Do you also remember how she usually wasn’t very hungry when we all sat down to eat.
She would tell us it was because she had worked around the food so much she was no longer hungry.
I believe you hit the nail on the head with your “Spartan” comment. I believe mom was basically full because she was testing and tasting small snips and bits as she cooked to see if it was just right. She in effect was eating many small meals without knowing it and ended up no longer hungry.
There may just be a big lesson here to be learned about what really is the best diet plan around.
Thanks for your insite and happy holidays.