We are on the cusp of a holiday weekend making it a perfect time to check in with yourself and your health habits. Are you already on the verge thinking about how to be mindful of food choices during holiday parties… or maybe you are someone who throws all caution to the wind over the holiday only to regret it post-weekend. 

The simple truth is we live in a perfectionism-driven society. We’re led to believe that we’re either “on” or “off”. You’re following a healthy diet or you are not.

This is the black and white thinking I work with my clients to improve and today I am imparting some of those tips.

Stop thinking of food as simply “good” or “bad” and start getting more comfortable around trusting yourself around food. 

You can make informed decisions about what you eat at any one moment. 

You can eat for joy.

You can always choose again, with the next meal and the next day.

When we speak to ourselves unkindly it really does a number on us, creating mental stress, that actually inhibits proper digestion. Yup, read that again. So you eat something bad, stress about it, and then all of a sudden you feel worse, because of the mental anguish and the physical too.

We live in a culture that celebrates food. Think about all of the wonderful national foods we celebrate on Independence Day – hot dogs, BBQs, smores. Okay, do you really want to give all that up?

So some words of advice going into this holiday weekend…

• Go into an event thinking about how you want to feel. Focus on enjoying time with friends and family.
• Be mindful of food choices. Stop before you mindlessly put food into your mouth, and think, do you really want it, and if you do, eat (and digest) with joy.

I enjoy a treat daily because I can, and I choose to! I have a sweet tooth and life is too darn short! But I do make better decisions about what I choose when I do indulge. This is why it’s important to find alternatives, so you don’t feel deprived. I am always trying or inventing delicious “better for you” recipes that satisfy any craving.  I personally think they taste so much better!  

When your diet includes fat for fuel with decreased levels of sugar, even eating a sweet treat can mean you’re fueling your goals instead of hindering them. Check out all my fav sweet treat recipes here.

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