At this time of year, there’s a question on many women’s lips.
“What can I do to avoid the dreaded holiday weight gain?”
Firstly, I encourage you to question the idea that it’s “compulsory to gain weight over Christmas”.
Remember, our unconscious mind always seeks to prove us right. So, if you’re telling yourself it’s inevitable, guess what, you’ll prove yourself right.
Now here are three practical eating tips to help you navigate the festive season:
1. Enjoy your favourite foods
There’s this crazy idea that if we’re carrying additional weight, then we need to avoid the crisps, the chocolate, the sweets – all those Christmas yummies.
But those foods are not just for slim people.
And we know very, very well, that when you tell yourself you mustn’t have certain foods, we crave them because what we repress, becomes the obsessed.
So eat your favourite foods. But eat them in moderation, savour them, and really enjoy them.
Do not push them away. That’s when overeating, bingeing and feeling out of control becomes part of your holiday experience. So enjoy your favourite foods.
2. Stay mindful when you eat
Nothing will make you gain weight more quickly than if you eat when distracted or doing something else, like watching telly.
Make sure you pay attention to your body. Are you eating because you’re tummy-rumble hungry or are you eating “just because it’s there”?
Your body isn’t a rubbish bin, and tossing food into her when she doesn’t need it is a form of self-harm.
3. Aim to be the last to finish at the table
Not because you’re eating the most in quantity but because you’re eating the most slowly.
I encourage you to make it a competition in your own mind – to be the last to finish. Nobody else needs to know.
By eating slowly, it helps you to tune into your tummy so you know when she’s satisfied.
Bonus tip: Stop eating to make other people happy.
I know it sounds crazy, but so many of us women do. We’ve been conditioned to placate other people by eating what’s put in front of us.
By doing this, we ignore our body’s “no” (just to make other people feel comfortable.)
Remember, you’re not four years old anymore. You don’t have to eat two pieces of Aunt Murriel’s cake to validate her baking skills. Listen to YOUR body!
Have a super Christmas lovely and enjoy time off with family and friends or whatever it is you’re doing. I’ll see you next week for another making peace with food tip.
If you want to re-learn how to listen to your body and step into the new decade feeling confident and control around food, virtual gastric band hypnosis can help.
C’mon over to Lighten Up.
