How to Survive the Holidays

Nov 26, 2020
4 min read

I’ve joined a lot of Facebook Groups over my “dieting” years. I’ve joined Law of Attraction groups that speak all about manifestation and what’s worked for others, Calorie Counting groups that share the best low-cal replacements for favorite foods, and so many more that I’ve unfollowed and refollowed – only to unfollow again. However, each of these groups are asking the exact same question in a panic:

"How Do I Survive the Holidays?!"

Well Lazy Girls, for the ones that don’t want to read a long blog post, I’ll give you the short and sweet answer to this popular questions – you don’t.

Yep! That’s the cold hard truth, you don’t. You can exit off this page, scream screw it, and go eat that pumpkin pie with extra whipped cream!

Alright, in all reality, there are ways you can survive the holidays – but in all honesty, do you really want to? Why stress your mind over the worry of calories, sugars, carbs, and sodium? Why deny grandma’s award winning stuffing because you can’t possibly know how many carbs are in each bite? Why pass up the homemade apple pie that your aunt only makes once a year, simply because you’ll go over your limit?

You don’t.

You eat the delicious turkey, pie, and obviously as many King Hawaiian Rolls you can fit onto your plate.

You’re going to wear the loose jeans that are specifically for the holiday season, you’re going to wear the oversized – but super cute sweater, and you are going to enjoy yourself! I promise you, one (two or three- depending on which holiday’s we’re talking here) will not ruin all of your hard work. I promise you!

Here are some tips I have to surviving the holidays:

1. Intuitive Eating!

Intuitive eating simply means, eating when you’re hungry. If you want dinner, you eat it. If you want dessert, you eat it. You eat whenever you want. However, you don’t over eat. Don’t stuff yourself so full that you can’t move for the next three hours. Thanksgiving is all about left overs Lazy Girls, so pack that to-go plate high!

2. Drink that Water!

First off, definitely enjoy the wine and homemade cocktails your family is serving up on Turkey Day, but also - drink that water!

3. Chew, Swallow, Breathe – and then go for more!

Man O’ Man! It’s Thanksgiving and you know Uncle what’s-his-name will eat all of the mashed potatoes if you don’t grab some right now! I get it, but you don’t have to eat it right now! Chew, swallow, take a breath, and then go for your next bite. Your body takes a bit to digest and understand that it’s full! The slower you eat, the more you can avoid over eating. So, enjoy the time with your friends and family. Take part in all of the silly conversations, catching up, and laughter that is surrounding you!

4. DO NOT WEIGH YOURSELF TOMORROW!

LAZY GIRLS! PUT DOWN THE SCALE! You will send yourself into a deep feeling of regret and failure if you step on that scale. Listen up, I’m not saying this because I believe you will gain six pounds of fat overnight, I’m saying this because you will gain six pounds of water weight overnight. With the amount of alcohol, sugar, salt, etc., that will be consumed the day before – your body will bloat like a puffer fish! So hide that scale and take out your credit card. Go shopping all day and watch a movie at night. We aren’t weighing ourselves until next week (or next year).

5. Enjoy yourself!

As mentioned above, you won’t survive the holidays the way you’re planning to and that is perfectly okay! Enjoy your family, your friends, and the food! Let yourself be free. Let yourself live in the moment. When tomorrow comes, you jump back on board – only to jump right off on Christmas Eve! With the craziness of the world today, you do not want to worry about your weight – you want to worry about the memories you’re making with your loved ones. Trust me, Lazy Girls, the weight-loss process is a journey, not a race. You will only succeed if you create a sustainable diet. Skipping every birthday, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter, Halloween, Fourth of July BBQ – etc., will kill your mental health! As I like to say, your mental health is just as important, if not more, than your physical health. So live in the moment, then read my 10 Things You Can Do Right Now post to get you back on that wagon tomorrow.

I couldn't end this post without sharing my favorite holiday tips from FitFatandAllThat!

EAT breakfast and lunch, even if you plan on having a big Thanksgiving dinner, otherwise this can lead to overeating and binging behaviors ⁣
You still need to eat Friday, even if you ate a lot Thursday
You don’t have to workout today OR tomorrow, OR the next just because you’re enjoying Thanksgiving dinner, you don’t need to earn your food and “burn” it off ⁣
If someone makes a comment about your body, what you’re eating, or anything related to your appearance or you that you ain’t vibin’ with, you have permission to advocate and stand up for yourself ⁣
No need to feel guilty or shameful for resting and indulging, it’s the holidays and they are meant to be enjoyed! ⁣
Remind yourself you’re a bad ass bitch and you cute ⁣