You’ve been super diligent all year long, avoiding foods that don’t work for you and piling your plate with grass-fed meats and organic vegetables.
Then, the holidays roll around. How do you balance enjoying yourself with staying on track?
The short answer is, don’t get too wrapped up in rules around food. There’s no real benefit to stressing yourself out, and you’ll probably come out on the other side unscathed, even if you pull a “just this once” for a day.
Of course, you want to set yourself up for success.
- Bring a dish to share. Now’s the time to really show off your favorite paleo recipes. Bring something so tasty and satisfying that your relatives won’t even know that they’re eating something healthy!
- Have a good night’s sleep. It’s easier to be reasonable when you’re rested. A good night’s sleep can mean the difference between one slice of pie or three.
- Don’t judge others’ choices. Nobody wants to feel bad about enjoying themselves. If someone asks what you’ve been doing and they’re genuinely curious, that’s one thing. But “educating” people who didn’t ask can be off-putting.
- Don’t load up your host with restrictions. Just eat what you can, eat what you bring, eat what you want. Your host probably wants you to be comfortable but putting together holiday gatherings is stressful enough.
- Plan your beverages. If you’re going to consume alcohol, decide beforehand how much you’ll have. That way, you won’t go overboard and mindlessly pick at food all day.
- Also an option: throw all of your rules out of the window. Just like one green smoothie won’t make you healthy, one off day won’t unravel all of the progress you’ve made. You can get right back to it after celebration time is done.
Remember, you took your first steps toward a healthy lifestyle to make your life better, not worse. And sometimes, that means lightening up a little. The key is to have a game plan before you arrive so that your impulses don’t dictate your whole day.
We hope everyone has a relaxing, restorative holiday season!
Steve & Crew
