5 Happy & Healthy Thanksgiving Tips
It’s **supposed to be** the most joyful time of the year! It totally can be but we can’t ignore that the holidays can be stressful and kind of a drag if you’re not in the right head space, you get down on yourself, or your expectations aren’t met. If you experience any sense of food or body challenge during the holidays (which are totally centered around food!), use these tips to have a more enjoyable & healthier holiday:
1.Have a plan
The best way to help yourself is to go in with a solid plan. Have a plan to eat 3 nourishing meals on the holiday. To do this, you need to know what adequate nourishment looks like for you. Do you know what eating enough looks like? How about including the 5 food groups or spacing out meals? If not, I have plenty of resources for you! Get in-depth answers to the most common nutrition questions I’m asked in my virtual 3 week class. Sign up here & everything you need will be ready for you immediately after purchase. You can also read about the macronutrients here and read about more specific nutrition topics here.
2. Have ideas of appropriate table talk
Table conversation can be incredibly triggering. To avoid triggering conversations turning into a mental spiral, identify your triggers. In addition, be aware of what you’re saying as it may be triggering to someone else at the table.
Inappropriate Table Talk:
How “bad” the food is
Weight gain/loss
Being sick after the meal
The diet you’re on or going to start soon
Managing a health condition with diet
The fat, sugar, carbohydrates, calories, etc. in the meal or food
How much weight you want/need to lose
What you normally eat in a day
Exercising after the meal or because of the meal
Saying the food is heavy, fattening, greasy, gross, etc.
Saying “Ew, no I don’t eat that” - please politely decline and leave it at that
Blowing or cheating on your diet
This being a cheat day
Your lack of control around food
Other people’s health concerns
Your body and/or health concerns
Negative thoughts you have about your body
Commenting on someone else’s body that is or is not present
Appropriate Table Talk:
What you like about the food
Sharing a memory
Talking about what you’ve been up to
Talking about future plans/plans for the new year
Complimenting the chef
Making a tasteful joke
Asking others about their lives
3. Have a quick response to stand up for yourself
Know how to respond if a topic, conversation or question makes you uncomfortable or overwhelmed. You can totally protect your boundaries without being harsh or aggressive. You don’t have to explain yourself in detail but you could simply say, “This conversation actually makes me feel uncomfortable. Could we talk about something else?”
4. Normalize the meal
Feeling anxious about the meal or trying to plan everything out perfectly? Let’s let that go. Normalize this season, eating different foods, eating foods that taste good, eating foods that you might not normally eat, wanting seconds, and eating foods that are prepared by someone else. This is a normal, human, celebratory thing to do. Take a deep breath and repeat to yourself that this is ok and normal.
5. Let it be
Be present in the moment, enjoy time with your people, have the food, let it be & let it go. The above tips will help you do this. It’s hard to enjoy yourself when you’re beating yourself up over what you’re eating and your body. Stop punishing yourself for enjoying your life.