Is It Okay to Indulge in the Array of Different Foods During the Holidays? By Susan Gazerro
By Susan Gazerro
Allowing yourself to indulge or cheat over the holidays really shouldn’t impact your weight at all. Giving up on your healthy habits for just one day isn’t going to cause weight gain, although you’ll probably feel bloated and tired. In the days leading up to the holidays, especially Thanksgiving, social media, television, newspaper, and magazines are flooded with advice on how to not overeat. They reiterate how to stay healthy when you’re tempted by carbs, salty and sugary foods like stuffing, sweet potato casserole, and pie. Let’s be realistic, the holidays are centered around sharing food with family and friends. You eat delicious foods you don’t otherwise eat on a daily basis. You should be able to enjoy the holiday without the guilt, but keep it to just that one day. You must wake up the next day and say “yes, I feel bloated so I’m getting back on track today.” You shouldn’t feel defeated. If you do, those leftover Christmas cookies will be calling 34 Shop In RI
you, putting you on a downward slide. I don’t like diets, but this is almost like the “fasting diet.” Fasting diets are those where people choose six hours in the day in which they can eat anything and everything they want, then fast for the other eighteen hours. Think of the holiday as having whatever you want, but you must get back on track the next day. Now contradictory to what I just wrote, my suggestion and what I prefer, is choosing one indulgence and filling the rest of your plate with veggies and other healthy foods. You can truly eat all you want if you are not eating carbs and sugar. Pick one indulgence and the rest of the plate should be healthy foods. However, if you are disciplined and eat healthy on a regular basis the rest of the year and can stay disciplined after the holiday, there’s no reason to “say no” to the different types of carbs or desserts being passed around the table. In fact, allowing yourself to indulge over the holiday really
