Your Holiday Eating Approach

Who’s ready for Thanksgiving!? We are smoking a duck this year.

A couple years ago, we smoked a prime rib made for a party of 12 when it was only for 2! Haha. Let’s just say we had beef the rest of the year.

It’s good to have a different approach each year, and even that can be a tradition! It’s good to explore other avenues to keep things fresh and to continue on learning your own style and mindset.

The Approach

Don’t overthink this. We’re lucky if we get 50 Thanksgivings in a lifetime, and some of those years we probably don’t remember from growing up as children. Over the years of practicing my balance of the holidays and my jeans, I have come with these mantras that have helped me stay within my lane of indulgence. I hope they will help you too!

Here’s a quick list of Thanksgiving eating mantras I’ve kept in mind:

I will eat like an adult.
Select your foods based on whole and complete foods. What does this mean? It means you don’t need to fit your whole plate full of mac-n-cheese. Take a “side’s” worth of it, eat it slow and enjoy it. I’m not saying to eliminate it, but I’m sure you’ll feel better about yourself about it!

I will use common sense.
You knowwww when you’ve had too much, you knowwww when you need to drink water! You also know that just because you skipped a meal, doesn’t mean you can make up the calories all in one go. You’ll risk overeating if you think this way. Pay attention to your gut. Hungry? Eat. Not hungry? Stop. Easy peasey.

I will eat colors.
It won’t hurt you to have a few veggies or fruit, and you’ll also feel less bad about it! This also ties into the whole and complete foods concept. This will help broaden your plate horizon and kind of a plate check – is your whole plate yellow (mac-n-cheese), white (potatoes), and brown (turkey, insert some sort of meat here)? Throw on some color (salad, collard greens, squash, insert some sort of veggie here)!

If I decide to have a treat, I will not feel bad about it.
OWN your decisions! What’s the point in enjoying it, if you’re gonna feel bad about it later? Don’t spoil it, and don’t disrespect yourself! If you know you’ll feel bad about it, don’t do it. Don’t start toxic relationships with yourself.

I will be thankful I did.
Be thankful that you did get to enjoy all the foods you wanted without the guilt. It’s the perfect balance! Live your life, but don’t break the law now!