I was reading a bunch of articles the other day about holiday eating habits and how to keep on track with your fitness and nutrition during the winter season. Like many articles I have posted myself, they all preached moderation, gave workout suggestions, and listed “this vs. that” food choices. While these are helpful and should be put into your arsenal of tools for the holidays, they all seemed to just be telling you how to eat and ways to avoid bingeing. However, amidst this plethora of articles, I stumbled across one by R.D., Lisa Moskovitz, that truly caught my eye. It offered some advice that was less about combatting cravings and tricking yourself into not eating, and more about living honestly. It was about letting go of our guilt!
Now, this may seem like a one way ticket to ‘binge-town’ but actually it can keep us on the right track both physically and mentally. Lisa Moskovitz, R.D., CEO of NY Nutrition Group says hr one rule during the holidays is to “nix the guilt”. Then it comes to the holiday season, or any time of year for that matter, don’t feel guilty about having dessert, or some extra stuffing. Why? Guilt actually can breed even more unhealthy habits. Think about it like this, have you ever caved and had a slice of pizza then felts guilty you actually had more pizza? I know I have. Why? It’s because we stress ourselves out worrying about what we have done, and comfort our depression and disappointment by continuing the negative habit. Bad news.
So this New Year, let yourself be ok with indulging a little and keep a clear head about it. Give yourself permission to enjoy, and use it as extra motivation to get back into the fitness and nutritional swing of things the next day.
