It’s that time of year again: the string of holidays stretching from November until that cold, hard dawn when people start making New Year resolutions.
If you’ve stuck with your training program and you’re feeling good then don’t shy away from your favorite holiday treats. Enjoy yourself! However, there are a few rules I try to live by as I’m enjoying the holiday season (and seasoning).
The first one is this: “Be a snob.” Don’t settle for just any holiday treats. You should absolutely have that cookie or chocolate — but only as long as it’s a good one. Is there anything more sad than eating a lousy treat, not enjoying it, and then regretting it because it didn’t really taste that good (and made you feel lousy)? Stick with the good stuff!
“Start with the carrots” is my rule for holiday feasts. By that I mean the first thing(s) you eat in a meal should be the healthy, low calorie stuff, preferably veggies. I’ve made it a habit to pack carrots for my lunch: sweet, crisp, and cheap. Celery works as well, and so do cucumbers, salad, tomatoes, etc. Start with a serving of that stuff before you dig in to that amazing holiday feast. It takes an average of 20 minutes for you to start feeling satisfied from the moment you start eating, so it makes sense to start with the healthy stuff and to put off eating the rest of it for a little while. Start with the carrots!
I have adopted another great rule from food writer Michael Pollan: “If you are not hungry enough to eat an apple, you’re not really hungry.”
Any time you’re tempted by something that’s high in calories, ask yourself if you’re hungry enough to eat an apple. Really think about that question. If the answer is no, then maybe you don’t really need that cookie/candy/whatever. You might decide to eat it anyway, but at least you stopped for a moment and really thought about what you NEED.
So much eating and drinking at this time of year is really just automatic, which isn’t much fun is it? Take that extra moment to think about whether or not you NEED it… and then maybe take a sec to think about whether or not you’re going to enjoy it.
The big, over-arching question in all of this is: “Am I hungry?” So much of modern advertising is designed to KEEP YOU FROM EVEN THINKING ABOUT THIS QUESTION. Consumerism is often about short-circuiting your actual needs and prompting you to behave in a way that’s good for commerce – but not necessarily for your body. I eat because I’m hungry, but I also eat because I’m bored. I eat because I’m sad. I eat because everybody else is eating. I eat because the commercials tell me I want to eat!
In the end, really enjoying the holidays and enjoying the food and drink of the holidays should involve a little consideration. Pick the best for yourself, take your time, think about the experience, and savor the moment. You’ve earned it!
