HOLIDAY BINGE EATING + FINDING A BALANCE
Binge eating is a yule tide tradition around the holidays; it can happen to anyone. Binging becomes a bigger problem when we let it start to affect what we think afterwards. Binge eating happens when someone eats an excessive quantity of food. For example, let’s say you plan to only eat half of a cookie, and when you get through half, you end up chowing down on the rest realizing you just ate an entire cookie (or 4-5 if they are double chocolate chip in my case). Now you’re sitting there wallowing in disappointment. I’m such a bad person; there goes the last 5 days of my “perfect” diet. – Do you know what I’m talking about? We’ve all been there.
SO WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT IT?
As you go into the holiday season, look at everything as an experience. Think of that cookie you intended to eat half of, but then you ate the other half. Changing your mindset to oh wait, I just ate that entire cookie. Dang-it, I didn’t even get to enjoy it. And then ask yourself, what was that about anyway; was it emotion, or maybe I just liked the sugar and I needed that right now. Oh well. It is the same action, but it is what we do with the thoughts and perceptions after that make the experience going forward.
Giving yourself permission to eat that cookie, accepting it, enjoying it and moving on.
The “all or nothing” mentality should not apply. When I started this journey, and trying to find my balance, I used to eat super strict for a few weeks leading up to the holidays. I was afraid to go see the family on Christmas because I knew it was something that would throw me back into binging and eating all of this food. After the holidays were over, I would be so mad that I didn’t get to eat any of the delicious looking food, but then would binge on all of the holiday candy that was on sale in the store to try and make up for not eating any of the food over the holidays.
PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT
My thought is this: on Christmas eve, I’m going to indulge today and not feel guilty about it, then tomorrow I will have more vegetables (or whatever you decide). – Once you get into this practice, it becomes much easier to make it through the holidays. If I want this food or dessert, I’m going to have it. There’s no guilt, because I accept myself.
It’s the holidays and you should live.
The practice of moderation, and enjoying your food and savoring it instead of being in a stress of do I do it, or do I not do it, if I do it then I’m going to fall off. Make it more realistic and be okay with that abundance.
FINDING A BALANCE
Just know that you are not the only one who struggles with finding a balance and gaining “control” around food. We are only human! Holidays are a time of indulgence: Christmas cookies, cheese and savory things that we aren’t “supposed” to eat, or should only eat small amounts of.
First, don’t assume you’re going to go into the holidays being perfect, because then you will be upset when you “fall off the wagon.”
Second, everyone has a different “happy medium.”
WHAT IS A HAPPY MEDIUM FOR YOU?
Say you’re going to have 2 scoops of pudding; banana pudding with Nilla wafers is a vice of mine (my mom makes it for every holiday and it’s a ‘two scoops’ minimum) and then walk away and sit on the couch and converse with family and then you know what, if you really want a third scoop, you’re going to come back in a half an hour and have another one. Or could it be that this one day on Christmas, you’re just going to give yourself permission to indulge?
HAVING ABUNDANCE
To have that control around food is, instead of having a mindset around all of the foods you can’t have or shouldn’t have because they’re going to make you “gain weight,” its focusing on the abundance. Why not pick you’re top 2 or 3 favorite things to eat, sit down and enjoy them. Experience them, think of the memories or traditions associated with them, but then take a break and maybe make a tea or a coffee or go open presents with the family or get up for a walk or do something else first before you just go back to the dessert table. Also, make sure you eat a good meal and load up on turkey or veggies before you have your dessert. But just give yourself some time to sit and digest and see how you feel first. It can take your brain roughly 20 minutes to register that your stomach is full.
Check in with how you feel before continuing to indulge.
This takes some time to bring into practice. Be gentle to yourself and go in and say I want to treat my body well and try these new techniques, but at the end of the day if I completely fail, I’m not going to beat up on myself, I’m not going to be hard on myself and there’s always tomorrow or later on tonight where I can do a bit better.
HAPPY HOLIDAYS!
The holiday season is about being with your family and enjoying some good food! And part of the reason why I believe we set ourselves up for failure or losing control in the holiday season is because we’ve been stressing about it all month and we end up being so ungrounded and stressed and were spiking our cortisol levels so much that of course our blood sugar crashes are going to push us to binge.
Cortisol is a form of hormone from the steroid family called Glucocorticoids, which is the main stress hormone within your body. It is a contributing factor in your body’s fight or flight function which is important for your longevity. If you are regularly stressed out, the levels of cortisol in your body can increase which can lead to food cravings and imbalanced blood sugar levels.
If right now you’re thinking, the holidays are coming up, there’s all this craziness, take a minute and just relax. Write in a journal and burn it, do some meditation and affirmations, go to the gym or practice yoga, do something to release some of that stress.
What are some treats you look forward to indulging in each holiday season? //
To a life in full,
♡Amanda