Eating Intuitively Around the Holidays
The holidays can be a wonderful time for enjoying friends and family, but they can also bring up some stressful feelings around food. This time can present various challenges such as social food engagements, unwanted or unhelpful comments from others, diet culture-themed ads, etc. Many of these exposures may increase the feeling of second-guessing where you are in your intuitive eating journey. Whether you’re just getting the hang of intuitive eating or are a well-seasoned professional but need a refresher, read further on. If you are new to intuitive eating, see how you can find peace on your plate.
The critical piece to remember is this: we are in control of writing our narrative. You don’t have to go back to old habits of dieting and restricting, and this time can be challenging, so be gentle with yourself. One slip-up will not “undo” all you’ve learned along the way. That said, here are some tips for navigating the holidays.
Eat Consistently
This tip echoes the post mentioned above but holds whether you’re new to intuitive eating or have been practicing for quite some time. We must take care of our body’s physical needs.
When we’re not eating consistently, we break trust in the relationship we have with our bodies. I always relate this back to times when we were hunter-gatherers. There is enormous value in a body that can recognize when there is a bout of starvation. It’s part of why humans have survived for so long; our bodies are SO intelligent and adaptive. So when it senses that food isn’t available, it essentially goes, “oh no! I better run in the most efficient way I can here, which means I’m only going to keep things running that I need (this is when we start to see compensation mechanisms turn on, such as slower digestion, cold hands and feet, brain fog, difficulty regulating emotions, etc.).” Long story short, eating meals and snacks every 2-4 hours will be vital to continuing our intuitive eating practice.
Let’s address something that may get in the way of this, called “The Last Supper effect.” It might look like “saving up” in preparation for a holiday meal. It might also look like overeating because tomorrow, you’re back to “being good”. Placing future restrictions (whether that is physical or mental) on food affects how we approach it right now.
Consider these questions:
Does that food pattern feel good? Does it truly allow you to enjoy holiday food? Or does it build a home for shame and guilt to live? Does it lead to feelings of discomfort from being too full?
This cycle stops by ensuring that we fuel consistently throughout the day, even on holidays, and committing to the mindset that we will always allow ourselves to have foods we may have previously restricted. A holiday is just another day for your body.
Give Yourself Permission to Eat What You Want When You Want It
Unconditional permission will always be a continued practice of intuitive eating, as it can be unclear even to identify foods you might have been mentally restricting, let alone incorporate. An activity idea for the holidays might look like this: while at a gathering or holiday meal, take a minute to look at all of the foods offered, one by one. As you are thinking about this food, ask yourself these questions:
Are any automatic thoughts about this food coming to my mind? Notice if any negative associations are going on with the food.
Ex: Oh man, sweet potatoes are high in carbs; I better avoid them. If I start, I won’t be able to stop!
Are my thoughts about this food the whole picture? What can I add to expand my internal definition of this food?
Ex: Sweet potatoes do have carbohydrates. I know my body needs carbohydrates. Sweet potatoes also contain vitamins & minerals that are good for my body. Plus, I love the taste of sweet potatoes. I also know that if I continue to avoid sweet potatoes, I will be sad I missed out on having them and will continue to have an unhelpful relationship with them.
Bonus! After the holiday is said and done, I challenge you to go out and buy a food you felt you might have been afraid of going overboard on while at your holiday gathering. Make it as often as you want, noting how your thoughts and feelings evolve around that food.
People often think they need to choose between health and eating foods they enjoy, which interferes with allowing themselves permission to have all the foods. So, let’s expand our definition of health to include enjoyment.
Check in with Yourself
Periodically checking in with yourself can be a powerful tool, especially when holidays are more chaotic. Not only does it allow you to practice mindfulness (necessary when we’re working on IE), but it can also help to ground you, reduce stress/anxiety, and keep negative self-talk in check. (we believe what our mind says to us, this can be hard to be aware of when things feel hectic)
There are a few ways we can check in with ourselves. For example, we can get outside for fresh air, journal, decompress in a safe space, practice breathing exercises, or ask ourselves questions.
Here are some questions you can ask yourself to help assess where you are at:
What does my body feel right now?
What might my body need?
How is that food tasting?
Am I allowing myself to enjoy this holiday experience? If not, what can I do to change that?
Mental check-ins can give insight into how we navigate food during the holidays, including what feels successful and challenging. If you can only acknowledge and are not yet in the phase of change, that’s okay. Even taking the space to check in is a win.
Commit to not dieting post-holiday season (or post-any season, for that matter!)
Many of us have engaged in this behavior in the past. However, the dieting cycle stops when we commit to not making weight-loss or dieting-related resolutions.
If you want to make a resolution that aligns with your goal of bettering health, try these out instead:
Drink more water daily
Try out a type of movement that you’ve wanted to explore
Make plans with people who make you feel socially energized and uplifted
Incorporate more fiber at meals and snacks
Stretch for 5 minutes during workdays
Set Boundaries
No one likes their food or body being policed by others, especially when they’ve worked hard to get to a place of comfort with them. So here are some strategies you can use to respond to diet and body talk (also featured on our Instagram):
Setting boundaries with family and friends making unhelpful comments:
“I appreciate your concern, but what I eat isn’t up for discussion.”
“I am actually learning to listen to my body, and when I get conflicting outside messages, that really throws me off. Would you mind if we didn’t talk about food/body?”
Changing the topic:
“Let’s talk about something more interesting like….”
“Did you hear about … ?”
Creating physical space:
This may be because choosing to sit next to someone you know supports your IE journey at the table or taking a break at the social gathering by going outside, excusing yourself to use the bathroom, etc.
Share some insight:
“I’ve been working really hard on my relationship with food and my body. I’d gladly share resources on what I’ve learned along the way.”
“Actually, no food is good or bad. I’d be happy to show you some intuitive eating resources.”
Intuitive eating is a practice. The holidays might be challenging, but they are also an opportunity to strengthen your intuition. Try your best, be gentle with yourself, and reflect on what you would like to do better the next go around. We hope you have a safe and warm holiday season.
*Written by Alison Swiggard, MS, RDN, LD, Dietitian at CV Wellbeing
Are there any intuitive eating tips that you find helpful? Share them below!
