I know the easter holidays are over now, but I am pretty sure it wasn't the last easter. So let's talk about How to NOT get fat when the holidays come around - because when they do, that usually means a ton of really tasty and caloric-dense food will be served - and eaten.
It doesn't matter if it is christmas, easter, thanksgiving, grandmas bday or I dont know you name it, a lot of people think of the holidays and automatically assume they will gain weight.
Just a couple of years ago, whenever the holidays would come around (or a big wedding or whatever), I used to be scared of gaining weight. These thoughts lowered my anticipation for the holidays, especially when I was in a more strict dieting phase. And a lot of other people feel that way too. Clients ask me "What should I do when we have our big family get-together with the huge buffet? I don't wanna gain weight."
We want to eat that lasagne, that dessert, that turkey, or whatever it is, we want to enjoy these foods. We don't want to restrict calories on such an occasion. But we also don't want to gain weight - it's a dilemma.
So when we are trying to lose weight or trying to maintain our bodyfat level, what should we do when the holidays are coming up and there will be a shit-ton of amazing food served? And why are we even feeling like this, stressed out about eating too much, almost as if we are not in control of what is going to happen?
It's not a bad question - BUT a person asking this question also reveals their underlaying mindset mistake that causes this fear.
If you have similar thoughts of worrying about gaining weight when the holidays or a social event comes around, then you should read this article. I'm gonna explain what the actual problem is and why we have these thoughts in the first place and how to solve this problem, mentally and practically. Read it, apply it, stay in shape and never stress about these things ever again.
1. Understanding the underlying problem
The problem is not the food. It is not the cake, not the greasy food, not the tasty ovenroasted pork or whatever the hell you are going to eat during the holidays. It's not the calories.
The problem is how we think about eating. We are lacking a "normal eating behaviour". A person with a normal eating behaviour understands that food is fuel AND pleasure, and this person is able to balance these two things without even trying.
This is what we all need to solve the "problems" we have with dieting and eating: the BALANCE between the two roles of food in our life as fuel and pleasure.
Food is NOT only one thing. It is not only fuel. If it was, then we would not crave candy and pizza. We could simply blend chicken, rice, broccoli to a nutritious shake and have that 3 times a day to stay lean, super healthy and happy. But we can't, because food is also pleasure.
If food was ONLY pleasure, then we would eat icecream and pizza all day without getting fat, unhealthy, unhappy and dying at 40 from a heart attack. But that doesn't work either, because food also determines our health, body composition and performance.
Food is ALWAYS BOTH, fuel and pleasure, at any time, even if you want to lose weight. And if you fail to understand that, you will always be trapped in this yoyo-mindset, you will always go back and forth between ONLY fuel and ONLY pleasure, while never being satisfied with either one of the extremes.
You can also call it "black-or-white thinking". But there is always something in between. And that's what we want to aim for, the point of balance.
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Thinking about that huge buffet makes you feel shitty, because you are forcing yourself to look at food as FUEL - when you actually want to ENJOY it. It feels like pressure because you didn't balance it in the first place. You crave pleasure food because you didn't have enough of it before.
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Normal eating behavior means you don't have that problem. It means knowing that certain foods will help you reach your goals and other foods won't . Some taste very good and should be eaten in moderation, other should be eaten a little bit more often to ensure health and well-being. Both types of food need to be eaten and balanced. That's it. Normal eaters stop eating when they feel full. Normal eaters can choose wether they indulge cravings, and if they do they can stop anytime, without any emotional response. Food should not cause emotions. If it does, we have to start questioning our own mindset.
2. Don't be scared of overeating
Another thing that is causing this stress is the fear of overeating. And the fear of overeating causes you to overeat. Let me explain that:
When you are scared to overeat during the holidays, it creates this pressure in your head. And the pressure is ruining the experience. It makes it impossible stay relaxed and leads to making extreme decisions, like completely restricting or binge eating.
What helped me was realizing that even if I "go crazy" and eat 3000 calories on that party, it wouldn't have any real effect on my life, on the things that really matter or even on my diet in the long run. I can simply go back to whatever I was doing before and nothing would really change. Maybe I would be feeling bloated tomorrow, but that's it. My life will go on, and what I eat today and how much will have ZERO effect on my life.
Realizing that in reality this shit doesn't even matter and that overeating would have no real effect on anything, that took away the fear, took away the pressure. Once you understand that, you can look at the initial situation under a totally different light and think clear.
Relax, it is just food. There is no reason to get emotional about it, because it literally doesn't matter. Eating too much has zero effect on anything important in life. So why stress? There is no reason to be scared of the possibility of overeating.
3. Don't diet before
This is a more practical tip. Do not restrict calories to a greater extend before the holidays or whatever occasion is coming up. In general you shouldn't restrict calories 95% of the time anyways. But that's a different topic.
When the holidays come up a lot of people tend to lower the calories to prepare for the feast - when in reality that's what makes it worse.
That's point number one - forcing yourself to look at food as fuel, depriving yourself of the pleasure aspect leading up to the holidays.
What's gonna happen? You are in this unbalanced state, craving calories and pleasure food, and once the holidays are there, you will literally lose control and eat way too much. Afterwards you will feel like shit and restrict again. The yoyo-game starts all over.
What should you do instead?
Eat normal and keep the calories at maintenance level (what you should be doing 95% of the time anyways). Aim for the balance that I described at the beginning. The more you restrict leading up to the holidays, the higher the possibility that you will overeat and repeat the yoyo-cycle.
And if you are dieting at the moment anyways, then increase the calories more towards maintenance in the weeks leading towards the holidays, to not be in a food deprived state once you stand in front of that huge buffet - that would be a bad idea.
4. Enjoy without pressure - but also set priorities
Like I already explained, the urge to overeat comes from being deprived in the first place or from thinking that you are not allowed to have these foods normally. That's why we want it so bad, because we know we can't have it. So to kill the urge all we need to do it take the pressure away.
One thing that took the pressure away from me is understanding, that there will be SO MANY occasions in the future where I will have the opportunity to eat calorie-dense foods, or desserts or whatever it is. The junkfood is not gonna go anywhere. It will always be there. That means there is no pressure to eat a lot of it right now. It is not gonna go anywhere. I can always buy it, I can always eat it, it will always be there. But what is not always going to be there is my health.
Once I understand that the junkfood will always be there for me, but my physical health will not, I realized that my health is a true priority - because it doesn't last forever. Cake and pizza will always be around - but my physical potential, my looks, my performance, all these things will slowly fade away.
So there is zero pressure to eat that cake - I can still eat that cake when I'm 80. But there is a need to prioritize my health, because that will unfortunately go away sooner later. Gotta keep reminding ourselves of this powerful truth.
5. So what should we do when it is time to eat?
Once you have fixed your mindset, you will relax. Once you have relaxed about the food, the probability of overeating is very low. If there is no pressure, you can think clearly and will make better decisions.
Speaking of better decisions: once you stand in front of that wedding buffet or you have that huge plate in front of you - make the better decision. What is better: eating one slice of cake or eating FOUR? Drinking THREE beers or drinking one? Don't be perfect, just make the better decision.
Now you know that all this junkfood will not go anywhere, so you can easily skip on that second slice of cake. Have it when you're 80 - or just next week. Your body composition and health will thank you.
Now to the practical side of things: Eat a lot of veggies and start with high volume foods like salad. Eat slow. Be aware of what and how much you eat. Think about what you eat. Drink a lot of water. Listen to your body, realize when you are full. Stop when you are full. But also really ENJOY every bite.
And if you overeat: It doesn't matter. It has ZERO effect on anything. Nobody cares. Next time it will be better. Tomorrow you are back on track and life goes on. Relax about it, that's the key.
If you want me to help you develop that normal eating behavior and mindset, click on Online Coaching. I've been there, i've made all the mistakes myself. But I overcame them. Let me be your coach, and together we will create that new mindset, that new lifestyle for you. Reach your fitness goals in 2021, and create results that last FOREVER. Learn what truly matters. That is what AYCE Fitness is all about.