Staying on track over Christmas? Moderation is key

Moderation isn’t a sexy word. Nobody wants to hear that they need to eat in moderation or even drink in moderation. We like to have the freedom to choose, and for some of us the more we tell ourselves we need to eat or drink in moderation the MORE we eat and drink (I’ve never been that rebellious but my best friend is like this). So, what’s our best option?

Image from pixabay

Everyone is different but my favourites are:

Portion size. I used to eat massive portions but somewhere along the way I just realised that in Scotland we tend to eat to excess and I didn’t need to pile a mountain of pasta on a massive plate. Most of us could benefit from reducing our portion sizes somewhat (unless you’re already not a big eater).

Listen to your body when it’s full. Again, not something I used to do, I used to eat until I felt sick but the more we eat the more our body comes to expect that much food and adapt accordingly. So, when your body is telling you that it’s full it’s ok to listen. Take some time in between your main and your dessert to see if you feel full or wait 20 minutes after eating to see if you need anything else. It takes time for our body to let us know we’re full after we’ve eaten so 20 minutes is a good rule to go by.

Reframe. This is my favourite because it has helped me in every part of my life not just with food. Not only has it helped me reach my goals with my body, but it has helped me heal my negative relationship with food. The first step is to be aware of our conversations around food with ourselves. If they are not in line with our goals, then we adapt them to something more helpful. i.e ‘It’s Christmas who cares what I eat, I may as well have another pack of ____ . Allow yourself to reframe. ‘It’s Christmas but I care what I eat and whether or not it is in line with my goals.’ Or something that makes it positive to you and your long-term goals. Everyone is different so pick something that works for you and if you need help reframing a particularly negative belief then a therapist can help.

The last one is less serious but just as helpful. Don’t leave food you don’t want to eat lying on the counter where you can see it. Studies show that if something is lying out we’re much more likely to eat it. So, if you don’t want to eat it, out of sight is out of mind!

And remember to enjoy at least a little of what you like over the holidays! :)