Negotiating the Festive Feast Season

Someone mentioned this week that the Christmas party season is in full swing. The office and work functions are in the calendar and the neighbourhood get together is set. It is hard to get through this time of year unscathed and it’s also hard to get through mindfully making good choices and keeping your mind, body and gut in tip top form.

Feasting and excess is a big part of the build up to and including Christmas and New Year, so we thought we would offer the tips we use to get us through, whilst aiming to stay as consistent and being mindful of our long term health and wellbeing.

  1. Get a plan in place for all the festivities. We blogged about planning some time back, but it’s a great thing to apply to this time of year. If you are going to a party and don’t want to indulge in alcohol, plan to drive! If you are menu planning for Christmas, plan to make it as nutritious at possible, limiting the amount of “junk or calorie rich foods.” If you have a blowout day or party and overindulge, plan to get back on the nutritional wagon again the next day.
  2. Remember your goals and purpose. Getting back on track can be hard to do, but remembering why you chose to eat nutritiously, or exercise regularly can get your focus back and have you feeling motivated and ready to take on the gift of health as an everyday choice. Good nutrition is not a sprint to the finish, set the goals, keep going one day or meal at a time and know that your purpose is important and makes difference to you.
  3. Be patient and be kind to yourself. We all slip up so rather than beat yourself up about what you did yesterday, look how far you have come in your journey across a whole year. One day does not make for a failure, be kind and let yourself get over any perceived lapse and get back to it. You are doing a great job.
  4. Enjoy the season. Catching up with friends, colleagues or family should be enjoyed and that is not always easy, we get that. 2020 has been an extraordinary year and as the year starts to draw to a close we should reflect and try to enjoy the lighter moments and embrace, with gratitude, all that we have.

Making good habits can be hard, once they are established they can be even harder to maintain when faced with endless temptations at this time of year. Healthy, mindful living takes some strength to maintain, finding balance at this time of year can also take some strength. What is important is for us all to remember is that getting Gut Happy is a goal worth striving for. As mentioned before it’s not a sprint, but an everyday choice. Good choices today can influence better health and wellbeing tomorrow and all of our tomorrows.