Ever feel like you’re on vacation or at a friend’s house for dinner, or at a holiday party with co-workers and there is always more pressure to be unhealthy rather than healthy?
You’re sitting there with a soda water and everyone keeps saying, “Come on! Let me get you a drink…” or “You only had one mozzarella stick – don’t you want another one? Help me finish these!”
This can be where a lot of women struggle with weight loss.
You feel like to actually succeed at losing weight and keeping it off, you have to avoid these situations OR decide to let it go “for the weekend/night” and you’ll “start again on Monday.”
But it’s a lot harder to stop and start – the energy this zaps from you ultimately prevents you from being successful. (This is actually the exact formula for why women stay stuck in a diet mentality.)
Sometimes, you might just try to ignore it but if you aren’t prepared, you set yourself up for failure.
So, how can you still be super social without having your habits or pressures point you in the wrong direction?
Especially during the holiday season.
I’ve created 4 tips to make sure you are totally ready…
(These are the same exact strategies I use when people come to my house and brings bags of chips, a case of beer, and bottles of wine. Without these strategies, I’d be struggling just as much as you might be. I got you 😉
#1 Out of Sight, Out of Mind
Place those tempting foods or drinks in a place that isn’t easily accessible. Maybe the chips are in a low cupboard and the alcohol is in a different room. This way you only pull those things out when you consciously want them.
Numerous studies have shown that when something isn’t right in front of you that you are less likely to want it or even think about it.
#2 Create Better Options
You can’t control what other people bring over to your house or to an event or when you show up to a holiday party or vacation spot, but you can control what you bring.
Give yourself a healthier option! Offer to bring the veggie plate. Prepare one before guests arrive. I actually have a how-to video that shows you exactly how to prepare your veggies fast so you always have them ready to go!
Watch the video here.
#3 Step Away
Set yourself up for success by choosing not to sit directly in front of the cheese dip. As I said above, most North Americans are living a see food lifestyle – if you see it, you’ll eat it.
Physically put yourself further away from the chip or snack table. You’ll be more able to focus on the friends and family around you as opposed to policing your thoughts about whether or not you should have another handful of chips.
#4 The 0, 3, 9 Principle
Alcohol can be a slippery slope in a social situation… the more you drink, your inhibitions go down in terms of food meaning you end up eating more. The more you eat, the more you feel like crap, so you have another drink and it can put you in a vicious cycle that halts your progress.
Employ the 0, 3, 9 principle. It looks like this…
- Some days you commit to 0 drinks. If you know you’re going to be going out at the end of the week, decide which other nights are your 0 days.
- When you go out, decide your limit is just 3 drinks. Plan them out and enjoy them.
- Overall, no more than 9 drinks a week.
Here’s the deal: it’s ok if you’re not perfect. What matters most is that you stick with it and keep trying it, even on vacation, out to dinner with friends, or during a holiday.
Consciousness is everything.
One beer is different than six and a piece of a brownie is not the whole thing pan.
Just because someone brings something doesn’t mean you have to eat it. And if you want some of it, you can have it but you don’t have to have it all.
Real, true, and honest freedom with food is where you don’t feel like you’re stressing about food and your body 24/7.
Instead, you’re really really clear on why you’re choosing what you’re choosing.
You have to remember that emotions are driving your behaviors, which are driving the choices you make with food and alcohol.
When stress gets high, tension in your life creeps in, or you find yourself overwhelmed and depleted, what do you do?
Most of the women I work with (and I’ve experienced this in my own life) tell me they turn to food or alcohol to cope when stressed.
If food and alcohol have become your coping mechanism when life gets hard, I created 3 steps for you to do instead…
The more depleted you are and the more disconnected you are the more chips, beer and wine become appealing – especially in super social situations but if you start implementing the above tips, I know it’s going to get easier for you.
