Generally I opt for enjoying each holiday as much as possible, which means eating more calories than usual while indulging in some of my seasonal favorites: turkey breast, iced cinnamon rolls, cheesecake, homemade cookies, and bottomless boxes of chocolates. But that's a struggle when you're literally tracking every consumed and burned calorie (as I am - and have been - since losing 13 pounds from July to October) and trying to maintain a balance, if not a deficit, between the two.
And it's not just one or two days. On Thanksgiving Day, if I celebrate in style, I'll stuff myself with turkey and trimmings and dessert twice (lunch and dinner), then take leftovers home (this year, rolls, baked potatoes, and nearly an entire pie) and continue overeating for the next few days, resulting this year in a three-pound weight gain for the week.
Christmas is worse. It starts weeks in advance with workplace potlucks. tins of cookies and fudge, and endless assorted chocolates from well-intentioned diet assassins. Sweet treats are the perfect gift for everyone, including the diabetics of the world, the maxim goes, because everyone loves chocolate! And God forbid you should ever politely decline any of it. That's when the guilt-trippers and force-feeders band together in ruthless tag teams to dropkick any lingering willpower out of your system, replacing it with excessive calories and a sugar coma. Their usual mantras: "It's just one day" (No, it isn't...), "Is that all you're eating?," "You have to try everything," "Just have one" (If I could, there wouldn't be an issue), "A little chocolate won't hurt you," and "So what if you gain a pound?"
As a result, by the time Christmas Eve rolls around, so do you. Your pants are snug, if they fit at all, your body is fleshier, and the scale is steadily climbing despite your daily workouts. It's a frustrating pattern that repeats itself every year, starting with Halloween and ending (hopefully, if you haven't entirely given up on a healthy lifestyle) after New Year's. After the Christmas calorie overload, I inevitably leave my parents' house with several pounds of chocolate (despite firmly requesting no chocolate gifts) that I parcel out over the following weeks, simultaneously loving and hating every luscious bite.
That's the truth of it. I've developed a love-hate relationship with the holidays. I love the family time and giving and receiving gifts, but I hate the way they sabotage my diet and widen my waist. What it ultimately comes down to, though, is that it's my choice, I don't always choose well, and there are unpleasant consequences for not making good choices. It's an ongoing problem that I've yet to solve.
Maybe I just need to accept that I'll always wage a food fight during the holidays and have to hit the reset button after New Year's (every year). In a perfect fantasy world, I could regularly eat to excess, exercise lightly a few times a week, and still look and feel my best while comfortably wearing my favorite jeans. Unfortunately that idyll ended in my early twenties. As much as I'd love to live a healthy life on autopilot without ever veering off course, it takes more effort and willpower than I can sometimes muster. If i overindulge, I know I'll need to work harder and longer in the gym and lower my calorie intake before and (for weeks) after holiday meals. (As Tori Amos sang, "Why does there gotta be a sacrifice?")
What I eat is my choice, of course, but there's no question my defenses are further weakened by food fiends, well-intentioned or otherwise.
So, in closing, a few friendly reminders for the holiday force-feeders:
- Not everyone wants, needs, or should have chocolate.
- No one, not even a PMS-stricken woman, needs chocolate.
- There's nothing wrong with gifting chocolate or other baked goodies...unless you know someone is diabetic and/or actively trying to lose or maintain weight, especially if they have explicitly asked you not to give them sugary treats.
- Don't police other people's plates and bodies. If someone wants to overeat, it's their choice. If someone wants to stay on their diet, it's none of your business. Let them live (and eat...or not eat).
- A polite decline of treats is just that, not an opening for a judgment or backhanded compliment about someone's weight or size. No means no!
