Red Mountain Spa (Utah)

Food is more than just fuel. It is laden with symbolism: emotional, cultural and religious. Our family memories and traditions are rich with food associations. Therefore, it is silly to try to deny all of the deep and compelling emotional connections we have to food around the holidays. This is not, however, an excuse for an all out holiday food binge.

I recommend a three pronged approach to dealing with food challenges around the holidays. First, plan ahead: decide what is really important to you. Second: face your feelings - don't allow them to sneak up on you. Third -don't neglect yourself physically: eat well, sleep well and get some exercise. I know.all of this is much easier to say than to actually do, but putting some time and effort into your health now, will reduce the holiday hangover in January.

Plan ahead; stop and take some time to prioritize holiday commitments. You may not want or need to accept every invitation. By scrutinizing your time commitments in advance, you are able to sort out what is really important to create the holiday experience you desire. Planning should include: having healthy convenience foods on hand, making time for exercise, spending quality time with friends and family and having some down time to de-stress. So many people are stress eaters! Keeping stress under control during the holidays may be one of the most important strategies to avoid weight gain. Face your feelings. We have all been there - we find ourselves in umpteen social situations, feeling emotionally conflicted and then being faced with tempting foods and drinks. It is a recipe for dietary disaster! Whether your conflict is because there are not enough hours in the day, you haven't found the perfect gift for loved ones, or you can't figure who is going to host the big holiday meal, it often adds up to emotional eating. By anticipating some of those feelings, we can fend off the sudden urge to stuff them down with all too handy holiday food temptations. Meditate, talk to friends, write in a journal or get a counselor. Just do something to honor the feelings rather than try to eat them away.

Don't neglect yourself physically. It's like the old adage of not going to the supermarket hungry. Why would you stop taking care of yourself at the time when you are the most susceptible to indulgence and temptation? Make a simple and realistic plan for moderate exercise, decent food and adequate rest. Yes, really. Write it down; put it on your refrigerator or in your PDA. Any type of self care is better than nothing. You may need to lower your expectations. Be happy with less time at the gym - but, don't give it up completely. Use healthy shakes, bars or prepared meals to keep yourself fueled. And get some sleep; turn off the television earlier (you can always record shows you really like). Use your meditation skills to turn the mind chatter off so that you can truly rest, relax and rejuvenate.

Taking time to take care of yourself is always a good idea. Plan ahead, face your feelings and don't neglect your basic fitness plan. It is the best gift you can give to yourself and those who really care about you.

http://www.redmountainspa.com/
(800)407-3002 (435)673-4905