Holy Moly – it’s under a month until Christmas! The build up to Christmas can be fun – December is usually a month full of parties, socialising and lots of good food. However, sometimes the holiday season can be a source of stress when it comes to relationships with food. This article contains a few reminders to help carry you through the festive period.

Weight is not associated with health

This point is repeated a lot throughout this blog because it needs to be. Diet culture is so strong in our society that we are constantly bombarded with the message that we should strive for weight loss. When we’ve grown up (sometimes from a very young age) with these messages coming at us constantly from all angles (family, school, media etc) it can be hard not to get sucked back into the ‘thin ideal’ and the idea that being a certain size will make you happy and healthy (which is just not true). Therefore, it’s necessary to keep repeating the fact that weight is not associated with health and that dieting is not the answer to your problems. If you feel yourself wavering and thinking about dieting – remind yourself of the reality of diets such as:

• They don’t work
• Placing restrictions on yourself can negatively impact your quality of life (e.g. impact on social life)
• They can have dangerous effects on health such as weight cycling

Dieting is more likely to damage your health than improve it. You can read more about the harmful effects of dieting here.

We were not all supposed to be the same size. There is so much which factors into who we are, such as genetics, lifestyles, history of chronic dieting etc. For some people, they are naturally healthy at a thinner size, for others, they are naturally healthy at a larger size. You can be healthy at any size and you can’t tell how healthy someone is from looking at them. It’s often the case that people lose weight for horrible reasons such as having cancer. Yet it’s common for these people to get complimented on their weight loss, despite the fact their body is battling illness and feeling rubbish on the inside!

Many people are still stuck in diet culture and always will be

It’s likely that if you are reading this, you are exploring getting away from dieting and recognising diet culture for what it is, which is fantastic. One of the hardest things about this journey is being around people in your life who are still completely in the middle of diet culture. They don’t see the effects which dieting is having on them and they will probably always be this way. It’s not their fault, it just proves how strong thinness is (wrongly) valued over health in our society. It’s important to remember this understanding when you are around someone who is preaching diet culture and not let yourself be pulled back in by them. They are where they are, and you are where you are. This is ok.

Festive food can be eaten all year round

There’s an abundance of food available in this country, but especially so at Christmas. It’s likely that whenever you go out, you’ll be met with a feast of different festive foods. It’s common to feel the need to ignore your natural hunger/fullness cues and overeat because of feeling that it could be the only chance to eat a particular food. However, it’s important to remember that all types of food can be eaten all year round! If you happen to fancy a mince pie in July, you would be able to get one from somewhere, or worst case – make it yourself. If you’re overeating for the sake of it – is the food actually enjoyable?

There is no need to restrict yourself before a big meal

It’s likely that we’ve all been there before a big meal – ‘saving your appetite’ because you know that you are eating out later. Wanting to make sure you’re adequately hungry for a special meal or occasion is ok once in a blue moon, however it’s important not to get into the habit of doing this on a regular basis. Our bodies need energy so if your appetite is telling you to eat something, it’s usually good practice to follow your body’s signals.

Repeatedly suppressing appetite signals can keep you out of tune with your body. Just because it’s Christmas doesn’t mean you need to not eat all day until the ‘big meal.’ It could end up working against you as you don’t want to approach a large meal so ravenous that you can’t actually enjoy and appreciate the flavour of the food. If you’re hungry quite a bit of time before a scheduled meal, it would probably be best to eat something to keep yourself going.

Immerse yourself in anti-diet culture

It’s not possible to completely get away from diet culture in our society – especially if it’s coming from family and friends. However, you can make sure to immerse yourself in as much feelgood anti-diet culture as possible in the places you can control, such as on your social media feed. Make sure to follow people who are all about the non-dieting lifestyle and who make you feel good about yourself, so you have something to go to and look at if you’ve been overwhelmed with diet culture at Christmas (such as family conversations about the latest diet trend). Do you have any affirmations or mantras which you would find useful to keep in the note section of your phone, to go back to whenever needed? Don’t be afraid of arming yourself with things you may need to bring yourself back if struggling.

Weight is nothing to do with your worth

If you’re worried about putting on weight, that’s something which diet culture has instilled for far too long. You are worthy no matter what your weight. You can be healthy and happy at any weight. If you put weight on during the festive period, it’s ok. Don’t let anyone else tell you otherwise. Your closest friends are not friends with you because of how much you weigh – it’s all about who you are as a person.

Keep these in mind throughout December…

There you have it – 6 reminders to take with you throughout the festive period! Save the link to this article so you can always come back and look it at whenever you feel you need to. If you’re anxious about your relationship with food in the build up to Christmas, why not treat yourself to a 1:1 chat with Hattie? Book your FREE discovery call here now!