Christmas time. The time where we over eat. Over indulge. Feel sick. Complain. But manage to back it up. Manage to finish the last piece of leg of ham. The last slice of lasagne. The last zeppoli (all my fellow Italians will understand this one) or the last piece of pav. Somehow we manage to fit it all in and later wonder "where the heck did I put that?"
Instead of feeling full with not only food but a warm heart and Christmas spirit, so many start to let that guilt creep in. Let that guilt eat away. Let that inner voice arc up and question why we just ate what we did. Question if we really needed that last piece of ham or that last piece of pav. That inner voice starts to take over and we find ourselves in this constant negative headspace. The guilt doing more damage to us than the food ever would.
So why do so many of us fear this voice? Why do so many of us fuel this voice and allow it to take over? Allow it to spread the pre-existing fire instead of allowing it to burn off. Why do we give it control?
We are made to feel guilty when we eat too much. When we consume too much of the so called 'wrong thing'. We are made to feel judged. Ashamed. Regretful. We give food SO much weight and that voice so much power we allow it to dictate how we are feeling or how we see ourselves. We allow it to change our perspective of ourselves and create this negative self image.
Why do we do this?
Christmas is a time of giving. It is a time of connecting. It is a time of creating memories with your loved ones and spending time with family and friends. It is a magical time of year yet so many of us allow that magic to fade away as we allow that fire to continue to fuel. Continue to burn. SO many of us state 'we are going on a diet after today' or 'I'm not eating after this" as we fear the over consumption that may of just happened.
But why?
Why do we allow ourselves to think like this? Allow that little voice to take the center of stage. Why do we give it so much power? So what you over ate. So what you didn't need that extra bit of ham or that extra bit of dessert. It's done now. The damage is done. The more you worry about it, the more you stress about it, the worse it will make you feel. It is this stress that weighs more on you than your body weight ever will.
Enough is enough.
Enjoy Christmas. Enjoy the over indulging. Enjoy the food. Enjoy the laughter. Enjoy the memories. Enjoy every bit of it. You do not need anyones PERMISSION to eat a little bit extra. To have anther serving. YOU do not need to justify your actions. Justify why you ate that extra slice or why you feel so full.
You do not owe this to anyone.
You owe it to yourself to remove this fear. To remove this judgment. Embrace Christmas for what it is. Embrace the festive season. Embrace the food. Embrace the copious amounts of food you can and will consume. Embrace it all. Give yourself a break. Show her some slack. Allow her to just be her and enjoy this time of year.
Stop fearing weight gain. Stop fearing other peoples' opinions. Start changing your perspective. Start appreciating who you are. Enjoy this time of year. It doesn't last long. It goes as quickly as it comes.
So heck, go have that last piece of pav. Go enjoy another round of food or another round of drinks. Enjoy this time of year and fill your soul up with positive energy. Positive vibes. Positive people.
Give yourself a break. You have nearly completed another year and you have survived. You deserve this break.
Now go fight for that last piece of ham or in my instance that last zeppoli ;)
Love from the Italian who loves to speak,
Lauren xo
#bodyimage #ajourneytohealth #selflove #selfworth #mentalhealth #festivities #wellbeing #health #living #food #christmas