5 Tips to Enjoy a Mindful Festive Season

Reframe the festive season as an opportunity to “flex your muscles” – that is, your HWFL skills. You may feel like you have things under control when there’s minimal distractions, less social outings, projects or other life events … but the true litmus test for sustainable habits and routine is when this isn’t the case. Use your next social gathering and holiday as chances to practice troubleshooting skills. Contribute a platter of free food dips and berries to the event. Get creative with your activity while away. Apply your portion-planned plate skills to your Christmas plate or practice the HWFL mindful strategies you have worked on to surf through non-hunger eating episodes.

Just like a drought or fire action plan, you want to have a plan in place for social gatherings before you find yourself in the situation. List the possible triggers that could lead you astray and jot down an alternative action to take instead. For example, if the tables of food platters will tempt you then move away, have your back to the table and immerse yourself in good company and conversation. If you find over-eating or -drinking an issue, plan to have a fibre-rich free food snack before you leave to prevent getting over hungry when you arrive at the event.

When sheer will power wanes, ask yourself what you enjoy about your new lifestyle that keeps you going – is it improved mobility, less pain, better sleep, less medication, or more energy to spend with the kids? Also ask yourself what your values are, as these remind you of the powerful “why” factor. Do you maintain your activity routine and mindful food choices because you value self-betterment, hard work, or want to be a role model to your family or children? Feeling annoyed or frustrated at yourself are tell-tale signs that your actions aren’t matching up with what you live by or believe in (your values). Being in tune with this can spur you to get back on track and realign.

Fixating on perfection can lead to an “all-or-nothing” mindset, which in turn increases likelihood of bingeing and more weight gain. While enjoying extra desserts or meals, or being less active during the festive season may result in less weight loss, following a more flexible approach will reap benefits of less weight gain or help you to maintain your current weight into the New Year. Allow yourself to relax your expectations of yourself. Your food and activity (or inactivity) are choices you make for your self-care.

A part of enjoying festivities while keeping your lifelong health goals in sight is to be selective about what you choose to do. Recognise that you don’t need to say ‘yes’ to every single opportunity on offer, be it attending events, or food and drinks you are offered. Accept that these are special and enjoyable moments for yourself. This way, you feel more empowered with choice and remove the negative feelings such as guilt, self-blame or distracting thoughts which can diminish your experience.