7 Ways to Ditch Food Guilt During Holiday Meals and Embrace Joy

There’s no doubt that food is the main focus of the holidays — besides family, of course. It’s common to experience food guilt, especially if you’re not used to indulging. one Learning in 2020 Research finds that 63% of Americans feel guilty about food during the holidays.

It’s important to give yourself a little grace this time of year because there are only a few days when you should be able to enjoy sharing a meal with your loved ones. Here’s what you need to know about food guilt so you can have a happy holiday season.

What is food guilt?

Food guilt occurs when you feel bad about something you’ve eaten. You feel shame and guilt about what you choose to eat. For some, this feeling of guilt can quickly turn into a deeper sense of shame, especially for those living with the disorder. eating disorder.

If you’re strict about eating nutritious foods, you may end up feeling food guilt if you eat something that you think is unhealthy or contains more sugar, salt, or fat than usual.

Why do we feel guilty about food?

Food guilt is often related to your relationship with food. If you’re on a strict diet and “slip up,” you may feel guilty about what you eat.

7 Tips for Dealing with Food Guilt During the Holidays

The holidays can be especially hard with food guilt. The meals you sit down to eat may be outside of your nutritional comfort zone, so it’s important to enter the season equipped with some tips for managing food guilt.

1. Consider eating less nutritious foods as part of a balanced diet

this U.S. Department of Health and Human Services It outlines a “healthy” diet that people need to stick to, detailing how much protein, carbohydrates and various nutrients they need to eat every day. It’s important to balance “healthy” foods with nutrient-dense foods, as there’s nothing wrong with eating traditionally less nutritious foods as long as they’re in moderation. When you cut out foods altogether—especially fun foods like ice cream or potato chips—you may find that you crave them more. If you allow yourself to eat these foods in moderation occasionally, you won’t feel so bad eating these nutritious foods the rest of the time.

2. Practice mindful eating

Mindful eating is a behavior watch what you eat And appreciate every bite. According to reports, by doing this, you can spend more time and energy thinking about your food Harvard School of Public Health. This includes chewing thoroughly and eating slowly so you can experience every bite. Research on mindful eating shows that it can reduce eating-related anxiety and overeating.

3. Pay attention to how you feel after eating certain foods

Sometimes food guilt is unavoidable, but all you can do when it happens is recognize that it’s happening. This way, you can really think about why you feel that way. Sometimes people don’t even realize that the guilt is related to a certain food or diet and why it occurs. If you’ve started keeping a food journal, you can also write down these feelings so you can see if there are patterns in how and when feelings occur.

4. Start a food diary

Keeping a food diary can have a positive impact on the way you eat. according to Harvard Medical Schoola food journal can help record what you eat, how much you eat, and how you feel after eating. If you want to improve your relationship with food, you can also explain why you eat. However, it’s important not to become overly focused on everything you eat, as this can turn into compulsive behavior or even an eating disorder. Some Research Research also shows that when people get tired of keeping a food diary, they give up on it and return to their old eating habits.

5. Avoid paying too much attention to nutrition instructions

Just like keeping a strict food diary can have negative effects, too much focus on “healthy” eating, fad diets, and anything associated with these strict eating plans can have negative effects on you. The keto diet or the Atkins diet are not necessarily OK diets long term maintenance – Unless your physician advises otherwise. While counting calories or macros can help you lose weight, doing so for an extended period of time may trigger an eating disorder if that’s your goal. Duke Health. If you’re “over” what you consider to be ideal foods, focusing too much on the numbers will definitely make you feel guilty, which will make you feel even more guilty about what you’re eating.

6. Honor your hunger pangs

When your body feels hungry, it sends signals to your brain that when your body needs food, you feel pain. It’s important to listen to your body. When it tells you it’s hungry, you should feed it. When it tells you you are full, you should stop eating. Listening to your body is key to knowing when to eat and how much to eat.

7. Accept that you should eat and don’t punish yourself after eating

Give yourself a little grace when you feel like you’re “slipping,” because when it comes to eating a balanced diet, you’re not actually slipping at all. You deserve a treat when you want it, when it makes you happy – that doesn’t mean you need to go to the gym for 2 hours or skip a meal later. Every day is a new day, and it’s absolutely okay to have a few snacks and fun meals as long as you eat a nutritious diet most of the time. If you’re not happy with what you ate today, remind yourself that you can have something else tomorrow—no need to feel guilty.