Maybe you know that consistency is key to successfully maintaining healthy habits and seeing the results you want.
But with the holidays coming up, you might be thinking: How in the world can I be consistent now? There’s this party, and that dinner, and all the office potlucks… It’s too much!
But if you can stay consistent over the holidays, then you are good to go for the whole year. There’s no time more disruptive than the next few weeks, it’s true.
It’s one thing to eat well and exercise most or the time during most of the year. You might be confident in your skills there.
So, put them to the test! Here’s where the power of consistency really comes into play.
Can you…
- Enjoy holiday events and snacks at work without overindulging every time someone brings in another dessert?
- Keep up your exercise routine even when you have extra demands on your time?
- Manage the stress associated with work, family, friends and maybe even travel?
Yes, yes, and yes! You’ve got this.
Here’s the secret. Remember that it’s a looooooong holiday season, with many opportunities to see people you like and to consume food and drink you enjoy. You will have many chances for all of this. You do not have to be stuffed at the end of all of them.
- Sit down with a calendar and sketch out commitments and opportunities between now and the end of the year.
- Plan workouts around them.
- Choose one or two events this season where you totally enjoy the food and drink or miss a day’s work-out, and then do so guilt-free. (You cannot fix your health with one meal and one meal will not make you “fall of the wagon” either).
- It’s ok to say no to an event – you do not have to attend them all and you do not have to explain why you will not be attending.
- Don’t go to a party hungry.
- Consider hosting a gathering that’s built around activity and not consumption.
- Remember to schedule time alone or quiet time with your family to “unplug” from the seasonal stress. Self-care is more important now than at any other time of the year, and if you’re not vigilant, then everyone else’s agendas can overwhelm yours.
- “No, thank you” is a complete sentence.
If you can make it through the holidays with your habits in place, then you will be GOLDEN heading into the new year.
Keep that in mind this holiday season!
