It’s the day after Independence Day, however I’m not feeling very independent from my calorie intake over the past holiday weekend! My weekly weigh-in is in five days and I’m a bit overwhelmed with the prospect of stepping on the scale. Given the number of people I’ve heard say, “I was so bad this weekend,” or, “I overate this weekend;” I don’t think I’m alone on the diet shame spiral. But, I would like to get off of this ride we call a self-imposed guilt trip. How about you?
Let It Go
Worrying about what you ate (and drank) during the holiday—or during any occasion—will not take it back. It’s normal to think about your calorie intake after the fact and wish that you wouldn’t have overindulged. If you had an enjoyable time during the holiday, that counts for something positive! Bashing yourself with negative thoughts will only make you think about food even more and agonizing over it will not help you. What’s done is done, so accept it and let’s move on.
Make Healthy Choices Today
Before I developed healthy eating habits, I could be heard saying, “Well, I’ve already ruined my diet for today, so I may as well eat [insert unhealthy food of choice].” Where did that get me? It got me chubby.
Imagine if after I took a bite of a brownie I said, “The first bite is the best! I just wanted a taste of this brownie,” instead of saying, “since I ate one brownie and ruined my diet for today, I may as well have another!”
If I had only realized back then that eating a less nutritious snack or meal didn’t mean I had to give up on losing weight for the day or the entire week. The choices you made yesterday are not important now, so lose the, “I’ll start on Monday” mentality. The choice you make next, no matter what day of the week, is what is important!
Remember Where You Came from and Celebrate Success
For two years during my plump days, I lived next door to a place that rhymes with Hairy Queen. During that time period, I skipped breakfast and my typical lunch was fast food tacos. I snacked freely throughout the day, usually on chips or cookies. For dinner, I could be caught eating more fast food or enriched white pasta. And, let’s not forget the two-liter of soda that kept my lazy self awake during the day. After dinner I would sit down to watch a Seventh Heaven re-run, but my ice cream cravings would distract me from the bad acting skills portrayed by those toddler twin boys. So, I’d be off to the Hairy Queen for cheese curds and a chocolate malt. What a healthy combo!
My daily diet hasn’t been that way for years. Yet, at the time, I never felt guilty about eating any of that unhealthy food, so why do I feel guilty when I’m not nearly as “bad”? I have made countless healthy habit changes since then and I would never go back to that sort of diet. But, bad habits of long ago can be easy to forget when you are feeling guilty about yesterday’s food intake.
Remember where you came from and the success you’ve had so far thanks to your healthy habit changes. Don’t set your expectations to have a perfect diet every day. Keep up your habits on most days, let the guilt go and watch the weight go with it.
