Abundance through the Holidays

Are you looking ahead to the holiday season and dreading the feeling of restriction? Or are you worried about how the holidays might impact the progress you’ve made with your weight loss?

You’ve been taught that the only way to lose weight is through restriction. But what if there was a better way? 

What if I told you that you didn’t need to feel restricted and you could actually feel abundant with your food choices?

In last week’s episode I talked about using a food journal as a tool, and how your approach to the food journal will impact how effective it is in supporting you. Make sure you check out that episode – it’s a game changer!

If you are losing weight in a way that you don’t like, eating foods that you hate (while wishing you could be eating something else), and  a TON of energy into it…Your hard won weight loss probably won’t last. 

If you are feeling this way, take a pause. Find a path that you can follow that feels good. That feels abundant. One that you can see yourself following for the rest of your life.

This is exactly what a customized approach like the one I teach the physicians inside Stress Eating SOS will help you with.

Abundance is one of the most important feelings you can create in your weight loss journey.  It is the direct opposite of what you have been taught.  But think of this…

If you are feeling dissatisfied with the foods you are eating, how does that make you feel? 

When you find yourself in a state of feeling restricted you are more likely to eat off your plan. You are more likely to reach for the foods that will make you feel less deprived. 

But when you feel abundant this drive disappears, and it becomes easier to navigate different eating situations and stick to your plan while feeling good about it.

Here are my best tips to finding abundance this holiday season: 

1. Abundance and restriction exist only in your thoughts. They are thoughts, not facts. They are your subjective interpretation of a situation based on what your thoughts are on that situation. This is good news! It means that it is within your control. The thoughts create the abundance or restriction, not the food. 
2. Own the power of your choice. You’ve been trained in weight loss to be disempowered in the process. This type of thinking is not helpful for long term weight loss. When it comes to food, whether you are choosing to eat something or you choose not to, own that power. That’s your choice. Owning that power will feel so much better than when the decision comes from an outside source. You are allowed to make your own choices, the difference is how you talk to yourself around those choices. 
3. You have to look for abundance. Your brain has been patterned to see restriction. You’ve been taught that restriction is the path to weight loss (not true) and you’ve been taught to see it everywhere. So as soon as you start to change your eating, or as soon as you start to use a tool like the food journal, you feel restricted. That’s ok – its expected. You  need to shift the spotlight and look for abundance. Ask yourself questions that will help you find the abundance.  “How could this feel abundant?” is a great one. Be creative. Try new things and find new approaches. This could be new recipes, new types of food and experimenting at restaurants. 

Listen to the full episode to learn more about how to feel abundant through the holidays and into the new year.