What do you deserve this Christmas?

A pic I took last week when we got our first snow here in Pittsburgh- this was actually my very 1st time seeing snow as I am originally from Arizona!

Alright- let's just go ahead and talk about it...Christmas. It goes without saying that these next few days are going to hold some major temptations for those of us who are trying to kill an old habit of making this weekend a 24/7 feast fest- and if you don't go in with a plan then you are actually making a plan for disaster.

Now to each his own, but for me I am NOT going into this weekend with the mentality of believing that they only way this to count this weekend as a success is to only eat salads and vegetables all day. Will I have a scoop of mashed potatoes? Probably. Will I cover it in butter and gravy? No. Will I eat a Christmas cookie? Yes. Will I eat 3? No. Will I eat lots of veggies? Yes. Will I eat cake? No.

Why? Because I deserve it.

I've realized lately that many times when we have had a hard day or are maybe celebrating a holiday or special occasion, we allow ourselves to eat things that we never would on a "normal" day, and we do all of this under the rationale that..."I deserve it." When the reality of the the situation is- if we allow our choices in regards to eating to be a reaction based off our situation- well then we are always going to have an excuse to eat unhealthily and to tell ourselves that it's okay because "we deserve it." And this morning as I thought about my holiday plans for this weekend I found myself thinking..."It's not realistic for me to think that I can maintain new way of eating this weekend, c'mon it's Christmas, it only happens once a year...what's one weekend?"

But you know what? I don't DESERVE a weekend of shoving my face with cookies and fried foods, what I actually DESERVE is to be in control of my life and to have a healthy body.

*Caution- mini rant coming* Now I need to be very honest- I literally can't stand reading blogs (and I don't) where people are beating up on themselves, calling themselves whales and ugly, and thinking that that is any more healthy than what they were previously doing by eating unhealthily. I get that we can become extremely frusterated with our bodies and even hate the state that we have put ourselves in, but if you can't come to a place where you still love yourself beyond what you look like then no matter how much weight you lose you are never going to be healthy and most certainly not happy. *Rant complete-sorry* :)

I absolutely REFUSE to beat myself up in any way shape or form for my body or what I eat, I love myself because I am more than my body, and that will never change. However, I know my own strength and I know what I want for my future and that means making different and sometimes difficult decisions, but it is worth it and that is what I truly deserve.

All of that to say: Don't completely throw everything you have worked for out the window this holiday weekend simply because it is a holiday and the food is there; realize that what you really deserve is to be healthy and not an extra piece of cake.

So what guidelines am I following this weekend?

• At mealtimes, I'm only going to eat the things that I REALLY want and not just take some of everything because it's there. For example, I really don't like stuffing all that much but sometimes just because it's there and it makes my plate feel more complete, I'll take it. No, no, no.

• One of a sweet thing is enough.



• When deciding on whether to eat something or not I am going to ask myself the following 2 questions: 1) Do I really want this or am I just eating it because it is there and I'm bored? 2) Am I control in this situation or is this _____? [I know this is a lot of mental stuff but for me that's what the battle really takes place!]



• Make sure my plates always consist of at least 50% veggies and fruits.



• Drink lots of water.



• Spend more time with people than food.

I would like to wish all of you amazing bloggers a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS! I most likely won't be blogging for much of the weekend but I'll catch up on your blogs by Monday :)

It really has been so great getting to know many of you and I can't wait to see how different many of us will be come this time next year!

Peace out girl scout-