Holiday Food Guilt & Body Image: 4 Reminders for the Holiday Season
The holidays are supposed to be a time of rest, relaxation, and celebrations with friends and family. But if you’re someone who struggles with food guilt, body image, or perfectionism, it can be overwhelming. And honestly? It’s exhausting.
You want to enjoy your favorite holidays meals, but guilt creeps in and you think…
“My progress is ruined” or “I have to spend the next few weeks making up for this.”
Over time, those thoughts can make the holiday season stressful, leaving you feeling mentally and physically drained.
With mindfulness, self-compassion, and the right tools, it is possible to enjoy the holidays (even when your family is driving you crazy).
Here are 4 reminders about honoring your body’s needs so you can actually enjoy yourself this holiday season.
1. Your body deserves nourishment, not punishment.
Especially during the holidays, you may fall into a cycle of restriction or feeling guilty for what your meals look like.
You skip breakfast because you know you’re having a big holiday dinner, but then find yourself starving by dinner time. You end up feeling guilty for “binging” on dinner and dessert.
The following weeks are spent trying to “make up” for what you ate, and yet you still feel out of control and anxious around food. Sound familiar?
Regardless of what you ate today, yesterday, or last week, your body still deserves care.
Eating mindfully by listening to and honoring your hunger cues, is an act of self-care. Approaching food with curiosity and compassion allows you to treat your body with what it needs, rather than shaming it.
Mindfulness exercise: Notice the texture and aroma of what you’re eating. What does it taste like? Salty? Sweet? How does it make you physically feel?
2. Connections are more important than what’s on your plate.
You want to enjoy the holidays with your loved ones, but instead find yourself obsessing over calories and anxious when every gathering seems to revolve around food.
When your focus is on the food itself, it’s hard to stay present in the moment and actually enjoy yourself.
Think back to the last holiday meal you had: do you remember what was on your family member’s plate?
Chances are you don’t, but you remember the time you spent with them.
This year, try to focus on slowing down, savoring the moment, and being present with friends and family.
Remind yourself that meals are about more than just nourishment. It’s also about joy, socializing, and taking care of yourself.
Connection exercise: Jot down your favorite interactions and moments of the day.
3. Holiday meals don’t determine your worth.
You step on the scale the morning after a holiday meal and your heart sinks. It’s not the number you want to see and you immediately feel crushed.
You beat yourself up for not having more self-control and feel your thoughts spiraling. You think…
“I need to get back to a lower weight.”
“I hate that I let myself eat that way.”
Avoiding your favorite holiday meals doesn’t make you a better version of yourself. Instead it leaves you caught in a cycle of restriction, binging, and guilt.
The truth is that our bodies are meant to change, not be stuck in time at a certain size. The number you see on the scale or when you look in the mirror doesn’t determine your worth.
Reframe exercise: Think about what your body allows you to do and write a list of 3 things you appreciate about it.
4. Enjoy your favorite foods without judgement.
You might find yourself labeling foods as “good” or “bad”, even more so during the holidays.
You look down at your plate and mentally count the calories, how long it’ll take to work it off, and beat yourself up for not having more self-control.
The food noise is getting louder, and you tell yourself “I shouldn’t eat that”, but then another thought creeps in: “If I don’t eat it now, it’ll be another year before I can.”
The holiday food guilt sets in because the apple pie is “unhealthy”, but the truth is that eating dessert doesn’t make you “bad.”
All foods can fit into your life, and you absolutely deserve to enjoy your favorite holiday treats without judgement or having to earn it.
Neutrality exercise: How can you describe your favorite meal without using health words? (Crunchy, flavorful, spicy, etc.)
Final thoughts.
While there may be certain foods that are only made on holidays, it doesn’t mean you can only have it on those days. Many of those foods are available year round so you don’t have to limit it to one day a year.
Even though saving those foods for special occasions can make it feel more special, be mindful about how it may affect your thoughts around it.
Allowing yourself to enjoy those foods throughout the year can help reduce the “all or nothing” thoughts.
Reminders:
You deserve nourishment everyday, not just on holidays.
Focus on the experience of gatherings, rather than the meal itself.
Your worth isn’t based on what you eat or the number on the scale.
Enjoy your favorite meals without labels and guilt.
Get started with therapy for food guilt at Sage Mind Counseling and Wellness.
Navigating holiday food guilt and body image isn’t something you need to face alone. Sage Mind Counseling and Wellness supports college students and young women in healing their relationship with food and their body so you can feel safe and healthy all year round.
Read more about my approach to therapy here and check out FAQs to learn more.
Schedule a free 15-minute consultation to get started.
