Eating a lot this Holiday? That’s OK.
A note: Hey guys! Because of some exciting writing things happening (which I will tell you about as soon as I can), I’m going to be re-posting some of my favorite blogs for the next few weeks until that project is done. Below is an old time fave of mine about food and the holidays. Technically, it’s a New Year’s post, but I needed this reminder today, so you might too. Especially as you’re thinking forward to the New Year. Enjoy! And when you’re done, go eat a cookie!
This New Year, I’m trying something different: I’m not going to beat myself up over eating too many sweets during the holidays. You shouldn’t either.
Usually on January 1 I think about all I indulged in over the last several weeks with remorse. Even when it was happening, I anticipated the remorse. I drank eggnog with gnawing unease, knowing I would regret it later. Each holiday treat was consumed with some guilt and anxiety that my pants wouldn’t fit by the end of whatever Christmas party I was attending. A cookie could steal my joy a little. The second cookie ran off with it completely.
Not all women are like this, I know. Some of you eat dessert and you’re all, “Whatever, it’s a cookie.” But if you’re like me, food has not been simple for you in a long time. You have a calorie calculator in your head and you keep a running tab on how many days you’ve exercised that week. You think twice about everything you put in your mouth. Food is emotional, it’s either comforting to indulge in followed by regret and guilt later, or it’s too terrifying to taste and you skip it altogether.
I remember my skinniest year. I had a ridiculous amount of control over what I ate. It’s what I thought about most of the day. I fell asleep at night hoping I hadn’t consumed too much and thinking about what I would eat the next day and how I would avoid all the unhealthy stuff.
When I look back on it, Christmas during that year o’ skinny was so sad. I was home in Texas at my parents’ house, which is always overloaded with edible gifts by the time I arrive. I assessed everything in sight and decided that each night I would allow myself one or two pieces of chocolate after dinner. It was a hungry Christmas. And although I looked “great” and hadn’t gained an ounce by January 1, I would rather my head and heart never be in a place like that again. It was dark. I lived under the deception of my own control.
Maybe you’ve experienced something similar, or you’re experiencing it now. Recent memories of the holiday dessert table haunt you. You are mad at yourself, you don’t like what you see in the mirror and above all, you feel shame. In attempt to rectify, you are now trying to set a really drastic resolution to make up for the damage you did. But you are already afraid you won’t follow through with it.
If this sounds familiar, you’re in bondage. You’re a slave to your appetite and body. It seems healthy from the outside, but the reality is it’s not normal or freeing to care so much about a few Christmas cookies. I know this because a counselor, close friends and smart books have told me so over the past few years.
Anxiety and guilt are strong emotions, so associating them with food gives something that was meant to fuel us, that was meant for us to delight in, much more power than was ever intended for it.
Many articles and blog posts about the “New Year-New You” are simply adding to this overwhelming feeling of body shame. I want this post to be different. I want you feel absolved of the guilt and regret you feel now after having eaten everything in front of you over the past couple of months. And if you’ve been constricting and restraining from the good stuff, I want to give you permission to indulge in the leftovers. It’s ok. Really, it is. You’re not going to die. You’re not going to gain 40 pounds overnight. ‘Twas a season of celebration, and it’s not too late to attend the party.
You have, once again, written a piece that exposes your own vulnerabilities while encouraging your readers and yourself. That’s what I like about your writing. Your writing clearly expresses your soul and your heart and shows you as a caring person. Readers respond to that humanity and their souls and hearts are impacted for the better. You have a wonderful gift that has benefited many.
Happy New Year!
Preach it sister!
I remember my hungry Christmas and my life has never been the same ever since. It was you who helped pull my head out of my …self and start really living 🙂 God is good. He can use friends, scripture and cookies to change lives.
Aw, and it was you who 2 years later helped ME pull my head out my…self 🙂 God is so good.
Excellent sharing! Please consider becoming a full time writer.
Good writing darlin!! Happy new year! Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might! His smile over you is BIG! I love you
thank you so much for your article..I was very anorexic before I came back to Jesus…not so now……bless you! please visit my blog and my book page; The Gateway to Eternal Life on Facebook…
I lost a lot of weight last year due to cancer treatment. A year ago I would have done anything to lose this much weight, but now I know how important it is to be healthy. If I could go back in time, (a little) overweight but healthy
I would. My body looks great, but it hides the cause of it…
Thank you! That is just what I needed to hear today. I am more than the size of my jeans 🙂
What a relief to read a New Year’s post that doesn’t weigh one down with false food guilt. Our family has been on a rough journey of anorexia with our teen daughter. It has opened our eyes to so many unhealthy and self righteous attitudes about food and eating. Our dear daughter is recovering now and we, as a family, are resolved to never diet or get caught up in the latest “health crazed” food fad again. We loved one another with cookies and candy and cake and cheese balls all through the holidays. It is pure joy to see our daughter begin to enjoy food again. Thank you again for your willingness to go against the current of our image obsessed world.
Words to live by. ❤️
Very freeing! Each one has to answer to God in his own heart and be set free from any kind of bondage – guilt, obsession, gluttony, seeking comfort from sources other than than The Lord, self-indulgence, self-deprecation, etc. Thank you for speaking balance and life and freedom through your writing
You. Made. My. DAY !!!
Thank you so much for this article, I’ve just read it, and it definitely changed something inside of me for this whole year ! (well.. I hope it did..!).
Don’t stop writing, I love your style, your articles and you probably inspire more girls than just me !!! #fanclub !
May G.od bless you,
Big hug from Paris, France.
Bérénice
[…] Andrea Lucado is an amazing blogger and writer. Her posts are so rich and full of life and truth. She writes mostly about God, grace, being a woman, and what all of that means. Most recently, my favorite post of hers has been “Ate A Lot Over The Holidays? That’s OK.” […]
Andrea, it is mind-boggling how spot-on your whole post is. I have the exact same relationship with food and last year was my “extremely skinny” year. I deprived myself of all the goods in the world, and a few months in I completely flipped and started eating everything in sight, and in large quantities. Everyday was last supper day. To be honest, I am still struggling to find moderation and to remember what it was like to open a box of cookies and not eat the whole thing in one sitting. I don’t trust myself around sweets, and I find it a lot easier to avoid them altogether but that only works for a limited amount of time. I was a very healthy eater before I decided to get unnaturally lean last tear. That’s when I really screwd up both my mind and my body. Eating is a constant battle, and there is still a lot of room for improvement, but I’ve realized that deprivation is most certainly not the right way to go about healthy eating. And even if my body did look extremely fit on the outside, what was unfit was my mind. It’s a certain kind of crazy.
So thank you for sharing! Of course, you are not alone. But I say we make a pact and put an end to feelings of fear and guilt around food. That’s the only path to liberation, I think.
Happy holidays! <3