Now, I don’t mean by this title that Christmas is somehow dangerous or unpleasant. What I’m talking about is “surviving” the Holidays insofar as your exercise and diet are concerned. It’s pretty simple, reallly–though not easy!

Begin with the notion that you’re not going to grant yourself permission to self-destruct like you have in previous years.  You DO HAVE the willpower and the necessary strength within you to avoid doing that. But, what happened in the previous years was you let yourself or someone else talk you into having a so-called forbidden treat, and then you thought, “what the heck I’ve blown it, I may as well enjoy myself!” And, of course the truth of the matter is that you didn’t enjoy yourself at all. You went to bad with a bad attitude about yourself and you woke up feeling like you know what.

How do you do what I’m talking about. A couple of ways. First of all, you can certainly take Christmas itself as your free day, or even have a Christmas eve dinner and then a nice breakfast and luncheon on Christmas. Cut it off after that, and you won’t have done any irreparable harm for sure. Secondly, exercise the most important thing you can–your mind–by going outdoors ( even if it’s blowing and snowing!) and taking a nice, brisk 20 minute minimum walk. Breathe deeply, swing your arms, celebrate the holiday out loud by singing or praying or just talking to yourself, but get out there! Nothing, absolutely nothing, invigorates you more than taking a good brisk walk. Then, when you come back in, instead of grabbing for the treats, drink a couple of cups of hot tea if it’s really cold, or even some hot water with lemon, or drink a couple of cups of good ice water if you live in a warmer clime.

Another thing that really helps a lot is to have some veggies nearby and eat them instead of the baked goods or the sweets. Carrots, celery, pepper sticks, those kinds of things will keep your hands and stomach occupied long enough to help you make it through.

Well, that’s about it. You don’t need to be perfect on Christmas, but you DO need to avoid that double back flip into the sweets again this year! Almost every good fat-a-thon begins on the Christmas holidays and doesn’t stop until shortly after Easter, and by that time you’re ready for the funny farm! Don’t let that happen to you–you deserve better.

God bless you all. Jesus is the reason for this season, and He’s also the reason that we have unlimited capacity within us to love ourselves appropriately, love others compassionately, and love and live life to the fullest.  That’s how He hard-wired us.