5 Tips to Prep for Mindful Eating During the Holidays
Although the holiday season may still be a few weeks away, the habits and mindfulness we cultivate now are what will help us navigate the food-filled festivities when they quickly approach. Preparing for mindful eating in advance ensures that when the time comes, we can enjoy our favorite holiday meals without overwhelmed feelings. Below are five practical tips to get you ready for mindful eating during the holidays, with insights on how the Ate app can be a powerful tool to help you stay on path from now to even when that time of year comes.
1. Start Practicing Mindful Eating
Mindful eating is about paying close attention to your hunger cues, balanced portions that are right for you and your body’s needs, and the physical sensations you experience when eating. Instead of eating on autopilot, it encourages you to be present with your meal, noticing not just what you’re eating but also how it makes you feel. This approach takes time to master, which is why practicing it now can be so helpful when the holidays roll around.
During the holiday season, with tables full of your favorite foods and the temptation to overindulge, mindful eating helps you slow down and truly savor the experience. Rather than mindlessly going for second or third helpings, you become more attuned to your body’s natural signals of hunger and fullness. You begin to notice when you’re satisfied rather than eating until you’re uncomfortably full. This allows you to enjoy your holiday favorites without the guilt that can sometimes follow after eating too much.
Practical steps to begin mindful eating today:
- Pause before eating: Take a deep breath and ask yourself, “Am I actually hungry?” This helps differentiate between physical hunger and eating out of habit or emotion.
- Chew slowly: By taking the time to chew thoroughly, you can savor the flavors and textures of your food, which can enhance the eating experience and prevent overeating.
- Put your fork down between bites: Slowing down your meal can help you tune in to how full you’re feeling before you’re too stuffed.
These small habits are not just useful for everyday life but can be game-changers when holiday meals are spread across the table. Training your brain and body now to eat mindfully will make it easier to enjoy your favorite holiday dishes without going overboard.
Using the Ate app:
The Ate app makes mindful eating easier by providing a visual food journal where you can document your meals. By logging your food and reflecting on how you feelbefore and after eating, you can begin to identify patterns in your hunger and fullness cues. Over time, this helps build a more intuitive relationship with food, so when the holidays come around, you’ll feel more aware of your choices.
During last year’s holiday season, I used the app to log what I ate and how I felt afterward. This helped me identify when I was eating out of habit or emotion, or simply because there was food on the table, rather than hunger. Practicing now has made me more aware of my body’s fullness cues, so I’m better prepared for holiday parties where it’s easy to lose track. And really the best part, it’s great to look back on those meals when you scroll through your Ate journal. Seeing what you ate, and who you ate it with, a picture is truly worth a thousand words!
Start building mindful eating habits today, and you’ll be ready to enjoy the holidays without the stress.
2. Be Thoughtful with Portions
Understanding a portion size that is right for you is important, especially during the holiday season when festive meals can lead to overindulgence — which is OK from time to time, but when it happens at every holiday gathering, it can leave you feeling uncomfortable and well not just for that day but for a few days after that too. Learning to recognize appropriate portion sizes that work for your body helps you enjoy your favorite holiday dishes without feeling overly stuffed. This skill can promote a healthier relationship with food, allowing you to savor each bite without guilt.
During the holidays, you can practice being more thoughtful with portions by starting with serving yourself using a smaller plate. Did you know that when you see a full plate, your mind thinks that it’s plenty of food. By all means, go back and grab yourself seconds if you’re still hungry! But rather than choosing the largest plate and plating all the food that can fit on it, start smaller and then go back for more if there’s something that you still want or if you’re still hungry. This way, you can enjoy all the holiday flavors while keeping your food choices in check.
Steps to take today:
- Get to know your body. When you finish a plate of food, are you usually stuffed, or still hungry?
- Use smaller plates or bowls when serving meals to help visualize your portions. Or if you catch yourself always hungry still, try using a larger plate.
- Before serving, consider your hunger level and serve only what you think you’ll eat.
- When serving, see how many colors can you add to your plate. The more colors, the more macronutrients, and the more nutrient-rich foods that will be present on that plate.
Incorporating the Ate app:
With the Ate app, you can log your meals and visually see just how colorful your plate was and also what macronutrients were incorporated on your plate. This feature allows you to see how you’re incorporating different foods. By reflecting on your meals, you can develop a more intuitive sense that will serve you well during the holiday season, without strict food rules or strict diets.
I’ve found that since using the Ate app over the years and trying out using small plates it’s something I have gradually gravitated towards and can tell the difference it makes when I’m eating. On a daily basis, I know how much I like of vegetables, protein, and carbs on my plate, but even when I do go out to eat at a restaurant, I find myself being fuller than I’d like because of the bigger plates and the big meals they serve food on and my mind thinks that its a plateful — that means I should eat it! But in retrospect, if I were at home, I’d probably be eating it split up for lunch and dinner.
But logging my meals in Ate and reflecting on how I felt, I’ve come to realize that the big eye-opener is how even fewer bites of sweet treats can satisfy my sweet tooth at the end of a meal compared to years ago when you would never catch me sharing a dessert with anyone!
Enjoy the holiday party and social gatherings, and have a good time, but don’t knock yourself into a food coma by eating everything and anything in sight. At the end of the night, you’ll feel much better when you’ve actually listened to your hunger cues.
3. Pay Attention to Hunger and Fullness Cues
Listening to your body’s hunger cues is vital for practicing mindful eating, particularly during the holiday season when the abundance of food can lead to mindless eating. By becoming more aware of your physical hunger signals, you can learn to differentiate between actual hunger and emotional eating, helping you make better food choices and enjoy your meals more.
During the holidays, take a moment before eating to check in with your body. Ask yourself if you’re truly hungry or if you’re eating out of habit, boredom, or social pressure. During holiday gatherings, it’s easy to continue eating because food is abundant and the social aspect makes it tempting to go for seconds — which is completely OK to do if you’re still hungry! But if you’re not, tuning into your body’s hunger and fullness signals can help you make mindful decisions about when to stop eating.
Steps to take today:
- Use Ate’s hunger and fullness questions and answer tags to keep a log of when you feel hungry throughout the day and what you choose to eat at those times.
- Pause before meals to assess your hunger on a scale from 1 to 10.
- Practice eating slowly and intentionally, paying attention to how full you feel as you eat.
Incorporating the Ate app:
The Ate app allows you to track not just what you eat but also how you feel before and after meals. By recording your hunger levels, you can start identifying patterns that inform your future food choices, helping you recognize true hunger cues when the holidays arrive.
Listening to your body’s fullness cues is one of the best ways to enjoy holiday meals without feelings of guilt.
4. Plan for Physical Activity
Regular physical activity is essential for maintaining good health and can significantly influence how you feel during the holiday season. Staying active not only helps manage stress but also enhances digestion and can mitigate the effects of rich holiday foods. By incorporating movement into your daily routine, you can boost your energy levels and create a more positive mindset as you navigate holiday gatherings.
During the holidays, aim to incorporate short walks after meals or family activities that involve movement. One other great way to get movement in is by joining group workout classes. It can be hard during the colder months to get yourself moving or find the motivation, but if you join a class, it can help you stay accountable! And better, yet, try to get it in first thing in the morning. This way you can’t find any excuses of running out of time, and you still get to enjoy all the social situations that can come up even last minute.
Steps to take today:
- Schedule at least 30 minutes of physical activity most days of the week, whether it’s walking, yoga, or a workout class.
- Make it a point to move more during the day by taking the stairs instead of the elevator or doing some stretches during breaks. Or when going to the store, park your car further, and get those extra steps in. Or when talking with a friend on the phone, take the talk for a walk.
- Plan fun, active outings with friends or family, like hiking or ice skating.
Incorporating the Ate app:
The Ate app encourages mindful practices around food, but it can also serve as a reminder to include physical activity in your daily routine. Use the Ate app to manually log activity (or sync with Apple Health) to log activity alongside your meals to see how they correlate, helping you understand the balance between what you eat and how you move.
Last holiday season, I used Ate not only to track my meals but also to reflect on my physical activity. By logging when I took a short walk after meals, I noticed how much better I felt. The app also helped me stay accountable to my goal of staying active, which made the indulgence feel less overwhelming.
Planning for physical activity during the holidays can help keep you feeling energized and balanced.
5. Focus on Enjoying the Experience, Not Just the Food
Practicing gratitude can significantly enhance your holiday experience by shifting your focus from what you might be missing out on (like when following restrictive diets) to the joys and abundance of the season. A mindset of gratitude helps reduce feelings of guilt associated with holiday eating and fosters a healthier relationship with food. This practice can improve your overall mental health and enhance the joy of food-related celebrations.
During the holidays, take time to express gratitude for the food you have, the people you’re with, and the traditions you celebrate. This can create a more enjoyable and meaningful eating experience.
Steps to take today:
- Write a note in your Ate app for one thing you’re thankful for each day, including food, people, and/or experiences.
- Share your gratitude with family and friends during meals, making it a group practice.
- Reflect on your meals and acknowledge the effort that went into preparing them.
Incorporating the Ate app:
The Ate app can serve as a digital gratitude journal where you can note what you appreciate about each meal, whether it’s the flavors, the company, or the memories associated with the food. By integrating gratitude into your food log, you create a positive framework that enhances your eating experiences throughout the holiday season.
The Ate app encourages reflection beyond just food. I continuously use it to note how I feel emotionally after family gatherings. I found that the practice of mindfulness in my eating helped me stay more present and enjoy the joys of the season, rather than worrying about overeating. I know I’ll continue using Ate to capture both the food and the meaningful moments that make the holiday season special.
Mindful eating is about more than food — it’s about savoring the entire holiday experience.
Conclusion
The holidays can be a challenging time for mindful eating, but by preparing now, you’ll be better equipped to enjoy the season without stress. With the help of the Ate app, you can track your meals, be aware of your physical and emotional responses, and build healthy habits that last long beyond the holiday time. Practice now, and let this be the year you enjoy your favorite holiday dishes and festive foods without the guilt.
Start using the Ate app today to gain a better understanding of your food choices and how they affect your mood, energy, and overall well-being. Remember, small changes lead to big improvements, and journaling your meals and emotions is a great first step toward a healthier you!
For additional insights and tools to enhance your health journey, explore the Ate blog or discover more within the Ate app. Join us as we navigate towards sustainable wellness together with Ate by your side.
