We all know it’s coming. The turkey and gravy, the countless treats dropped off on your doorstep. But this year doesn’t have to be the year where you give in to the “inevitable”. This is the year you are going to keep strong and maybe even lose weight during the holidays!

Here are my favorite tips to enjoy the holidays while sticking to your Nutritarian way of eating:

1. Anticipate difficult situations

What are those situations that you typically struggle with? Is it your sister-in-law’s Christmas party where tensions are always running high? Is it when you’re at a shopping center and you can smell the candied nuts? Or maybe when you’re Christmas shopping and see the orange chocolate balls that you always had in your stocking as a kid?

Figure out what your triggers are and decide in advance how you are going to respond before you are feeling the impulse of the moment.

2. Make decisions ahead of time

Here’s where I would set some very clear boundaries for yourself. Are you going to eat after a certain time of night? Are you going to only eat when you’re hungry? Keep these super simple and straight forward because we all know that once you are in the moment your brain is going to start trying to negotiate what “eating late” or “just a little” means. The more clear and detailed the more likely you are to follow through!

3. Plan Exceptions

Say what? Yes, plan exceptions. So many of us think we can ever enjoy a special treat while on a Nutritarian diet, which is a nice idea, but not very sustainable. If you allow yourself to plan an exception every once in a while, all the sudden you can still enjoy “off-plan” items while staying in control.

4. If you go off-plan, learn from it and move on

When we eat something that wasn’t planned for, it can be easy to get really judgmental of ourselves. The downside here is that getting judgmental is rarely helpful. A lot of times it may lead to eating even more off-plan foods in an effort to feel better. Instead, I recommend getting really thoughtful and curious about what happened. Then ask yourself “what could have gone better?” and “What will I do next time?”. Then move on.

You got this! Happy Holidays!