How to not be too “healthy” this holiday weekend

According to both diet culture and the health writer’s imaginary code of internet things, I should use this to create a list of ways to “eat healthier” through any holiday weekend. That’s in addition to, or along with, a roundup of all the dishes to make for your parties, and trite tips like “eat with your eyes, first”, “start with a salad” and “only have one dessert!” In conclusion, a link to Pinterest’s black hole of eighty other top tips and recipes.

It all really sets that holiday tone.

Let’s try something new: Ignore the code. Set diet culture aside.

Instead, get curious: Do you look back fondly on the holiday weekends when you avoided your favorite traditional desert? Or when you passed on the standard American holiday ham/turkey/hot dog/burger/veggie-thing, and decided to have salad number 1,084 instead? Or when you looked at the potluck buffet with your eyes and thought, “Satisfied!”, then moved on?

(If you nodded yes — so fondly — to any of the above, I stand corrected.)

You might remember a run on the beach, a winter hike with friends, a Turkey Trot or holiday lights run, an afternoon spent kayaking or SUP-ing or boating, or a walk down your hometown memory lane. You might remember a few hours spent painfully trying to get your “healthy” recipe to look like the one one Pinterest. You might remember stepping on a scale before and after the weekend, and how it either ruined your day, or buoyed your ego for 0.00005 seconds. You might remember getting “back to the grind” on day four, holiday weekend over, and closing browser tabs with all those tips, tricks, and recipes. You will definitely remember the emotions tied to all of the above.

And typically, there’s also a memory of, or feeling about all the things that “should” have been done, avoided, consumed, or resisted. A shame, or food-guilt hangover that follows the weekend, with an urge to detox and really get back on track.

Which is why I won’t advise you for the Nth time to “stick with it” and “beat the temptations!”

Instead, maybe do some of these things. Avoid being too “healthy” for this holiday—honoring your preferences, not the rules decided by diet culture, for a change—and see what happens.

1. Eat food that you LIKE. If it happens to be a fruit or vegetable, you don’t get any bonus points. If it tastes good to you,though, that’s a win.
2. Go outside. Move around and get some fresh air. Wear sunscreen (no matter what season it is); it’s stupid not to.
3. Drink a few, if that’s your style. Chances are you have an extra day to recover from your adult hangover (#realstruggle) before you go back to adulting at work/home.
4. Stay up late with your friends. Stare at the stars, go for a midnight hike (wear a headlamp and make some noise — I’m not trying to get anyone attacked by wildlife here), build a snowman, go shopping, go sledding, pitch a tent in the backyard (or a real campsite) with the kids (or your adult friends) even though you’ll sleep like shit, or visit someone you haven’t seen in a while. Do something that evokes a silly nostalgic smile.
5. If you’ve been galavanting outside, check yourself for ticks. Seriously.
6. Go to a movie or show and don’t feel guilty about sitting on your ass for two to three hours. Order the popcorn, if you like it.
7. Have conversations with your family/friends that matter. Connect with them. Work on your human relationships. Those relationships give us more than any salad, or slice of pie for that matter, ever will.

When you wake up to another post-holiday week, know that you’ll be just fine. Your system will have recovered, because that’s what our bodies are designed to do. And you’ll probably have better water-cooler stories, if that’s your thing.

Heather Caplan is a non-diet registered dietitian, regularly serving up anti-diet-culture sass like this on her weekly podcast, RD Real Talk.