As Thanksgiving is only a week away, we’re entering one of the happiest times of the year. Yet, if you’re someone looking to shed a few pounds, or maintain your progress from the past few months, the thought of holiday eating may cause an immense amount of stress. If you’re a part of that crowd, you may have already devised some sort of plan that will control your eating/drinking during this time. Not to say that your plan is bad, but when it comes to holiday eating, it’s time for the wise words of Mr. Mike Tyson:

Mike Tyson knows what it's like to cheat on your diet with extra pie...or the occasional human ear.

“Everybody has a plan until they get punched in the face.”

Joking aside, it’s time to be realistic. Are you really going to refuse dessert or take less of a certain dish that you only have once per year? Life is about enjoying yourself, and depriving yourself will most likely cause you to cheat later on. This doesn’t mean that there aren’t any rules, as moderation is still key.

But, it’s time to fast forward to when you’ve overindulged yourself on all the cake, soda, alcohol, and fatty foods you’ve consumed. Ready? Accept it and move on. As I wrote here, exercising to justify what you ate is a losing proposition, and nothing can be done to change the past.

Furthermore, you really have to put in some serious work to gain weight from only a few meals or a weekend of binge eating. While I’m not one for calorie counting, the fact is that it takes 3,500 calories to make up one pound of bodyfat. Thus, most of the “weight” you’ll gain is actually water weight that you’ve retained from those saltier foods, and probably not a whole lot of body fat.

If you’re thinking about having a second piece of cake or pie during the holidays, do it! Try not to feel guilty, especially if you know you make healthy choices the rest of the year. After all, it’s what you do everyday that makes you who you are. If you start to eat a ton of terrible foods every single day, then - and only then - are you allowed to start feeling guilty.

Being healthy is not a choice, it’s a habit!