Guilty of over-indulging at the weekend??
So, didn’t we have the most glorious sunny Bank Holiday weekend?? I think no matter where you were in the country or what you were doing, it would have been almost impossible not to be smiling!! For me, I was grinning like a Cheshire cat down in Co. Cork with my family and friends attending the Ocean to City and Cork Harbour Annual Festival! I had an amazing weekend filled with fun laughter and where lots of great memories were made!
I will hold my hands up and admit I did not make the ‘healthiest’ food choices while I was away.
I relaxed and enjoyed the wonderful company I was in and treated myself to chilled glasses of Sauvignon Blanc and snacked on chips by the harbour… did I feel guilty??? In a word, NO! There was a time when I would have beaten myself up over ‘breaking my diet’ or ‘falling off the health wagon’, guilt would have eaten me up and spat me out but thankfully those days are so far behind me now and remember the reason is …. I gave up dieting!! Who really wants to live the frustrating life of following a strict eating regime day in day out??
Think of all of life’s daily little pleasures you would be missing out on. Now I am not saying to heck with it all, eat what you want…. but changing your eating habits to healthier ones and creating an overall balanced healthier lifestyle is much more achievable. The key word in that is ‘balanced’, it’s only normal that there will be slip ups, the important thing to note is how you move forward after. Here are great tips I find helpful if you have over indulged and want to get back on track;
- FORGIVE YOURSELF!!! What’s done is done, leave it in the past and move on! (A friend said to me recently when we spoke of regret, “the only time you should look back is when you’re ploughing”).
- DRINK PLENTY OF WATER. Flush out all the toxins (mainly salt) you feel you have ‘poisoned’ your body with. Water will replenish not only your digestive system but your skin especially after alcohol intake. Drinking a large glass before bed, again in the morning first thing and plenty throughout the day will aid recovery immensely.
- GET QUALITY SLEEP. One of the best things you can do after a ‘binge’ is get at least 7-9 hrs sleep. It’s a proven fact that those lacking in sleep eat more calories the following day and not only more but mostly those that are laden with fat and carbs
- LOAD UP ON FRUITS AND VEGGIES. If you are feeling ‘weighed down’ and bloated from over indulging (Did I mention I had pizza too…Oooops) then these babies are your friends as they are not only healthy but light weight and will fill you up without the guilt!
- DON’T SKIP MEALS. Don’t get into the mind frame that if you eat less now you will make up for when you over ate. This only leads to a messed up metabolism. Eat wisely, but EAT!
- GET MOVING. Healthy eating is only half the battle… get back to exercising. Don’t let a weekend of enjoyment become a month of punishment. Stick to your normal routine, neither under-compensate or over-compensate or you will get thrown off sync altogether.
Admit to yourself that overdoing it on food /drink is the human condition. We all have our moments, it’s part of life. As a popular inspirational quote says, “You are not defined by your mistakes, but your reaction.” Getting back on that healthy-eating horse is as easy as practicing a little self-care. Take care not to re-create bad habits after all your hard work but also don’t beat yourself up, enjoy your wee indulgences because life is short enough and our goal to be healthy is so that we will be around to enjoy these special moments like a long weekend away with family and friends enjoying the sunshine!
Until next time,
Louise
