Win, Lose or Draw

Ok, so don’t freak out…but we are a mere 6 weeks from Turkey Day. Yep, the day that is specifically designed for pajama jeans. I mean, who doesn’t want to wear pajama jeans to Thanksgiving dinner? With their incredibly stretchy waist band, we can certainly eat an extra piece of pumpkin pie, or three.

We are about to head into a blur of holiday activities that leaves our tummies full, our heads spinning and our wallets empty. For many years as a person who struggles with over-indulging, I absolutely dreaded the holiday season. The idea of being surrounded by food, not just food but scrumptious food, was just too much to handle. So here is what I did. Right around this time of year, the week before Halloween, as I began to bust open the Halloween candy bags, I would quit. My thoughts would go something like this “well…I think I’ll take a little break from my healthy eating and I’ll get back on track after the holidays…yeah…that’s what I’ll do…I’ll let myself eat whatever I want and then I’ll be such a good girl come January….in January, I’ll be a saint…a wellness guru…it’s just too hard to stay on track during the holidays…I want to enjoy what I eat…and there are way too many events to stay in control …yeah…January…”

Sound familiar? Every single year, never fail, I stopped my wellness plan in late October and like a big ol’ mama bear…I went into hibernation for a while.

But wait! It doesn’t have to be this way! I don’t mean to scare you, but there are 10 weeks until Christmas. Do you realize that if you stayed on track with your wellness regimen during the holiday season you could lose 5-20 pounds over those 10 weeks? How does that sound to you? Actually losing weight over the holidays? But wait! You have some other options.  

Anyone remember the game show Win, Lose or Draw? OK, I’m dating myself here. When I Googled the words win, lose or draw, I fell in love with one of the Yahoo answers. What does it mean when someone says win, lose or draw? One of the answers was “it means to get on with the contest and accept whatever results may ensue. The only possibilities are win, lose or draw”.

I love that! Why? It has become my approach when faced with the holiday season. For me, tackling the holidays head on is about strategy and choice. You have several choices, and they’re yours to make. You can decide that you want to lose weight during the holidays and stick with your wellness regimen throughout the holiday season. This might look like making mostly healthy food choices, exercising, and maybe indulging a bit on the actual holiday itself. You can choose to maintain at your current weight during the holidays.  Maybe this means for you that you’ll eat a bit more, have some of those dee-lish cocktails, but still exercise and maintain control overall of what you eat and drink. You can decide to allow yourself to gain a bit over the holidays, knowing that you can and will get back on track.

What I love about the definition of win, lose and draw above is the part about accepting whatever results may ensue. Isn’t that what this is all about? Your choice will lead to an action that will lead to a result. The result is purely up to you.

Envision where you want to be in January. Do you want to be thinner? Maintain? Or are you OK with gaining a bit of weight?

Develop a strategy and stick to it.

Feel good about the choices you’re making because YOU are in control.

When you develop a plan and take control, it’s not a win, lose or draw--- it’s a win-win!

Ask for help. Make the choice. Commit to the choice. Continue with courage.

Hugs and friendship,

Tara