So the holidays are officially here. Which means lots of food, family, and great times…but it ALSO means straying away from our diets, finding excuses to skip the gym, and ultimately taking steps backwards…away from our goals, away from our progress, and into a giant black hole that we will never escape.
(Okay, so that got a little dramatic at the end, but you all know exactly what I am talking about.)

This Thanksgiving was my first time home since I moved away for grad school, and while I have been more motivated than ever the last few months, I knew that going home was going to be a challenge and might pose as a potential roadblock in my progress. I definitely believe in moderation, and I don’t think that an “all or nothing” approach is ALWAYS the right way, so I tried to brainstorm a few ideas of how I could stay on track and enjoy my visit, while still being proud of how far I have come over the past few months.

First and foremost, I decided that I was not going to resort to the “binge one day/starve myself the next” approach no matter how badly I wanted to. Time and time again, I will make a bad diet decision and ‘punish’ myself the next day by resorting to complete starvation. THIS METHOD NEVER WORKS! All it does is make me blow up like a puffer-fish the next time I DO eat something, and hold onto every little bit of whatever I am eating.

Next, I decided that I was going to make sure I was getting AT LEAST a gallon of water everyday, and start each meal off with a full glasses of water in order to separate my feelings of hunger from feelings of dehydration (somehow I mistake one for the other quite often…hmmm)

I also made a promise to myself that I would give myself time to relax, but would also make sure to get a substantial amount of physical activity while I was home. I thought this part might be difficult, until I got home and was reminded of how AWESOME my friends are and how much I miss my workout buddies! Between my two foxy friends Terra and Sarah (their names even rhyme!!) I was able to work out 6 times in 9 days!

Lastly (and most terrifying), I told myself that I was going to hold myself accountable by taking a picture of myself the day before, the day of, and the day after Thanksgiving. While the body really won’t see a ton of changes in a few days of poor eating, the mental stigma attached with taking a picture of myself in a sports bra TOTALLY worked as a huge method of self control, and I found myself making better choices each day knowing that I was going to be taking a mirror pic later on.

There are so many methods of self control, accountability, and roads to success, but I found these few that I listed really helpful while I was “on vacation” back home. I came back to Arizona and felt refreshed and ready to get back into the gym and on a meal plan without feeling like I took a million steps backward.

FIND YOUR OWN form of accountability and hold onto it for dear life 🙂

xoxo, Mac

It’s funny how hard I was being on myself while I was home regarding food choices, binging, etc., and in all reality…I looked fine. We are so quick to beat ourselves up for poor decisions, rather than allowing ourselves a break every now and then and then hopping right back on our good habits and onto the road to success. I am human, we are ALL human, we are not perfect, and we need to give ourselves as much love and affirmation that we give the people around us.

Treat yourself the way you would treat your best friend. Love yourself the way that you love others. Support your dreams the way you would a friend’s dreams, and BELIEVE IN YOURSELF the way you so easily believe in the people around you. You just might rise above your own insecurities and surprise yourself.