The holidays often bring a flood of messages telling us how “unhealthy” our favorite foods are—whether it’s the mashed potatoes at Thanksgiving, the cookies at Christmas, or the snacks at your office party. This constant stream of “healthify your holidays” messaging is rooted in diet culture, which often perpetuates the fear of weight gain and creates unnecessary stress around food choices.

While it’s understandable to want to take care of your health, it’s important to recognize that pursuing “healthier” versions of holiday foods can sometimes backfire, leading to feelings of deprivation. For example, attempting to “healthify” beloved family recipes—like swapping out sugar or fat in a favorite casserole—can end up depriving you of the joy of really enjoying those foods. 

The result? You might find yourself overeating later since your meal wasn’t satisfying.

The Problem with Healthy Swaps

Let’s consider the classic scenario where you crave something like a cookie, but instead, you try to “be good” and eat a bunch of healthy snacks—only to end up eating more than you would have if you had just enjoyed the cookie in the first place. This is a common example of how diet culture fuels a cycle of deprivation. Deprivation doesn’t just mean avoiding food—it can also show up mentally, such as feeling guilty after eating something “indulgent” or believing you need to “earn” the right to enjoy certain foods. 

Someone shared this meme in my FB group Intuitive Eating Made Easy the other day that said, “when you’re craving a biscuit (a cookie), but you’re trying to be good so you eat an apple, an orange, a celery stick, a handful of raisins and then a whole packet of biscuits.” It’s so relatable. That’s exactly what I’m talking about here. By the time you try and eat all of the so-called healthy foods and aren’t satisfied, and you end up eating a boatload of the thing you really wanted, you would have been better off eating the thing you were originally craving in the first place (and you probably would have been satisfied with less of it). That’s what deprivation does to us.

This concept of deprivation trips a lot of people up. When you tell yourself you can only have one cookie or that you’ll only allow yourself that sweet potato casserole on “cheat days,” you’re still engaging in restriction. Understanding your mental relationship with food is crucial to navigating the holidays without feeling guilty or deprived.

What Is Restrictive Eating?

Let’s get into some nuance here. This is one of those things we deep dive into inside my program Intuitive Eating Exploration, where we look at one of the most misunderstood principles of Intuitive Eating – making peace with food. A lot of people mistake making peace with food for simply eating those foods. But there’s more to it than that. 

Deprivation can show up in a lot of different ways:

→ Not letting yourself eat the things you want

That would be like the meme above, where you try to eat fruits and vegetables when you really want a cookie and then eat the whole package of cookies.

→ Letting yourself eat the things you want – but feeling guilty about it

Maybe you let yourself eat the Christmas cookie, but you feel like you’ve gone overboard or that it was too much sugar or too many calories. Maybe you’re obsessing about how you’ll make up for it at the gym tomorrow and “be good” for the rest of the day or the rest of the week.

→ Feeling like you are “giving in” when you let yourself eat something

That moment when you finally cave and eat something you’ve been resisting – you’re 10x more likely to eat a whole bunch of it because it’s like you’ve been holding your breath underwater, and now you’re coming up for air.

→ Telling yourself you can only have certain amounts

Maybe you are letting yourself eat the peanut brittle you made, but you are also telling yourself you can just have one, or you can only have it on certain days (whether it be cheat days, the weekend, or days that you ate a salad for lunch, or days that you worked out). Technically, you’re letting yourself have it – but you’re limiting when and how much you’re “allowed” to have.

Intuitive Eating: A Balanced Approach

Honoring your health during the holidays doesn’t mean giving up your favorite foods or turning every meal into a battle of “healthy swaps.” Instead, you can approach your nutrition in a balanced and sustainable way. 

One of the most helpful concepts I teach in my Intuitive Eating Exploration program is “gentle nutrition,” which emphasizes listening to your body while also considering the actual nutritional needs of your body. Gentle nutrition is about honoring your body’s cues, like hunger and fullness, while also making space for foods that support your health, like pairing carbs with protein and fiber to help regulate blood sugar.

You don’t have to avoid the mashed potatoes or the Christmas cookies to stay healthy. The goal is to enjoy these foods in a way that feels good to your body—without the stress of rigid rules. You can still manage health concerns, like blood sugar levels, by making mindful choices without resorting to overly restrictive behaviors that take away from the joy of the season.

7 Tips for Trusting Your Body During the Holidays

1. Eat a protein-rich breakfast every day (aim for 20-30 grams of protein) to start your day off right.

2. Combine carbs, protein, fat, and fiber at meals to support long-lasting energy and satisfaction.

3. When snacking, pair carbs with protein to keep blood sugar stable.

4. Integrate holiday foods into meals or snacks to ensure you’re getting adequate nutrients.

5. Redefine foods you feel guilty about by mindfully eating and neutralizing your judgment around them.

6. Enjoy your favorite holiday foods mindfully. Stop eating when you’re satisfied, knowing you can have more later.

7. Remember to move your body in ways that feel good—a 10-minute walk after a meal can support digestion and blood sugar regulation without feeling like a punishment.

Enjoy the holiday season without guilt while still taking care of your health in a way that feels empowering and sustainable. The holidays are about joy, connection, and celebration—not about restrictive food rules or feeling like you have to choose between pleasure and health. 

Honor your body, enjoy the season, and remember that you can have your cake and eat it too—without deprivation! 😉

Explore These Intuitive Eating Resources

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