The holidays are supposed to feel joyful, but for many, they come with an extra dose of stress around food. Diet culture thrives this time of year, flooding headlines with toxic messages. “Avoid holiday weight gain.” “Burn off those Thanksgiving calories.” “Stay on track this holiday season.” Sound familiar? It’s exhausting and unhelpful.

The underlying message here is rooted in fear—fear of food, fear of fatness, and fear of losing control. Society creates an impossible standard: enjoy the holiday foods while simultaneously “staying on track.” It’s a double standard that keeps us feeling stuck, guilty, and stressed.

But here’s the truth: the average person gains less than two pounds during the holidays. That’s it. For most people, weight can naturally fluctuate a few pounds in either direction. This isn’t real “weight gain.” So let’s set that fear aside. Instead, focus on listening to your body and fully enjoying the holiday season without guilt or stress.

What Does Giving Yourself Permission to Eat Really Mean?

Permission to eat doesn’t mean chaos. It doesn’t mean gorging yourself on everything in sight. Instead, it means having choice. You get to choose what to eat without guilt or judgment. You get to listen to your body and trust it to guide you.

When you give yourself permission to eat, you free yourself from the moral labels around food. You’re not a “bad” person for eating pie, and you’re not a “good” person for skipping dessert. Food has no morality attached to it. Permission means you can say “yes” to the foods you want and “no” to the foods you don’t.

Listening to your body plays a central role in this. Are you craving that slice of pie? Go for it. Do you feel full and satisfied already? Then it’s okay to pass. Giving yourself permission is about trusting your instincts, not fighting against them.

Why Guilt Has No Place at the Table

Feeling guilty about food disconnects you from your body. Guilt keeps you trapped in your head, overthinking every bite. You start analyzing the calories, worrying about overeating, and fearing weight gain. These thoughts pull you away from your natural hunger and fullness cues.

Food guilt also fuels the restrict-binge cycle. You might try to avoid “unhealthy” foods, which builds deprivation and cravings. Eventually, you’ll overeat or binge on those same foods, leading to more guilt and another round of restriction. It’s a cycle that keeps you stuck.

Here’s the mindset shift you need: food is not a moral issue. You’re not a better person for eating salad, and you’re not worse for eating pie. Food is just food. All foods have value—nutritional, emotional, cultural, or social. Even a dessert has value because it brings comfort, pleasure, or joy.

Decharming the Foods You Fear

A client I worked with struggled with guilt over eating chips and other salty snacks. She avoided them during the day but craved them at night. She’d eat them while bored, upset, or lonely. The foods she labeled as “bad” were the ones she couldn’t stop eating.

Together, we worked on neutralizing and decharming those foods. She started eating chips during the day, pairing them with meals or snacks. She reframed her thinking, too. Instead of seeing chips as “unhealthy,” she viewed them as a source of carbs and fat—both valid and normal.

You can do the same with holiday foods. Are there specific foods you feel guilty about? Include them intentionally in your meals. Pay attention to how they taste, how they feel, and how they satisfy you. Neutralizing these foods helps you take the power back, making them less of a forbidden temptation.

Practical Steps for Listening to Your Body During the Holidays

You can enjoy holiday foods without guilt by practicing intuitive eating. Here are some practical steps to guide you:

1. Make Mindset Shifts

• Replace “I shouldn’t eat this” with “Do I want to eat this?”
• One meal or snack won’t determine your health. Focus on patterns over time, not single choices.

2. Listen to Your Body

• Pause before eating and check in with yourself. Are you hungry? How hungry?
• Honor your fullness. Stop eating when you feel satisfied, not stuffed.
• Prioritize satisfaction. Choose foods you enjoy and savor them fully.

3. Give Yourself Permission

• Allow yourself to enjoy your favorite holiday foods without guilt.
• If something tastes amazing, savor it. If it doesn’t, you don’t have to finish it.

4. Handle Social Pressure Gracefully

• Practice saying “No, thank you” to foods you don’t want, without feeling obligated to explain.
• Shut down diet talk politely but firmly. You don’t have to engage in conversations about calories or weight.

By following these steps, you’ll create space to enjoy the holidays without food guilt or stress.

A New Holiday Experience

One of my clients recently shared her excitement about the holidays. After taking my Non-Diet Academy course, she’s spending her first holiday season as a full-fledged intuitive eater. She feels free and empowered to listen to her body and enjoy the season without stress. For her, it feels like an experiment in trust and curiosity, and she’s embracing the experience with joy.

That’s what I want for you, too. I want you to feel free to enjoy holiday foods, trust your body, and focus on what truly matters during the season.

Let Go of Perfection

The holidays aren’t about being perfect. They’re about connection, celebration, and joy. If you eat more than usual, that’s okay. If you skip dessert, that’s okay too. What matters is that you’re listening to your body and making choices that feel good for you.

Remember: you are worthy of enjoying the holidays without guilt. You don’t need to “stay on track” or earn your food through exercise. Food is not something to fear. It’s something to celebrate.

Listening to Your Body for Guilt-Free Holiday Enjoyment

This holiday season, give yourself permission to enjoy food. Practice listening to your body, honoring your hunger and fullness, and savoring the foods you love. Let go of the guilt and diet culture pressures, and instead focus on creating meaningful memories with those around you.

When you trust your body and let go of food rules, you create space for peace, freedom, and joy. And isn’t that what the holidays are truly about?

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Search for Episode 158: What If Instead Of Bragging That You’re Passing On Pumpkin Pie, You Gladly Enjoyed a Piece (Without Guilt)?

Looking for more support on your journey to food freedom and body acceptance?

• Join my Facebook group & community “Intuitive Eating Made Easy”
• Take my FREE quiz “What’s Your Unique Path to Food Freedom?”
• Save $120 on HelloFresh, my fav food delivery service!
• Check out my course, Non-Diet Academy