Food and eating are essential components of adventure. And adventure is significantly impacted by what we eat.
Not only can preparing, cooking and eating a meal or snack be an adventure in itself. But any adventure we take (unless, I suppose, it’s an adventure about fasting, which is sort of about food – the absence of it – too) includes food as a necessary and often appreciated companion.
So for us adventurists, giving thought to food as the fuel with which we propel our adventures is an important part of planning and maintenance.
Sweets Everywhere
The problem is, this time of year, smart and healthy eating – the kind that is optimal for adventuring and aging – becomes threatened, or at least more difficult. Because, starting at around Halloween and running nearly half a year all the way to Easter, we’re inundated with sweets and treats, delectable desserts and scrumptious confectionaries that wreak havoc on our waistlines and steal away our energy. Kids bring home shopping bags’ worth of candy bars, sugary pieces, sweetened assortments and saccharine niblets.
A few weeks later Thanksgiving arrives, the one day of the year when gluttony is celebrated. (Pumpkin and pecan pie!) Then the assorted holiday cookies and goodies start to arrive. And there’s Valentine’s Day and Easter treats, all conspiring to thicken us up, slow us down and make us crave the couch, a blanket and Netflix.
Smart Ways to Eat Sweets
Look, the treats aren’t going away, and neither are our natural appetites for yummy eats like cookies, chocolate, pie, cake and other pastries. No one I know is perfect, and few people are able to resist these fattening temptations one hundred percent of the time.
But sampling these irresistible food options doesn’t have to result in guilt and self-flagellation. There are ways to have it all, to partake in eating sugary goodies and enjoying them while remaining physically healthy and retaining your adventurous, ready-for-action mindset.
Here are 10 tips for eating those holiday treats without the resultant guilt and lethargy.
- Give yourself permission. You know you’re going to eat that treat. It’s sitting right in front of you. You might as well try it. But before you do, grant yourself permission to eat it, and decide you are not going to judge yourself or feel bad because you do. You are going to enjoy it to the fullest.
- Eat it slowly. Instead of wolfing down that bonbon or that slice of cake, slow down and savor every bite. Eating sweets is enjoyable, so make it last a while. Make yourself chew it longer than you normally would – at least 20 chews for each bite. And set down your fork or spoon or the uneaten morsel between bites.
- Focus. This is related to #1. As you slowly chew that treat, focus your attention on the way it tastes, the joy of the sweet flavor concoction dancing on your tongue. Feel the textures and notice the consistency of the bite, how it changes as you savor it and how it satisfies when you swallow it.
- Document how it feels. This is a good practice in general. But when you have a treat, make a note of how it feels to eat it, and how you feel right afterward. Then set a timer for half an hour later and jot down again how you feel. No judgment, just an honest documentation of how you were affected by eating that treat. What do you notice? What do you learn from this exercise?
- Be grateful. Once you’ve finished enjoying that delicious consumable, and even while you’re enjoying it, be mindful of the joy it’s bringing to you. Be aware of how lucky you are to have the privilege of eating this sugary gift. You could even say “Thank you” aloud or express your gratitude in other ways. It will enhance your experience.
- Move. Have your treat and enjoy it. When you’re finished enjoying it, make a plan to move. Outside or around the house, it doesn’t matter. It also doesn’t have to be a lot. Some yoga stretches. Some light calisthenics. Maybe a quick game of Twister with the kids. Engage in some kind of movement to encourage digestion and blood flow, and start to burn some of the sugar you just consumed.
- Count it. Eating sweets is one of the joys of life. But over-indulging on sweets, or anything, is rarely a good choice. Many of these tips will help you avoid over-indulging without noticing it, but to push the point, count the treats you eat so that you are aware of the quantity. If you want to be disciplined while enjoying holiday treats, set a quota ahead of time. Allow yourself a certain number of treats per month, say, or per week. I’ll leave the number up to you, but try to stick to the number you’ve set. (Even if you don’t stick to it, that’s fine; just counting will likely help you cut down and avoid over-indulgence.)
- Balance. You’ve just taken in a high dose of sugar. Ideally, the best way to help digest that sugar is to have eaten a snack of protein and fiber before the treat to offset the effects on your body of the sugar and avoid a blood sugar crash. If not a healthy meal, try a handful of nuts, especially pistachios, an apple or a hard-boiled egg.
- Drink water. During and after indulging in sweets, it’s important to flush the sugar through your system, convert the excess into fat and avoid a dump of insulin to re-stabilize your blood sugar. Too much sugar in your blood can over stress your nerves and brain. Drinking water can also help remove sugar caught in your teeth and gums and prevent tooth decay. The worst thing you can do is wash down a sugary sweet with a sugary drink!
- Time it wisely. If you’re going to eat something sugary, the best time to do so is after having eaten a healthy meal with protein and fiber. Sugar in limited amounts can help give us energy and assist us through a droopy afternoon. Taking sugar after a workout can help restock muscle. Eating sugary snacks (ice cream anyone?) late at night is a common but not advisable practice. It can interrupt good sleep and contribute to an upset stomach that’s working overtime to process the sugar. It can also lead to acid reflux, another potential sleep disrupter.
Go ahead, enjoy that dessert. Just do so wisely, mindfully and with a few practices that won’t allow your sugary indulgence to make you feel lousy and douse your energy for adventure.
Bon appetit.