We don’t have to eat ourselves to death to enjoy the holidays. I’m including myself in this statement. I gained two pounds just from Thanksgiving Day alone. I had finally lost a few pounds, and presto, faster than the twinkling of an eye, I gained two back.
It’s easy to do. I ate generous portions of ham and turkey, along with derby pie (two pieces), oatmeal cake, and sweet potato pie. Yum, it was so delicious!
The result of my eating spree is some added weight and a higher blood sugar reading the next day. There are consequences to such pleasure!
If I fall into my holiday rut of eating peanut butter fudge, cherry candy, and every Christmas cookie that comes my way, I’m certain to gain five pounds—and probably more—between now and New Year’s Eve. I really don’t want to start January 1, 2025, with another resolution to spend the whole year trying to lose the damage I did in December of 2024.
So, I’ve decided to try to lose a few pounds in December, leading up to Christmas Eve. I’ll probably blow it on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day because my wife is a phenomenal cook, and everything she makes tastes so good. Most likely, on Christmas Day, I’ll gain a pound or two back—if I can even lose it. It’s just scary how I’ve lost the weight so many times, but it always finds its way back. There must be some device that fat has implanted in me because it always knows where I am!
Ultimately, it’s up to you. You can eat, drink, be merry, and regret it in January, or you can just let go and get fatter and fatter. If you don’t care, nobody else will. It’s an individual choice.
Here’s a question for you: Do you know of any way to celebrate December other than eating like crazy for an entire month? There are alternatives. Try singing Christmas songs or listening to Christmas music. Watch Christmas movies. Send out Christmas cards. Go to a mall or Walmart and walk for an hour or so three or four times a week. Call people and wish them Merry Christmas. Take some of those goodies to a local nursing home. Take your tree down and put it back up again—anything but eating nonstop.
It’s your life and your body that God gave you. I’m not pointing fingers at anyone because I’d have four pointing back at me.
Food is a blessed gift from God. Enjoy your food, and let’s give thanks for every bite, because so many people have so little to eat. Here’s another idea: Share some of your goodies with the homeless.
My hope and prayer are that our December season will be filled with joy. Enjoy it all, but just know that January is right around the corner. How much do you want to lose in 2025? How bad do you want to feel on January 1?
It’s true that life is short, and we should enjoy every day. However, shouldn’t we make some effort to try to extend this brief life just a few years longer so we can enjoy a few more holidays? Of course, even if you try to eat healthy and exercise, you may still die young, but maybe you’ll die feeling better.
