Balancing Sweets with Something More Substantial

Sweets seem to abound this time of year. I should know, since I contribute to them. For my church’s holiday fair, I made peanut butter fudge, chocolate fudge, and pies, and I’ve made three kinds of cookies for holiday gifts.

But there are also holiday meals – Thanksgiving, Christmas, second Christmases, and whatever else you might celebrate – plus my church often has some kind of sweet after the service, even apart from the church fair.

When I was younger, all these sweets would have been fair game, and I wouldn’t have worried about it. But these days, I notice that after a certain point, I want something else.

Changing tastes

Ever since I started being more mindful about my eating, I’ve realized that it’s possible to have too many sweets. This may sound obvious, but when I was a teenager, I’m not sure I ever got to that point. If I did, I don’t remember it.

Instead, I felt like I could never get enough sweets. If they were around, I was going to eat them, and it didn’t matter how many I’d already had.

At the time, I thought it was just that I liked the taste. But looking back, I can understand the reasons for this much more clearly.

For one, when someone told me I wasn’t supposed to have those foods, I wanted them that much more. These days, I’m able to ignore what other people are saying. Admittedly, it’s easier since I live by myself, but even when I eat with other people, I’m able to put aside what they say or think. Instead, I go by what I want and what my body is telling me.

Listening to my body

Which brings me to the second big point – listening to my body. I can remember feeling sluggish in those earlier years, like I didn’t want to do much beyond sit and read, write, or play video games. I never really thought about whether or not the lack of energy had anything to do with what I ate.

Now, though, that connection is very clear to me. I can easily tell how I feel after eating certain foods. If I feel lethargic and a bit queasy from what I’ve eaten, I don’t care how good the food tastes. I’m done with it for a while.

Plus, I’d rather not get to that point to begin with. I have so many things I want to do, including reading and writing, but also more active things, that I don’t want to waste time feeling miserable because of what I’ve eaten.

Finding a balance

It all comes back to balance and finding what works for you.

Maybe like me, you’ll want something more substantial, or perhaps you want to add more sweetness if you’ve been feeling restricted. Either way, I wish you happy eating this holiday season, and I hope it leads to joyful living.