I’ll be honest.

This past Sunday, I looked up 3-day cleanses to do before thanksgiving. Its been over five years since I really struggled with disordered eating but every now and then, especially around the holidays, I begin to overthink it a little. ⁣
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I had full plans to eat suuuper clean (like more clean than normal) and workout extra hard every single day this week so I wouldn’t feel ‘guilty’ for what I ate on thanksgiving…and then yesterday morning I overslept and missed my workout and today was so crazy I didn’t remember to eat lunch and then ate whatever I could find by four o’clock. ⁣
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Note to self: that is not a healthy way to roll.

Moreover, that mindset is a problem and I’m bringing it up because maybe you tend to do the same from time to time. ⁣

On a holiday dedicated to gratitude, I think far too many of us grumble about the imperfections we believe  our bodies have or how ‘this ruined our diet.’

And grumbling is the enemy of gratitude.

Perhaps we need a serious perspective shift.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all about discipline and a healthy lifestyle but when it begins to become something I have to control and manipulate too closely, I have to check myself. ⁣
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I invite you to take this as your gut check, too.

Personally, I know that to have a healthy perspective and not slip back into disordered eating, I need to be disciplined at all times, not just around a certain day. However, I don’t need to punish myself for partaking in a holiday, whether that punishment comes before or after the day itself. ⁣
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So I’m just passing this on to you if you’ve at all struggled with body image or restrictive eating or binging or all three: Your worth is not in what you weigh and I know they say ‘you are what you eat.’ ⁣
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But I’m here to say: No, sister, you’re actually not what you eat.

You are YOU, not the calories you consume.

Please, be thankful that you have a body to care for, as imperfect as you might think it is.

Take care of that one precious life you have, make healthy choices as consistently as you can, but don’t punish yourself for having a piece (or two) of pumpkin pie today, okay?