Feeling overwhelmed with end of year festivities, nights out with friends or big family reunions? Are you afraid to lose your new good habits that you spent so much time working on? Are you afraid that if you lose track for a couple of days, you might not be able to go back to your better health routine?

Having a social life, catching up with friends or family is part of being human. We are human souls who need to nurture each other, we feed on each other’s energy and that’s why we can sometimes feel so lonely when we spend too much time alone or not talking to anyone. We should be able to appreciate some alone time though, this is really important but this is another topic :-)

Here I want to share with you my thoughts about how social commitments can sometimes overwhelm people who have been working on improving their lifestyle for a while. They suddenly have to face all those scheduled events that always involve food, drinks, and late nights out. Many start losing their motivation because it gets too complicated to follow through during those busy “social times”. And because their new lifestyle becomes harder to stick to, they think it is all over, that it is pointless to continue anything and that’s when some SELF-SABOTAGE kicks in.

My first thought is this: it is normal, especially when you have just started making better decisions for yourself, to feel you are losing “control”, getting angry about it and maybe even quit. No one has ever said that these new changes you decided to make would be easy to do and keep, especially the first few months. But one thing is sure: those new lifestyle changes are worth it. The first step which is to accept to change some lifetime old habits is actually the most important. The hardest step might be to keep on going even when the circumstances make it harder for you.

One thing to keep in mind is this: no one is asking you to be perfect. No one is telling you to stop seeing people and stop having fun going out. No. The new habits you have been making are there to help you get back on track quicker when you have a late night out or even a very bad meal full of sugar and chemicals…! The new lifestyle is supposed to help you make better choices when it comes to choosing a good meal in the restaurant, or what drink to have, and what to get before sleeping or in the morning to help your body recover faster and better. The new changes in your routine are there to help you feel better before, during and after big celebrations, whatever these are. If the food you are having is not good for you, if you are suddenly not sleeping that much anymore, if you are having a few more drinks than you should…. It is ok. It is even completely fine!! Enjoy that time with NO GUILT. Be confident about what you have done so far, about how far you have gone, about who you are now and about the choices you have made.

If you decide to go full in in the craziness of some celebrations: ok, embrace it, just take responsibility of the consequences and your new good habits will help you get back to it much faster. If at that moment it is how you feel like having fun, embrace it and enjoy the moment! Just don’t lose track with why you have decided to make some changes. You can get completely out of track for a day or two, it doesn’t mean that all your good habits before are pointless now. They are still in you, helping you to recover better, and waiting for you to go back to it. Easy. Don’t overthink things. Just keep confidence in who you are today.

If your new lifestyle has changed the way you are celebrating with people: you are not choosing the same food anymore, you are not drinking the same way anymore… Be confident and proud! It just shows that you are much more in touch with your body, much more connected and that you care about it and about the way you feel. It shows you can have lots of fun without sacrificing so much of your health. It shows you can dance till late without getting wasted and losing the whole next day trying to recover. It just shows that you evolved, that you are having fun and that the new lifestyle changes you decided to make are now completely part of you, and that you are feeling so much better that you don’t want to go back to how you were before.

Both possibilities are fine, as long as they are aligned with your own core values. Make the choices that make you happy. Don’t get angry at yourself. And don’t throw all new good habits away. They are there to stick around for a while, so just go back at it as soon as you can. It is not worth sabotaging yourself even more, just because you “lost it” for a couple of hours or a couple of days :-)

I am writing this because I have many clients who get scared thinking of this end of year celebrations. Some don’t even want to start changing anything now because they know they won’t be able to stick to them the whole month through. Well, my message is this: the sooner you decide to make some healthy changes, the better you will feel during all celebrations, no matter how you “behave”. Your body will be stronger, healthier, you will be mentally more balanced and stronger, and above all, it will be even easier for you to go back on track when those crazy times are over.

If some of you are scared of what their entourage will say or think if they don’t live those celebrations the way they used to do it: it honestly doesn’t matter what other people think! This is your life and no one else’s. You know what is good for you, you know what makes you truly happy. If you feel better now eating better food or drinking a bit less: good for you!! Does it mean you became a boring person? If people tell you so, it is only because they feel bad because they don’t have the strength or courage to make the same choices as you. Be the one inspiring the others, but above all, just take distance with others’ opinion of you. It is just their own perception about their own life, and it has nothing to do with who you actually are.

I hope this helps you feel better no matter how you decide to spend those end of year festivities.

The most important I think is to feel good, be happy and enjoy those moments with your loved ones.

If you can stick to some good holistic lifestyle changes: good for you! If you get completely out of track: that’s completely fine, because you’ll get back at it straight after.

Embrace that time to get in touch with the new you. The one that has been willing to change so many things this past year, the one who evolved so much. If some people you haven’t seen for a while don’t understand your transformation or your new lifestyle: it doesn’t matter. Educate them, and if they are willing to feel better and improve themselves as well, give them my contact details ;-)

Have a beautiful day everyone,

In Love and Happiness,

Stephanie