Nutrition by Dawn - Blog

It happens to us all: we go out or serve up a delicious meal, complete with fun flavors, yummy drinks, and the perfect company to tie it all together. You laugh and talk all evening, but once you get home, that sinking feeling hits you. You’ve just gone off your meal plan for the week, and you’re now starting to have some food regret.

When that feeling of, “I really shouldn’t have done that” hits, the best thing to do is to remind yourself that it happens. All of us are prone to going a little overboard sometimes when we’re in the moment, and that can lead to feeling guilty for our choices. 

While this is completely normal, the truth is that this food guilt is really just self sabotaging. You’ve just had a great meal, delicious wine, and new memories of the enjoyment you felt during it all, and then we allow ourselves to take it all away by tainting the memory with a thick layer of guilt. 

My suggestion when you’re feeling food guilt is to admit it to yourself that you maybe didn’t make the best of choices this time, but instead of dwelling on it, give yourself some grace. The best thing you can do is to pick back up where you left off and jump right back into healthy habits. 

We all go a little crazy every now and then, and you can either let yourself dwell on your choice or you can move on, decide to do better next time, and get back on the wagon. 

The truth of the matter is that while making healthy choices is essential for a long and happy life, life just isn’t about eating grilled chicken salads for every meal of every day. It’s about enjoying amazing foods and drinks when they make their way to the table, and making memories of the fun and the company that comes with it. 

Everyone should be able to enjoy dinner with their loved ones without dealing with a guilty conscience. Life is all about moderation, and you should absolutely allow yourself to indulge every now and then.

At the end of the day, that one meal that doesn’t exactly fit in with your plans isn’t going to keep you from reaching your goals. 

Of course, everything in life must be done in a balance… You can occasionally enjoy that night out with your friends and family without feeling like you’re setting yourself back, but it shouldn’t be an everyday thing. With balance and moderation, we can enjoy those nights out with great food and a drink or two without sacrificing our health goals. 

So the next time a friend invites you for dinner or someone shows up to work with a yummy treat that you hadn’t planned on, let yourself enjoy that experience without guilting yourself about it later. Life is too short. Make healthy decisions, but don’t deprive yourself of delicious moments. 

Interested in learning more about food guilt and how to create more healthy meals that feel like cheating?  Join me over in my Never Diet Again group, where you’ll find even more helpful info and a whole community of like-minded women who want to make healthy choices for a lifetime, not just a moment in time.