A Health At Every Size (HAES) informed perspective on holiday food, bodies, and freedom .
Coming up to Xmas, social media erupts with the same message around eating on Xmas Day – “Earn your Xmas lunch”, “Spending Xmas eve at the Bar(bell)”. Thinking of food and enjoyment as something that you need to earn reinforce shame around bodies, food, and movement.
But the truth is – you don’t need to “earn” your Christmas lunch, and it is not something that you need to negotiate or bargain for. So, let’s take a moment to challenge some of these beliefs, and show ourselves compassion, not punishment.
Food Is Not Something That You Need to Earn.
The belief that you must “balance” every bite with exercise stems from diet culture, which treats food like a currency and your body like a debt ledger. But food is not a moral performance. It’s not something “bad” that needs to be counteracted or a “failure” to be corrected.
Let’s unpack this:
- Eating is a normal human need.
- Enjoyment is a valid part of nourishment.
- Your body does not become “less worthy” because you ate a delicious slice of pav!
Movement Should Not Be A Penalty Or A Bargaining Tool!
Exercise promoted as punishment can easily disconnect you from joyful, intuitive movement.
You don’t have to grind through a high-intensity workout, so you can “deserve” to eat delicious, crispy roast potatoes. That kind of framing turns movement into something punitive instead of something that helps you feel energised, grounded, and alive.
Movement enhances well-being; it is not something to do just to “burn calories”.
Try choosing movement because:
- It feels good
- It reduces stress
- It makes you feel connected to your body
- It helps you sleep better
- It helps to develop strong muscles and bones
Movements chosen from self-respect last. Movements chosen from guilt rarely do (and can become a chore).
Your Body Is Allowed to Experience Celebration
Holidays disrupt routine: more socialising, different foods, more sitting, more excitement, more emotion. That’s not a failure; that’s seasonal variation and a normal part of life.
Your appetite might change. Your schedule might shift. Your body weight might fluctuate. Your hunger signals might ebb and flow. None of this requires moral commentary.
Your body is capable of handling holiday meals.
It’s been learning, adapting, and sustaining your entire life.
A few days of rich food, irregular meals, or added snacks don’t undo your health.
You Are Not a Better Person for Restricting
Diet culture glorifies restraint: turning down the plum pudding, skipping the roast potatoes, or avoiding the cheese board is praised as admirable, “disciplined,” even virtuous.
But morality has nothing to do with what you put on your plate.
- You are not a better person for eating salad.
- You are not a worse person for enjoying a second helping.
- You are simply a person who eats food.
Food Enjoyment Matters Too
The holidays are about connection, tradition, and sensory pleasure. So much of that connection happens around food:
- Family recipes and traditions
- Cold drinks and warm nights on the patio
- The anticipation of your favourite dishes
- And of course, the fresh seafood and cool pavlova!
Allowing yourself to fully experience that joy is part of being human. Food is cultural, social, and emotional; it is not merely fuel.
What If You Approached This Holiday Differently?
Give this a Go:
- Eat because you’re hungry, or because something looks delicious and you want to try it. See food as a source of self-care, which includes eating the dishes you love in a mindful way.
- Enjoy food without compensation.
- Move your body when it feels good, not when you feel obligated.
- Respect your physical and emotional boundaries.
- Let the enjoyment of food and socialising be part of health.
You Don’t Need to Earn Your Christmas Dinner – You Deserve to Enjoy It Without Shame or Bargaining!
