Ever feel pressured or guilted into eating? This is for you.

I love this time of year! But with that comes A LOT of events and gatherings with family and friends...

And, with that comes peer pressure eating for many.

Total Reading Time: 4 minutes.

In the last few days, I've received some emails from clients who are worried about feeling pressured into eating next week. And since some of us are already traveling for Thanksgiving, I'd like to dive into this now...

Let's get to it.

Peer pressure (in the sense that I'm used to it) is when we feel that if we don't do what everyone else is doing we'll be the outcast. Usually, it's with our friends or family members, which is sort of ironic.

In this case, though, I think the peer pressure we might be facing is actually from ourselves. We don't want to stand out, and we really don't want to make a big deal about our healthy eating habits.

Here's the thing: no one really cares about our habits, unless we do.

When we start saying things like, "I wish I could have XYZ!" or, "I wish I could have what you're having!" or "I want dessert so badly but I can't!" that's when people care...

That's when people get involved.

It's like everything else. If we're cool with it, and if we're comfortable with ourselves, other people will be comfortable with us.

If we're uneasy about something, other people will be uneasy about it too.

And let's just say our friends or family members do make some comments. Well, for basically my entire life, my friends have busted my chops when they are out to eat with me. Sometimes I choose to indulge, and sometimes I don't.

But I think there's some truth to every 'joke' we make about someone. Whether it's good hearted or not, here's what I'll say: Deep down, everyone respects a healthy and fit person. (Of course, they could be a complete jerk! I'm just talking about being respected for solely being fit, etc.)

Let's look at it another way...

Unfortunately, sometimes people are very rude.

And not many people make comments about a fit person for being fit. BUT sometimes people make comments about overweight people for being overweight. It's just the way it is.

Many of us hate in other people what we wish we had for ourselves. And if your friend wished they were as focused as you are, they might feel the need to make "jokes" to make themselves feel better.

To me, eating unhealthy and junk usually isn't worth it. I don't like how I feel afterward. And time after time, when I'm with my friends and they choose to eat unhealthy, they always regret it afterward. "Ugh, my stomach is killing me! "I'm so tired now!" "I should've had what you ate!"

I wish my friends/coworkers/family ate the way I did is something I hear often...

Why not be a leader?

In college, especially, because I lived with my friends - none of my friends were into health and fitness the way I was. Not even close. Why not become a positive influence? Or better yet ---> lead by example.

Leading by example is the most powerful thing you can do. Many of my friends in college starting eating the way I did. And this was in college! I became the go to guy.

It's been that way for most of my life because I've been into (aka obsessed) with nutrition/fitness since I was in 4th grade. Why not be that person with your friends?

When food is love...

For many, food IS love. Not eating something, in the moment, doesn't seem like an option when Grandma is practically forcing us to eat her "famous" dish. We might even feel embarrassed saying, "No thank you!" when we're at a family or friends house.

Here's the thing: we feel bad, and then we start to waver. "Alright, maybe I'll have a small piece." Once we start wavering, it's game over. Grandma (or our friend or coworker) isn't leaving us alone!

BUT, if you immediately say something like, "Grandma, no thank you! I'm going to pass." it's hard to argue with that.

Here's a great thing to say: "That looks so awesome. And I really appreciate your efforts. BUT, I'm really full. I just ate."

It's hard to argue with someone who says, "I'm full."

I mean what are you going to say? "Eat anyway!"

"But I'm full!"

I've found that works way better than anything else out there.

Hint: It really helps if you actually eat before too. It's much easier to make good choices when we're not hungry aka irrational / short term thinking.

And then the key is to add in something like, "I know how hard you worked, and I know you love me, and I love you too! But I'm really full. I do appreciate your efforts though, a lot!" that usually helps. (Grandma just wants to be recognized for her efforts, and her thoughtfulness, like any human being would. So it IS possible to give her what she wants without actually eating it.)

It's OKAY to say "No, I'm really full," and not second guess ourselves.

Remember: we never regret our healthy choices.

Once we answer with the "Well, maybe..." we're opening ourselves up for peer pressure.

You'll be satisfied AND empowered after the meal when you order/eat/get what our body (not our mind) really craves.

It's certainly harder with all sorts of unhealthy foods and junk around and peer pressure. No doubt.

But that's on us because we don't want to feel different. That's not peer pressure.

-Adam

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