I was hoping to have a new recipe this week, but I’m just getting back in the swing of things and I don’t have enough room in the freezer to make a new dish.

Which means it’s a good time to address indulging during the holidays. There will be holiday dinners and treats at work. You may be thinking that it’s an all or nothing proposition. You can’t stay healthy and indulge in some holiday treats. That’s baloney. I’d use stronger language, but I want this to be a blog that everyone can read.

That’s right. I said you can indulge. You can do it the smart way. Someone brings cookies to work, have one or two. You’re Mom made your favorite pie, have a piece. In my case, you want to share a great single malt scotch with your brother, do it. Just don’t go overboard.

I think we need to stop thinking of our healthy eating habits as something that gets completely ruined when we indulge. Have your pie, but go back to your healthy eating the next day. During that big dinner, fill up on vegetables and have a smaller portion of the high calorie food. If you completely went hog wild and ate until you almost burst, do better the next day. Don’t skip a workout, if you can.

You are not a bad person if you indulge. You are not a screw up if you indulge. Just remember not to look at January as the only time to get back on track. Get back on track right away. The way to do this is to make healthy food you look forward to eating. I eat chicken tacos with green beans for dinner frequently. I love that. If all you are eating is bland food, why would you want to go back to it?

Hopefully if you have been following this blog for a while, you know there are tons of healthy recipes you can add to your repertoire. I can vouch for many of these being outstanding. Spend the time you would use mourning your healthy eating by looking for new ways to stay on track. It’s not a zero sum game.

The bottom line is spend the holidays enjoying yourself. Eat healthy in between. Don’t sweat it. I give you permission.