Do the holidays stress you out in the area of eating? Do you feel panic set in with Thanksgiving just around the corner?

If that describes you, take a deep breath, relax, and imagine making it through the holidays relaxed and calm, thankful for the many blessings you have been given rather than being focused on the mistakes you made and the pounds you gained.

You can make it through the holidays unscathed. How? Here’s how we plan to do just that.

Sure, we are going to do everything on the front end to set our selves up for success. We’ll have a plan – one that includes enjoying (in moderation) our favorite dishes of sweet potatoes with brown sugar & pecans, dressing, green bean casserole, and of course, pumpkin pie. Then we will try to cut out any unnecessary calories that we might consume just because those foods are available – you know, those tempting appetizers and sweets that sit out hours before and after the feast. And we will even probably try to get in a run or two if at all possible.

These are just a few of the strategies we will employ to help us stay on course.

And although these things are all good, in our opinion, they aren’t the primary factor ensuring victory. We think there is something even better to guarantee success during these challenging eating occasions and it is this:

Reframe your definition of failure.

Remember that famous Thomas Edison quote that says, “I have not failed. I’ve just found 10,000 ways that won’t work.”

Would you take the Thomas Edison approach this Thanksgiving and be your own scientist – experimenting with what works and what doesn’t regarding Peace with Food?

Regardless of whether or not we stick to our plan, (and let’s all admit it, there are times where the best-laid plans get tossed to the wayside in the heat of the moment) we can learn what works and what doesn’t and then do it better next time.

Sure, we will do our best to follow peace this Thanksgiving and be wise, but if things don’t go exactly as we had planned, we will come out with data regarding what worked and what didn’t.

And in our mind, that is not failure, it is just one step further down the path of Peace with Food.

Have a Happy (And Peaceful) Thanksgiving!!

Take-Home Message:

Take the Thomas Edison approach and see every mistake not as a failure, but just one more way that doesn’t work. When you make failure impossible you can move on wiser and smarter!