7 Holiday Mindset Mistakes That Sabotage Weight Loss

From someone who used to do every single one of these…

The holidays are supposed to be fun, festive, and full of connection, but for a lot of women, they also bring a ton of food stress. Suddenly there are cookies in the break room, parties every weekend, travel, chaotic schedules, and traditions that revolve around big meals and fun foods.

And while the season itself doesn’t sabotage us… our old dieting patterns absolutely do.

Here are 7 sneaky ways women self-sabotage their relationship with food and sustainable fat loss during the holidays and what you can do instead to feel in control this year - without restriction, shame, or “starting over” January:

1. “I’ll eat well as soon as all the holiday treats are out of the house.”

Translation: I don’t trust myself around food.

The tin of peppermint bark, the leftover pie, the Christmas cookies… we tell ourselves we’ll “get back on track” as soon as it’s all gone, but here’s the truth:

If you can only eat well when tempting food isn’t around, you haven’t built the skill of trust yet, and avoiding the food doesn’t build trust - exposure does.

If you want long-term results, you have to learn to live in a world where pumpkin pie and fruit cake exist.

2. “I’ll start on Monday (or January 1st).”

Translation: I need a perfect, clean slate to behave.

The holiday version of this is brutal:

• “I’ll start after Thanksgiving.”

• “Okay, after the holiday party.”

• “Alright, in January…”

What you’re really saying is: I can’t take action unless perfection is an option.

But perfection isn’t an option (any day - not just during the holidays). Consistency is.

3. “I already messed up today — screw it.”

Translation: I only know how to be perfect or awful.

You have a cookie from the break room at 10am and declare the entire day a loss.
You overeat at a holiday dinner and decide the whole weekend is blown.

All-or-nothing thinking is one of the biggest reasons women spiral this time of year.

Imagine doing this with anything else in life:

• You get one bad text from your partner… so you break up.

• You hit one red light… so you turn the car around.

• You missed one workout… so you stop moving your body.

It sounds ridiculous.
But this is what we do with food.

The fix? Learn to take the next best step instead of abandoning the day.

4. “I can’t have sweets in the house.”

Translation: Restriction is the only tool I know to feel safe.

Holiday chocolate, festive cocktails, homemade cookies - you tell yourself you can’t have them in the house or you’ll “go crazy.”

But avoiding food doesn’t cultivate peace with it, it creates obsession.

The moment you finally do have access; at a party, restaurant, or family gathering, you’re far more likely to overeat because scarcity has been driving the behavior all along.

Learning to keep holiday foods in the house (and not panic about it) is how you break the restrict → binge → restrict cycle.

5. “I’ll eat less today since we’re going out tonight.”

Translation: I believe I have to earn my favorite foods.

This one is so common during the holidays:

• Skipping breakfast before Thanksgiving dinner

• Eating a tiny lunch before the office Christmas party

• “Saving calories” for the wine and appetizers

But under-eating always backfires.

You show up to the event starving, your cravings are dialed up, your hunger hormones are screaming, and suddenly it feels impossible to eat mindfully.

You don’t need to “earn” holiday meals.
You need to fuel your body so you can enjoy them in a mindful way.

6. “This week is just crazy… next week will be better.”

Translation: I expect life to be predictable.

Holiday schedules are chaos - kids’ concerts, travel, hosting family, work deadlines, parties every weekend.

But the idea that your health goals depend on a perfect schedule is unrealistic.

Life is never predictable, especially not in December.

What you really need is the skill of adjusting rather than waiting for life to calm down.
The more you practice “doing something instead of nothing” during busy weeks, the easier sustainable progress becomes.

7. “The scale isn’t moving… so what’s the point?”

Translation: I only value results I can see instantly.

During the holidays, the scale naturally fluctuates:

• More sodium

• More travel

• Less sleep

• Later meals

• More alcohol

• Shifts in routine

But none of that means you’ve gained actual body fat.

If the scale is your only measure of progress, you’ll get frustrated far more than is necessary and you’ll miss the real wins: consistency, improved habits, better choices, fewer binges, more balanced plates, more trust around food.

Those are the things that make fat loss inevitable.

It’s not the food. It’s the rules.

These thoughts might seem harmless, or “normal,” but they are the exact patterns that keep women stuck year after year.

Once you learn to break these subconscious rules, the holiday season stops being a threat and becomes something you can actually enjoy without losing momentum.

If you're ready to get out of your own way and create healthy eating habits and fat loss that lasts, now is the best time to apply for 1:1 Nutrition Coaching. You get 30% off a coaching package of your choosing from now until 12/1 and learn how to make progress you can confidently maintain through every season.