On New Year’s Day, I looked at pictures I took since Thanksgiving Day. Laying my eyes upon snapshots I took with love ones immediately touched my heart and reinforced the notion of what I consider to be the true meaning of the holiday season. But the above photo surprisingly stood out. Then again, should I be surprised? After all, there’s something about a photo of a decadently rich and moist, chocolate-chip covered, chocolate layer cake that is noteworthy given the time of year it was.
It was taken at a holiday gathering at a small healthcare clinic in Massachusetts. I was wise to quickly take a snapshot of this delectable dessert, as it wasn’t long before the dessert platter only consisted of crumbs and fallen chocolate chips. It certainly is not the picture I would have expected to select as the first health-promoting picture moment of 2019. I, however, couldn’t resist the “sweet” temptation to do so.
From the moment we give thanks before carving a stuffed turkey until the conclusion of holiday festivities in December, we find ourselves surrounded by pies, cookies, cakes, cupcakes, and puddings, among many other sugary delights. And it is to be expected that many of us with a sweet tooth will indulge in some, if not all, the sweets we see before us. I’m certainly guilty of this 😉 Besides, it is considered a holiday tradition to do so and somewhat sacrilege if we were to avoid this practice. Ironically, there’s the immediate guilt that follows for many of us after consuming a more than desirable amount of eye-catching, holiday treats.
Oftentimes, I have heard many people speak of their obsession with losing the weight they inevitably gained during the holidays. The good news, according to a 2007 New York Times article, is that the average person gains only one extra pound during this time of year (although people considered to be overweight are likely to gain more). The bad news, according to the same article (and based on a study published in 2000 in the New England Journal of Medicine), is that “most people don’t ever lose” the weight gain. Yikes!
Thus, I consider this picture moment as a validation of one of the reasons we enjoy the holiday season as well as a reminder of why it is important to do our best to burn off the weight gain and indulge ourselves in daily consumption of healthy foods following the holiday season.
A New Year Resolution Worth Pursuing (Sort of)
Let us start off the new year by maintaining a balanced diet until the next big holiday (i.e., Valentine’s Day 🙂 ) when we, once again, indulge our sweet appetite.
Happy New Year!
Pedro Antonio
Photo credit: The Health-promoting Bandwagon
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