One of my fondest memories as a child was going out to dinner with my family when we had something to celebrate. Whether it was straight A’s on my report card or if I lowered my best time in the 100 meter butterfly, food was at the center of how we celebrated these moments of success.
To this day, if something great happens, I still have this urge to celebrate with food, alcohol or both. Get a salary raise for doing good work? Pop the bubbly and bring on the cheese board! Run over 13.1 miles while training for my first full marathon? It’s burger and craft beer time. I know I’m not alone in celebrating with the delicious things in life. But, having this as my knee jerk reaction had me thinking that it isn’t really the best mindset for my healthy.
With 2017 on the horizon, I’ve been thinking about some other ways to celebrate these successes by not using food and alcohol as my primary reward. Here are six ways to reward yourself without using food:
1. PLAN A TRIP
A weekend getaway or a ten day trip abroad are really appealing ways to reward yourself and scratch a few places off that bucket list. While the celebration may be in the form of delayed satisfaction, it gives you something to look forward to throughout the year. This winter, I planned a long weekend to go skiing and a tropical vacation in the middle of the bitter winter.
2. SCHEDULE AN EXERCISE DATE WITH A FRIEND
Why not celebrate a recent success by meeting with a friend and getting your sweat on? The key here is to schedule and spend on an activity you’re going to be excited about. My personal favorites include hot yoga and barre. Other popular activities include rock climbing, kayaking or cycling. Exercising with your buddy allows you to catch up and share your successes with one another. The endorphin rush that comes during and after the class is a nice added bonus, too.
3. TREAT YO’ SELF
As someone who loves a good massage, spa day, or pedicure, but rarely receive these treatments, I’m planning to swap self-care for food. If you accomplished your goals, book yourself an hour long massage, facial or spa experience. Splurge on tickets to see your favorite band or sports team. Got a budget to stick to? Set up a nice, warm bubble bath and play your favorite tunes.
4. SPLURGE ON A SHOPPING SPREE
Been eyeing a new gadget? Want some new fashion accessories? This is the time for splurging on some bigger ticket items that you’d normally forgo due to the hefty price tag. While it’s important to budget for these items, celebrating a big win with a new fancy blender or killer pair of boots can be a fun alternative way to reward yourself and celebrate your success in a new way.
5. GIVE YOURSELF SOME “ME TIME”
If you’re an introvert you may desperately want some alone time, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Giving yourself the gift of well-deserved “me time” means you can power off your phone (and inbox!) and snuggle up with a good book (or Netflix), guilt-free.
Food is a natural part of celebration and by no means do I suggest that we completely remove it from some of these occasions. However, I think by having other outlets and methods for celebrating outside of food can lead to a healthier relationship with food as well as a healthier mind and body. I am definitely looking forward to adding a few of these to my radar for 2017 and hope you will, too!
Got ideas for other non-food rewards? Share yours in the comment section below.
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