WHY THANKSGIVING DOESN’T MAKE YOU FAT. YOUR CHOICES DO.

Thanksgiving gets blamed for everything. The turkey didn’t ambush you. The pies didn’t scheme. The stuffing didn’t stage a revolt. The real problem hits before the first bite. People flip into holiday mode and treat the entire day like a permission slip to abandon every habit they claim to care about. Skip breakfast. Show up starving. Act shocked when the plate turns into a disaster. Then blame the holiday instead of their choices.

Diet culture makes this worse. Dieting turns adults into obedient rule followers who crumble as soon as life gets loud. Thanksgiving is loud. Family. Expectations. History. Triggers. The second you try to follow rigid rules in a chaotic room, you lose. Diets demand perfection and punish you when you act like a person. My Stop Dieting. Start Choosing system doesn’t do that. Choosing gives you structure that survives real life. You stay in control even when the room tilts.

You want sustainable weight loss. You want something you can do during holidays, travel, stress, and work. You want something that respects your schedule and your brain. You get that through choice. Not rules. Not restriction. Not white-knuckling a meal.

That is why my entire philosophy centers on personal responsibility and clear-headed decisions. You can dive deeper into it on my site:
Stop Dieting. Start Choosing: https://jonathanressler.com
My story: https://jonathanressler.com/about-jonathan-ressler/
My book Shut Up And Choose: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1W9FY4B
Podcast: https://podcast.shutupandchoose.com

You are not trapped. You are choosing. And if you chose your way into a problem, you can choose your way out.

EAT BREAKFAST LIKE AN ADULT WHO CARES ABOUT RESULTS

Starvation is not a strategy. You want control. You want stability. You want a clear mind when you walk into the kitchen. That starts with a real breakfast built around protein. Protein blunts impulsive eating. It moderates hunger. It calms the brain so you do not turn into a human vacuum cleaner when you see mashed potatoes.

This is the core of the Stop Dieting. Start Choosing approach. Small, smart choices. Predictable stability. Zero theatrics.

STOP BUILDING A PLATE YOU DO NOT EVEN LIKE

Holiday tradition convinces people to load foods they do not want onto their plate because “it is Thanksgiving.” You do not score points for pretending you love green bean casserole. Pick food you genuinely want. Skip the foods you do not. Choosing beats tradition every time.

This is not rebellion. It is intelligence.

DECIDE PORTIONS BEFORE THEY HIT YOUR PLATE

You know exactly how you want to feel two hours after the meal. Light. Comfortable. Proud. You decide that feeling first. Then you build the plate that supports it. This is what people miss. They decide while they are reacting instead of deciding before they act.

Choosing gives you the outcome you want. Dieting gives you guilt.

DRINK WATER SO YOUR BRAIN STAYS ONLINE

Dehydration disguises itself as hunger. It fogs your decision-making. It turns every craving into an emergency. Water resets your brain. It keeps you sharp. It also forces you to slow down long enough to think.

You control the pace. You control the outcome.

WALK AFTER THE MEAL FOR SANITY, NOT PUNISHMENT

Movement clears your head. It improves digestion. It resets your energy. It is not a penalty for eating. It is a choice you make because you want the rest of the day to feel good instead of sluggish.

When you choose movement without shame, your results last longer.

OWN EVERY DECISION. GUILT HAS NO JOB HERE

Nobody ever spiraled because of one meal. People spiral because they attach shame to it. Ownership kills shame. Shame kills consistency. Once shame is gone, momentum becomes easy. This is the foundation of the Stop Dieting. Start Choosing system. You take responsibility for your choices. You remove drama. You move forward.

If you want personalized guidance on this, you can apply for a 1:1 Transformation on my site:
https://jonathanressler.com/1-on-1-transformation/

Executives use this exact process to lose weight without blowing up their calendar.

THANKSGIVING IS THE FIRST DOMINO. CHOOSE IT WELL

If you lose control here, December controls you. Parties. Travel. Pressure. Emotional eating. The whole month stacks fast. But if you choose your way through Thanksgiving, December gets easier. You stay in control when everyone else melts down. You stay intentional when everyone else chases rules that break on impact.

You want predictable results. You get predictable results from predictable decisions.

That is the heart of the SDSC system and the reason my clients like Stuart (corporate attorney, lost 60 pounds) and Raymond (tech founder, lost 55 pounds) saw life-changing success. They stopped chasing rules and started choosing like adults who expect results.

You can read more of these transformation stories here:
Transformations: https://jonathanressler.com/transformations/

These stories exist for one reason. Proof works better than promises.

DIET CULTURE MAKES YOU FEEL BROKEN. CHOOSING MAKES YOU POWERFUL

Diets split food into good and bad. This thinking turns one slice of pie into a lost week. Choosing removes the drama. You eat what matters. You leave the rest. You move on. That middle ground is where results live.

This matches my bestselling book Shut Up And Choose. You make the choices. You own the outcomes. You stop handing your life to rules someone else wrote.

Grab it here:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1W9FY4B

WHAT REAL CONTROL LOOKS LIKE

Control is not perfection. Control is consistency driven by decisions instead of feelings. It is also what separates the people who lose weight once from the people who lose it and keep it off.

That is why executives come to me when they are tired of burning out on diets that collapse under pressure. They want something sustainable. Something rational. Something built around the real world.

The Stop Dieting. Start Choosing approach gives you:

• Clear decision frameworks
• Predictable routines
• No rigid rules
• No emotional punishment
• Outcomes you repeat no matter the season

If you want the full system, start here:
https://jonathanressler.com

You get tools you can use the same day. No nonsense. No theatrics. Actual results.

YOU ARE ONE DECISION AWAY FROM CONTROL

Control does not come from willpower. Willpower collapses when the room gets loud. Intention holds. Choice holds. You control every next bite. You control every next decision. You control how you show up at the table and how you walk away from it.

Thanksgiving is not the threat. Your unchecked decisions are. When you choose on purpose, the holiday becomes exactly what it should be. A meal. A memory. A win you can repeat.

If you want help applying this, here is your next step:
1:1 Transformation: https://jonathanressler.com/1-on-1-transformation/

You are not waiting for next Monday. You are not waiting for January. You are not waiting for permission. You choose now.