It seems like every year when Thanksgiving and Christmas roll around the conversations about “how to lose holiday weight gain” or “how to detox after Thanksgiving/Christmas” start showing up all over the place. There seems to be this cloud hanging over a lot of people’s heads, this guilt about “eating too much” or not working out over the holidays, that kind of inhibits them from truly being able to enjoy the holidays.

If you’re one of those people who stress out about “letting go” over the holiday breaks, this is for you.

I used to be in your shoes. Only a couple of years ago, actually. I used to spend hours scouring the internet for ways to lose the holiday weight gain, without even knowing if I really gained weight or not.

My anxiety about gaining weight from eating the food my family prepared for Thanksgiving and Christmas was always lingering in the back of my mind. Even when I tried to ignore that anxiety or forget about it, I would see articles all over the media about preventing holiday weight gain or how to “control yourself” at holiday meals.

The truth is, holiday weight gain is absolutely negligible. Real Simple posted an article that discusses a study by Cornell University that proves holiday weight gain is real. However, the average weight increase from Halloween to New Year’s was found to be 1.3 pounds. I mean, seriously?

If I weighed myself at 11:00 a.m. this morning, my weight would probably be 3 pounds different than if I weighed myself at 7:00 p.m. Weight can fluctuate significantly throughout the day, and yet we’re not going to bed thinking, “Wow, I’m so much heavier than I was this morning." Why? Because a few pounds difference isn’t noticeable.

So, is gaining a little over a pound worth spending the holidays stressed and unable to enjoy the amazing food and family time? That’s up to you, but honestly, if we are all freaking out about our weight going up by a pound then we have some serious problems that we need to address.

Okay, so worst case scenario: You gain ten pounds over the holidays (which is highly, highly unlikely, but let’s just pretend for a second). What changes?

Do your family and friends love you any less or think of you any differently? Of course not.

Do you have loads of amazing new memories that you’ll think back on for years to come? Absolutely.

Will your co-workers or classmates notice and judge you for “letting yourself go”? Probably not, but if they do, then own it.

Yeah, I let myself go. Meaning I let myself have loads of fun, probably ten times more fun than you did, since you’re wasting your time and energy judging someone you don’t even know.

So please, please, please try to enjoy this holiday season without worrying about gaining the 1.3 pounds. The holidays are worth it. Family is worth it. Living life without holding back is worth it.