How do you plan to handle the holidays?

Jericha1992

This is my first time trying to lose weight over the holiday season. I know I need a plan... I just don't know what!

The abundant Halloween candy is already sneaking up on me, and I've caught myself making trips to the candy bowl. I log every peanut butter cup, of course, but they sure add up fast!

I have NO idea how I plan to balance Thanksgiving and Christmas. I want to be able to indulge (and not have mine or my boyfriend's family tell me to eat more!), but I don't want to blow my progress, either.

Any suggestions?

Mokey41

Don't think of it as indulging. You can eat the same foods just in smaller quantities. It doesn't have to be deprivation, just use common sense and take smaller portions of high calorie foods so you get the taste and load up with low calorie veggies. Holidays don't have to be all about eating. Enjoy the company of family and friends without binge eating.

kbmnurse

Eat, Drink and be merry within reason!

ehorn625

I have already decided that the only two days I will allow myself to go over my calories are Thanksgiving and Christmas. And I am not going to go nuts! I figure 2 days won't kill me. If anything else comes up, I will deal with it but will stay within my goals.

jpolinisse

I plan to eat an exercise as per usual.

nytrifisoul

Not many can do this, but I literally dont eat the day before a big holiday. And if i do eat something its usually just a small bowl of cereal before bed if im too hungry and cant sleep. I make up for it by eating atleast two plates of turkey and stuffing! In my opinion, one day of suffering is worth enjoying my holiday and not feeling guilty about it!

MizTerry

Eat what you want lightly and do cardio like a beast numerous times during the week.

lgoldfarb

Last Thanksgiving I used a smaller plate than everybody else. I didn't feel like I was depriving myself because my plate was full, but in actuality I was eating less than I normally would have.

melinda189

I have already decided that the only two days I will allow myself to go over my calories are Thanksgiving and Christmas. And I am not going to go nuts! I figure 2 days won't kill me. If anything else comes up, I will deal with it but will stay within my goals.

I agree 100%. You'll be miserable sitting there trying not to eat while watching what everybody else is eating. Go head & get it in (w/in moderation) don't eat like you did last year of course. & if you find you've ate waaaayyy too much on Thanksgving &/or Christmas just remember to get a good workout in that next day- maybe the next few days to help even things out. it'll be ok, those 2 days shouldn't cause you to gain massive amounts of weight back

reneeb816

I'm not allowing any Halloween candy in the house until my son gets his from trick or treating. He's very young, so chance are it will be minimal. Since we're not home during trick or treating hours, I don't need to buy any. I find if it's not in the house it's too much energy to bother finding some.

As for Christmas etc. I plan to drink LOTS of water to try and keep myself full. But in reality a day or two won't kill you and just don't binge.

reneeb816

Last Thanksgiving I used a smaller plate than everybody else. I didn't feel like I was depriving myself because my plate was full, but in actuality I was eating less than I normally would have.

Very good idea!

willdob3

I plan to handle the holidays this year the same way I did last year - no grains, no dairy, no sugar. I have food sensitivities & those things cause me to feel bad. I'll have a better holiday season skipping the foods that are unhealthy for me.

RGv2

As I always do.

Train hard---eat everything in sight.

SLLRunner

This is a great question. I plan on doing exactly what I have been doing for several months: eating at a calorie deficit, logging, exercising, and eating what I want as long as it fits in my calorie allowance. There is no reason to let the holidays mess with my healthier way of life.

HawkeyeLite

I don't buy halloween candy (sorry trick or treaters!).

For Thanksgiving, I plan accordingly, and the holiday meal is the only meal of the day. I usually don't get seconds on anything and I portion my plate with as much veggies and salad, and the rest is smaller portions of the vegan-turkey and stuffing and such. I let myself have a slice of pie because it is a holiday and I realize that we have to still let ourselves indulge occasionally. Plus I love pie!

For Christmas, that is harder. My mom makes a ton of christmas cookies and there's always so much food in the house. I try to stick to my daily workouts as much as possible (Except Christmas day) and I don't weigh daily during this time. I also tell myself, it's okay not to lose during Christmas. Focus on trying to stay the same weight.

ItsCasey

Halloween candy is not that big of a deal to me. Sometimes I wonder if people don't realize that you can get Kit Kats and Reese's and Snickers the other 11 months of the year, too. I eat chocolate all the time. I have no trouble avoiding it when I've already had as much as I "need."

My Thanksgiving strategy the past few years has been to do a hard workout that morning and fast up until meal time (which is early in my family ... we eat around noon). Then I eat whatever I want. No counting calories or feeling guilty. Pretty much the same thing at Christmas.

But I am very disciplined the rest of the time, and I think that is the key to surviving holidays. There's no way that one day is going to totally destroy your progress. It's what you do the next day and the day after that matters. If you can't get back on the wagon, then you're screwed, but it's not because of one day.

Katla49

I use portion control. I weigh &/or measure my food and count the calories. I have a portion of all the things I like. If I go over, I do some extra cardio exercises to make up the difference. I did fine last year and we were at DD's house so I didn't have as much control over food.

cwolfman13

Bigger Picture thinking...a holiday and/or other special occasion is just one day of many days. It is an occasion...it is not your daily routine. You didn't get to the point of needing to lose weight because you over indulged at Christmas or your girlfriend's birthday...you got to this point because you over indulged most of the time. This is all about what you do 80 - 90% of the time, not what you're doing 10% of the time. I lost a good chunk of my weight last year during the holiday season, all the while enjoying my Thanksgiving turkey and all the fixin's, drinking too much and a massive Christmas dinner or roasted lamb and a gazillion sides...and again way too much to drink. I was just fine...that said, I don't treat the whole "season" as a reason to indulge in cookies and cakes and candy, etc...I'm not really big on that stuff anyway, but if you look at the entire 2-3 months as a reason to just pig out on this kind of stuff, you might be in trouble.

Ignaura

We don;t celebrate Halloween or Thanksgiving in my country... However, for Christmas my plan is... to eat... Its's one meal, one day. I don't think that letting yourself go for one day is a recipe for disaster or that I won't be able to stick my regular eating regime again. I believe that if you are not able to eat whatever you want for a day, and go right back to your healthy habits the next one, then there's still something wrong with your relationship with food.

Holly_Roman_Empire

Last Thanksgiving I used a smaller plate than everybody else. I didn't feel like I was depriving myself because my plate was full, but in actuality I was eating less than I normally would have.

Never tried this, but I like this idea! I usually eat the one big meal on Thanksgiving where everybody sits at the table together, and then don't eat the rest of the day because I'm so full.

Achrya

With all the foods? In large amount?

And then sleep.

rainbow198

Last year while in weight loss mode I just had a little bit of everything, loaded up on the veggies, drank water/no alcohol and a very little desserts. I actually lost weight over Thanksgiving and Christmas!

This year I've planned on stepping up my cardio so I can eat more. I just survived Canadian Thanksgiving and passed with flying colors (maintained my weight) and planning on doing this for American Thanksgiving and over Christmas.

I'm still writing down everything I eat as well.

AmyRhubarb

I made it through the holidays last year, enjoyed every single food and treat I wanted, and didn't gain a single pound. :bigsmile: On New Year's Day, I was not making resolutions to start over or get back to anything, I just planned to carry on as I had been and continue enjoying my results.

My "secret weapon"? Knowing my BMR and my TDEE - my high and low calorie limits. And logging everything, absolutely everything as best I can, and stick to the regular exercise as best I can. I know as long as I stay close to TDEE, I won't gain.

As far as staying in control - planning ahead as much as possible helps me, and pre-logging when possible helps as well. If I've logged on slice of pumpkin pie and three pieces of fudge, and see how my estimated numbers are stacked up, I'm more likely to stick with the plan.

Another good one is to remember how terrible I feel when I do overindulge and end up feeling all bloated and yucky. I want to feel good and satisfied at the end of my meal, not like a busted can of biscuits all spread out on the sofa. So I take small portions, even if I think I can go bigger - take the small portions, and go back for the favorite thing if I've still got room. This makes dessert time much more enjoyable too - a treat tastes much better if I'm not stuffing it down because I already overate at dinner.

And through it all, remember, it's just a season - all the goodies are going to go away with all the festivities and parties, and normal meals and snacks will resume.

MB_Positif

I plan to handle them like a champ.

I will enjoy calorie laden foods and drinks...in moderation.

Don't let it get inside your head. There is no need to lose our minds over the holidays.

PrettyPearl88

I plan to relax and give myself a break! Seriously, part of learning learning to maintain a healthy lifestyle is learning to enjoy the holidays still. Being in "diet mode" ALL the time is tiring and honestly, no fun!

So, my plan is to allow myself 5 (and only 5!) days off: Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and New Years. On each of those days, I'm not going to count, I'm not even going to keep a general idea of where I am in my head. I'm going to eat what I want, when I want, but just not overdo it (as in, making myself feel sick). I'm going to take a complete BREAK on those days. I'll also do extra cardio during the week surrounding each of those days. All other days during the holiday season though, I'll be on track and in diet mode! I may make a couple exceptions and allow myself a half-day break for a party or something though. We'll see.

Mr_Knight

Eat less before and after.

There is nothing else to do, really, other than saying "to hell with it", doing whatever, and rebooting in January.

Cliffslosinit

No, No, NO!!
It is too soon for these threads.
Forum rules state you must wait until at least 72 hrs prior to any holiday before freaking out and worrying about nothing!


Just log food, exercise and keep moving forward and enjoy the new life you have chosen for yourself.:flowerforyou:
You got this!!:drinker:

micheleld73

If I can last a week on a cruise ship with all the buffets and eating whatever I wanted in SOME moderation, I think I'll be able to handle Thanksgiving, even being around a lot of family that encourage me to EAT. Christmas will be easier because I have to work several days that week, so I won't be with a lot of family and food.

1two3four

I'm skipping Halloween this year and not planning on eating but a piece or two. I decided last year it's not like it's Easter or Christmas where there are things you don't the rest of the year (my hometown's candy store jelly beans/Christmas candy/cherry cordials) the things I'd eat on Halloween are available year round. The Easter/Christmas candies I make last months.

As for Thanksgiving and Christmas...

Thanksgiving, I'll make a plate that has everything I love on it in smaller portions. If I am eating at home I'll keep some leftovers and if I'm eating at my mom's I'll take some left overs and I'll have Thanksgiving all weekend. Not just massive portions on one day. I only love pumpkin pie and I hate whipped cream so I'm saving myself calories with dessert having one piece.

For Christmas I'll have three gatherings to deal with, Christmas Eve dinner that will be the hardest to deal with. There will be turkey sandwiches, many kinds of potatoes, casseroles, dressing, many desserts and so many other foods. I'll try to be sensible, but if I don't succeed I'll just try not to go completely crazy, the problem is that every item gets made by different people every year, you never know what will be there or how much. It's a do your best as you go kind of meal and guesstimate log when you get home. The next two meals will be pretty easy Christmas Day breakfast and dinner, I've been having both in the same place for so long with the same menu I can plan to the calorie exactly what I'll eat on those days tonight if I wanted to.

I've been doing this for two years and have had a harder time with impromptu dinner parties, banquets, and such than I've had for holidays. If you're doing the same thing you always do try and guesstimate before hand if you're doing something that is never the same try to implement calorie saving ideas, drink only water, eat loads of vegetables (without dips, butter, sauce...etc.) pick lower fat meats (simply because they have less calories) go light on dessert. Try to get in extra exercise or rework your calories 3 days before and 3 days after the holiday meal. Take a little from each of the 6 other days (say 50 cals each) and add that to the holiday meal gives you 300 extra calories. Assume you are eating more calories than you'd think when you guesstimate.

And I always have to remind myself 1,000 times, holiday gatherings have little to do with the actual food--they're about the people and what you share outside of the food.

Alex_is_Hawks

BINGO!

dirty_dirty_eater

What you eat on a couple of days of the year are not going to make you or break you in either direction.

Take a little of everything. Try to be moderate, but don't sweat it if you aren't.

Life, it's for enjoying.