Surviving the Holidays

Rmazula

What are everyone's plan for the Holidays? I.e. When you are at the table with your family; how do you plan your day & still eating within a reasonable amount of calories? I realize I will be treating myself, but I don't want to go overboard or feel weird around others. I am the only one in my family watching what they eat (other than my husband), but he won't be with me.

Also, any key workout plans during this time?

Thanks!

Rebecca

Mokey41

Portion control. You control what goes on your plate and in your mouth. Enjoy smaller amounts of the foods you like, eat SLOWLY, savour the food. You don't have to sit and pick at a few carrot sticks but you don't have to have a plate that requires racks on the sides to keep the food on either.

Others don't need to know about what your diet plans and if they are pushing food on you just decline them with a no thank you. It depends on whether your family have manners or not where it goes from there.

hecham

Thanksgiving and Christmas are celebrations, so I just enjoy it. That said, I don't enjoy the sluggish overeating feeling so I try to take it easy on the food. I always volunteer to bring one or two healthy sides (this year to Thanksgiving I'll bring roasted brussel sprouts and sweet potato pie truffles for dessert).
Exercise- I'm running in a 5k Turkey Trot Thanksgiving morning, and usually a walk after lunch too.
Don't stress and enjoy the day!

micheleb15

My plans are to eat a ton of food. I understand for some that isn't feasible because they have a hard time going back to their regular eating, but I will eat everything. A couple of days are not going to ruin anything for me.

Lizzy622

Sometimes I get so busy talking to people and catching up with current events that I almost forget to eat. The celebrations are about family and friends. We need to refocus away from the food. I just portion control, run around with my nephews and savor my mom's walnut cake. Enjoy your holidays and remember what is truly important.

Rmazula

Thanks Lizzy, whole heartidly agree. Maybe that will be more of the case this year, I hope. Being 4000 miles away from home has been interesting. Food wise, think I will just stay make good nutritional choices, but enjoy it. Will have 2 long days of air travel, but hoping to get some activity in while I'm back home.

cwolfman13

Thanksgiving and Christmas are an occasion...I didn't get fat because of special occasions...i got fat because I ate like it was Thanksgiving routinely and didn't move much. This process isn't about one day or what happens on a special occasion...this process is about what you're doing most of the time.

Personally I'm going to do exactly as I did last year (BTW I lost about 20ish Lbs between mid Sept and the New Year)...I'm going to sit down with my family and friends and enjoy my holiday. I'm going to eat and celebrate the holiday and be thankful for all of my blessings. It's one day of many days.

What I won't do is treat the entire 2 months holiday season as a reason to stuff my face...but one day isn't going to derail anything...and besides, I don't eat until I'm about to explode...I know how to enjoy my meal without needing stretchy pants.

Cinloykko

im going to give myself a cheat days on the main holiday dates themselves but go right back to it the day after. i know i cant control myself otherwise.... and i dont want to look like the freak

mammamaurer

im going to ENJOY mine like this:


but with more bacon

CyberEd312

I am going to treat them like I do every year... Get up before the sunrises head to the gym while everyone else is still sleeping.. Get a Kick Butt workout in and come home and Enjoying my family and friends and eat whatever I want and wake up the day after and get right back to living..... No Stress Needed..... :drinker:

wheird

I am going to eat an obscene amount of food.

svsl0928

I plan on enjoy the meals within reason - portion control; making sure I get my water in and the week of more exercise. I have also decided for Thanksgiving to not take home the plate of desserts and leftovers from the meal to eat days later. This will be the same for New Years dinner. For Christmas, I cook the meal so I can control the health value of the entire meal. My family will get their favorite (sweet potato casserole with pecans and brown sugar on-top). The recipe will not be doubled. When its gone its gone.

Cranquistador

PIE

Mpol2

My family will get their favorite (sweet potato casserole with pecans and brown sugar on-top). The recipe will not be doubled.

Can I come?

danasings

im going to ENJOY mine like this:


but with more bacon

^^This. But add cookies.

DavPul

Survive??? "Survive is what you do when you're stuck in a foxhole in Afghanistan, a small village in the Sudan, or a weekend in Detroit. Applying the word survive to a holiday is patently ridiculous. It's ONE day!!! Eat the food!

EAT ALL THE FOOD

AlabasterVerve

I enjoy the holidays to the fullest and even a couple of days afterwards with leftovers. I eat a low carb diet so the holidays are the perfect occasion to indulge in some of my old favorites like homemade baked macaroni and cheese and desserts. Once that's done I go right back to eating my usual diet.

For me that's my strategy -- eat right though out the year and celebrate holidays and special occasions with food like they should be.

navyrigger46

Personally I'm aiming for 10,000 calories.

Rigger

AllonsYtotheTardis

I eat until I'm full instead of eating until I feel uncomfortably stuffed. Seemed to work over the holidays last year.

I took 2 weeks and moved my calories to maintenance while I was away for the holidays. Didn't gain a thing, and it was great for morale!

lithezebra

My holiday meals are extravaganzas of healthy cooking, and I plan to eat as much as I want on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Eve. I can't eat most of the holiday treats that abound during the rest of the season anyway, because of my gluten problem, so I may as well live it up when I can.

dunnodunno

Thanksgiving I don't have to worry about since I'm sure I'll have to work that day & Christmas I plan on eating a lot of my favorite foods but in moderation.

illuvatree

I'm going to have smaller portions of different foods but also not log, just in case. I'm not *super* worried because meat and dairy aren't part of my diet anymore, so the mashed potatoes I eat will be lower-cal and and not made with milk and butter, for example. But it's still possible to overeat, even on a vegan diet, so smaller portions it is. A little bit of everything

ilovescarymovies

Eat all the NOMZ....back to normal the next day

ArtemisRuns

im going to ENJOY mine like this:


but with more bacon

This but with booze.

ArtemisRuns

More booze.

Contrarian

Thanksgiving and Christmas are an occasion...I didn't get fat because of special occasions...i got fat because I ate like it was Thanksgiving routinely and didn't move much. This process isn't about one day or what happens on a special occasion...this process is about what you're doing most of the time.

Personally I'm going to do exactly as I did last year (BTW I lost about 20ish Lbs between mid Sept and the New Year)...I'm going to sit down with my family and friends and enjoy my holiday. I'm going to eat and celebrate the holiday and be thankful for all of my blessings. It's one day of many days.

What I won't do is treat the entire 2 months holiday season as a reason to stuff my face...but one day isn't going to derail anything...and besides, I don't eat until I'm about to explode...I know how to enjoy my meal without needing stretchy pants.

This is what you do.

MelissaPhippsFeagins

I have allotted myself 5 free days between now and the 26th of December. (three of my kids have birthdays between Thanksgiving and Christmas, what's a mom to do?) I allow myself an extra 500-600 calories on free days. However, I really don't think I'll use them for Thanksgiving. My MIL doesn't believe in celiac disease and she is hostessing for the family this year. She seriously thinks I'm just not eating gluten because I want to make things hard for the rest of the family. I am truly scared to eat the turkey because many of them have gluten in/on them for flavor. Seriously, why? And she won't look at the ingredients. I'm taking the dressing and bacon wrapped asparagus and a butterscotch pie (I make my own GF crust) for myself. If Memaw makes the sweet potatoes, I'll be able to eat those and I don't know what else will be safe. There will be some veggies, but I don't know what. I won't be able to put butter on anything because of cross-contamination and I won't eat any bread of course.

LiftAllThePizzas

Why would I want to eat a reasonable amount of calories on those two holidays?

ThickMcRunFast

I will spell out "SOS" in mashed potatoes on the floor, then make a tent under the table and hide until help arrives. Maybe I can boil the wine to get the alcohol out and stay hydrated.




No, wait, I'm going to eat and drink with my loved ones because its a holiday.

woof1968

Thanksgiving and Christmas are an occasion...I didn't get fat because of special occasions...i got fat because I ate like it was Thanksgiving routinely and didn't move much. This process isn't about one day or what happens on a special occasion...this process is about what you're doing most of the time.

+1

BlueBombers

I am eating whatever I want Christmas Day. Every other day will be business as usual.