Holiday Eating..Plan A..or Plan B?? What are you doing??

live2dream

Plan C: I go on vacation during the holidays... faaaar away from all the baked goods.

CannibalisticVegetarian

I plan to spend extra time at the gym to earn more calories and continue eating in moderation.

What she said.

There's also gonna be portion control (especially around the sweets).

jskaggs1971

I say, everything in moderation. Including moderation. On Thanksgiving and Christmas eve, Moderation goes out the window, and I'll eat/drink what I please, guilt-free. Of course, before and after, I'll be trying to get in an extra workout or three to make up for the difference.

As it turns out, the "I'm full, no more food please" signals from my gut happen sooner and with smaller portions than earlier in the year, so I'm not going to sweat it.

BeccaB1981

Like a lot of other people said, I will log everything I eat as best I can and focus on portion control. I will do my normal workout, maybe a little extra, and try not to go over on calories. I feel like it's too early for me to allow myself to eat guilt-free and that if I did do that I could spiral out of control so I want to be careful.

Ephena

I'm for plan A, I let myself have my birthday off and actually intentionally ate really terrible (like I used to before I started MFP). I actually made myself sick and honestly it was the a great thing for me. It made me remember why I don't want to eat like that ever again. So I am planning on upping my exercise the weeks of Thanksgiving and Christmas but also letting myself have those two days of not logging. With my birthday memories firmly entrenched I don't think I will go too far but I want to enjoy the holiday without stressing out about it.

sharonsjones

I'm looking at the holidays as ONE DAY - not a whole weekend or week. I plan on eating a small portion of everything that I enjoy. Since starting this lifestyle change, I do find it's extremely hard to overeat, because it doesn't feel good pretty quickly. I believe I've reset that internal switch that stays "stop, you ate enough". So, I won't pass on anything for that one day. Day after Thanksgiving, back to counting calories and working out. Good luck to all of you and whatever works for you!!

That's exactly what I do at the holidays. I enjoy the one day, but not too crazy. Then its back to healthy eating as usual.

xmommyof2boysx

My plan is to burn enough calories that I can taste/eat guilt free. : )

kleavitt1992

sort of plan b but not really.....just on the day of thanksgiving and the day of christmas (im going to do what i did last year) eat maintance calories those days but not for 6 weeks

ElizabethRoad

My plan is to eat whatever I want on Thanksgiving and Christmas - just on the actual days, not the whole season. And try to get in some extra exercise to compensate a little bit. But not worry about it.

BUT. We had an early Thanksgiving celebration with some close friends, and I followed that plan. First of all I ate WAY too much and felt over-full and uncomfortable afterwards. (Didn't realize I'd gotten so accustomed to eating smaller meals!) But the next day I felt terrible. I'm *not* talking about feeling guilty about eating so much. But physically and emotionally, I felt so bad.

So now I am thinking that I should still watch my portions on the holidays. I don't mind the extra calories, but the enjoyment of the food was NOT worth feeling so bad afterwards.

pepperdine

I'm planning on a combination of things -

I am designating Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as days that I do not have to log, but only if I burn at least 600 calories working out on each of the days.

Unfortunately, we all know that it's hard to narrow down the heavy-eating to just 3 days, so I'm going to allow myself treats the remainer of the time if they fit into my daily caloric intake. I am also assuming that I will not lose during those two weeks, but am ok if I can just maintain.

I find that whenever I put strict rules on myself in those types of situations, it always backfires on me - I typically end up slipping up and then go all out because I've already blown it so why not just keep eating. This year I'm telling myself that it's ok to enjoy myself, I just need to plan for it and have the right mindset for it!

kmbrooks15

I am going to take Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day off from logging. I will enjoy the foods I want to have, but I will use a smaller plate (already told my mom I want a smaller plate than her normal ones!). Only one trip through the food line. My kids and I will take our bikes to my parents' house that day, too, so we can get out and ride. I'm not a football fan, so we'll try to spend some time outside instead of in front of the tv. We'll bike, play games, etc. That way I get some exercise. I just want my focus on those days to be my kids, my family, and the things that I have to be grateful for. I don't plan to log every bite I put in my mouth for the rest of my life, so that one day will be good practice for the rest of my life. The day after the holiday, though...back to logging every bite!

I think everyone has to do what works for them on those days. I've been finding myself becoming possibly a little obsessed with the calorie counting, so a day off will be good for me!

bprague

I'm eating everything, but I'm going to try to focus on eating more protein and less stuffing (it's so darned good) and eating more vegetables. If there is excellent homemade food to be eaten, I'm not going to refuse it. Moderation is what I'm going for this holiday season.


Also, I'll be running in a 5k on thanksgiving so I will have some extra calories logged.

ADobs

I think the trick is moderation. I mean if you're going to use the whole - it’s the holidays so it’s ok to pig out for the whole month – excuse, then you will pay for it after the holidays. If you indulge every day for a whole month then it will show, but if you have a few days where you eat above your calories at your family meal or have a few cookies, that’s normal and it’s ok. After all, that is reality and the holidays come around every year, so I wouldn’t worry about it too much. Just enjoy yourself and your family/friends and let food be the afterthought.

amoffatt

In the long run I bet many will try to stay on their diet but holidays make it difficult, so we all will splurge more than thought to begin with. It is how we want to pay for those extra calories, work out more, or have a stricter diet afterwards. Happy Holidays to everyone. :drinker:

xtinajoc

PLAN A!!!!! i am going to enjoy my food without guilt!!!! couple times out of there year isnt going to ruin my progress. just get back on track the next day after my fiest!

TrishaLeighNelson

I just plan on working out more, taking smaller portions and trying to stay away from the sweets. If I do have a peice of pumpkin pie, it'll be a small one

rm830

I plan to spend extra time at the gym to earn more calories and continue eating in moderation.

^^This!

Kotasmommy

Thanksgiving will be the one day I don't count calories and don't worry about what I'm eating. It's the one day you're suppose to get together with family and have LOTS of great food. :happy:

fallenangelloves

I plan on allowing Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Eve and Christmas Day as "Free Days" . I plan to try and log it the best I can but not worrying about it. If I get to exercise those days then great, if not, no worries. This is for life! And I plan on living it, not missing out!

skinnymeinaz

I am choosing plan A! I may or may not log but I will eat anything I choose to eat in moderation. I also plan to find healthier recipes for the Holiday foods I love.