How much did you gain during the holidays and WHY?

hemlock2010

I lost .5 lbs last week. I stayed within my calorie goal every day except Dec 24 because I just didn't want to undo all the work I had done this year. I'm losing weight very slowly (about 2.5 lbs per month), and I couldn't stand the thought of wasting the work of a whole month in just a few days.

Counting calories didn't spoil the holiday for me. :-)

eryn415

It's not that I gained over the holidays per se, more like the 3 months leading up to the holidays. School is kicking my butt, and I "forgot" the joys of eating well and working out. Back on track though!

fireballaaa

well I did pretty good I made a plan of what i could eat and stuck to it and still did my excerises and I lost 3.3 pds this week. For me I was determined not to sabatoge myself worked to hard to lose what i have lost to gain it back and have to start over.

So next holiday remember set your calorie goal and carb. goal and don't go over it. and you will do fine.

Good luck main thing get back on track and stay there the finish line is in front of us but no one can get us there but ourselves.

TourThePast

In the weeks leading up to Christmas and the holiday itself I gained just over 2lb.

The why is partly because there are foods which I enjoy at Christmas that I don't eat at all during the rest of the year, nor do I want to. Mostly though, it's because I ate out more over those three weeks than I have done in the last eleven months put together, it's not only Christmas, but all the birthdays in my family are at that time too. Usually when I eat out, I refuse a starter and dessert, but at these events I chose to participate fully.

It's not something I see as a problem, I'd planned it beforehand and had hoped to lose 2lb before Christmas, but unfortunately I didn't reach my target weight in time to do that. That will be my strategy next year though.

Believeth64

I actually did what some others did, i made up my minds months ago that i wasn't going to eat a lot of sweets. I just could'nt see myself destroying my hard work i've put into losing weight. So what i did was continue to stay within my calories and watch what i chose during the holiday. I told myself this is only a 2 day holiday and it's not worth any weight gain. I had a hard time with my soduim because all those foods are loaded with sodium, burt i made it through with flying colors. I lost 7 pounds in the last two weeks. I do a lot of exercising and burn over 1,400 calories most of the days when i workout. (6 days a week with one day of rest). I drink a lot of water it's something i've been doing for years. I don't drink anything but pure water except for the crystal lite i put in one of my medicines to mix it. I feel good with my choices and i hope that i will continue to have the strength to keep moving forward on my weight lost journey:flowerforyou:

scubaruby

I've lost over 10 pounds since Thanksgiving, and I'm guessing I'll lose 2 or 3 when I weigh in Saturday, despite traveling and staying/eating at my sister's house for Christmas. The holidays are easier for me since I'm a vegan, since if I don't make the goodies, I don't eat them. So I didn't make them this year, and whaddya know, I lost weight.

hazedot

I have yet to weigh myself.... :embarassed: Too scared!!!

Totally in the same boat! I'm not weighing in til after the New Year, then I will be holding myself accountable and fixing the problems. I know I've put on weight, I think it might be about 5lbs, probably more with the water weight etc. but I will be fixing it. At the moment I know I'm eating crap because the weather is rubbish and it's cold and I am beginning to feel more comfortable about the way I look, though my boobs have shrunk and now I can see my belly again (BOO!)

Eh, I'll fix it and I'm heading for my goal weight of 155lbs by May, in time for my birthday. Think I've got about 55-60lbs to go. I don't think that is unachievable.

meerkat70

I've gained in scale weight, but I was 'on programme' more or less up till Christmas Eve night, and was back on in calorie terms by the 28th. I don't believe I overate at a rate of 6000 calories per day during that phase, so I know it's not 'real' weight. I may have gained a little, but the bulk of that is water. And I gained it because I drank a fair bit of alcohol, and I ate too much refined food (fats and sugars, in particular).

Give me a week or two and it will be gone.

ElizabethRoad

I lost half a pound since last week because I ate whatever I wanted for 2 days, not 30.

Of course if I had stepped on the scale every day I'm sure I would have seen several pounds of fluctuations, but in the end it doesn't matter.

Fairysoul

I gained a bit during the holidays, beacuse I ate whatever I wanted and as much of it as I wanted.

willafan

I didn't gain an ounce-- VERY surprised, considering that I didn't make a real effort to stay away from all the holiday food.
Why? I would guess it's because I kept up my daily exercise and added an extra 15 minutes here and there to help burn off all the food I ate. I also tried to keep logging my food although that's harder to do over the holidays. I've been on MFP for about 3 months now and It honestly changed the way I look at food in the very best way possible. The community is great and I especially love reading all the success stories. Happy New Year All!

jlemoore

From Thanksgiving to today, I gained 3 pounds.

Why-
1. I was out of my element visiting my sisters and dad in Vermont.
2. I've been stressed out wondering if I was going to loose my job because of a major F-up.
3. General Holiday stress

All this led to not caring about what went into my mouth, tracking it, and finding the time to exercise.

rrtnrn

Uhhggg!! 5lbs for me. I just quit exercising and tracking my food intake. And, Oh, the baked goodies at work!!!!! Couldn't resist.

SafireBleu

+3.5 lbs. Stopped working out and drinking waters. My response is to work out more and drink more water in the coming days.

chubby_checkers

i gained about 5lbs as well. i didn't go to the gym consistently and had no control over my eating. i ate around 4000 calories a day. :ohwell:

FitnessBarbie99

I lost 3 lbs. after Thanksgiving and gained them back at Christmas...

Why -
I can handle one dinner party or event in a day, but in December I had 3 doubles in a row (work lunches and then other parties) and those did not include Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.:sad:
Why-
It is cold and dark -- not enough weekend exercise.:yawn:
Why -
Drinking like a fish with DH who has been on vacation for over 2 weeks.:drinker:
Why -
Snacking on chocolate and nuts.

What I did well --
visited the gym 4 days a week even if they were sometimes very quick workouts.:happy:
Joined a challenge on MYP -- Super Heroes Challenge
Kept a good supply of fresh fruit and veg on hand.:glasses:
Did not get depressed at scale readings by flexing newly awakened bicep muscles from time to time. :laugh:

hbrittingham

I lost 2.8 lbs between Thanksgiving and Christmas. I just stayed on track and made sure to get lots of extra exercise in so I could eat some of the stuff I normally stay away from. Last year I was just happy to have maintained, this year I wanted to lose.

jfrankovich

I'm proud to report that I've lost 5 pounds since Thanksgiving. I logged all my food every day as usual, and stuck to the same weekly calorie goals I had before the holidays. In the days leading up to both Thanksgiving and Christmas I ate even less and exercised more than usual, so that I would have an extra cushion of calories for splurging a little at the family gatherings (and I'm doing the same this week so I can enjoy a few extra snacks and drinks on New Year's). I didn't deny myself any particular types of food, but I certainly ate a lot fewer cookies and such than in years past, because for once I was really paying attention. I ate a sensible amount of the things I wanted most, slowly savoring each bite of the special treats, rather than mindlessly stuffing myself with everything in sight. I couldn't have done it without MFP and the new sense of commitment it has given me, and I'm looking forward to doing more strength training and reaching my goal weight in 2012!

chevy88grl

I'm still maintaining in my normal "range". I told myself that as long as I wasn't over 150lbs, I considered this holiday season a success.

I haven't been to the gym in a couple months as I am trying to nurse two injuries/illnesses back to health. I can definitely see a difference in how I look when I don't go to the gym - but the scale, well... it has remained a friend.

I was 147lbs this morning.

Scorpioangel

I didn't gain

Syntria

I come back and there's like 5 pages to read! haha *goes to read*

Syntria

So happy to hear that lots of people lost!

I generally don't over indulge during the holidays but it was a combination of the move and just having so many restaurants to try. I'm really trying to get back to eatting at home and spending some time working out. Did 60 situps today, going to do 60 more before bed and tomorrow I'm going to go walk a mile before starting to increase my activity.

Looking forward to seeing everyone elses progress to!

krystle_swope

I did not gain, but I didn't lose either. I just toggled at the same weight from Thanksgiving through the week before Christmas but I FINALLY had a nice loss last Friday. All the cookies and sugar were making it harder to burn fat even though I was doing boot camps 2-3x a week on top of cardio 3x a week as well. Hopefully everyone gets back on track now that the holidays are over! Good luck to everyone and keep pushing oN!!!

ottawagirl613

GAIN:
-5 pounds (I was amazed)

WHY:
-Re-started my "eat healthy and exercise" plan a little over a week before christmas
-Established a concrete goal before I started on the 16th (comfortably fit into a New Years dress that I bought at 138 pounds)
-Only skipped 2 of my 30 min workouts (23rd and 24th as we had my family over and i was swamped)
-Ate my pre-determined 1400 calories a day as well as my exercise calories
-Saved as much room as possible for the big meals on the 24th and 25th
-Didn't count calories on the 24th or 25th (but ate as close to one serving as possible for everything starchy/sweet)
-Drank as few empty calories as possible (i.e. non water beverages)
-Before and after the 24th and 25th sceduled 1-2 portion controlled "treats" into my calories to finish off the leftovers

As a result I didn't feel deprived or over full at any point. I absolutely adore sweets so I was suprised to see that with a head start and a little planning and self control (which I tend to have more of near the beginning of a fitness plan anyway) I was able to actually lose rather then gain. I'm only .4 pounds away from my dress goal, and I think I'll be able to take care of that in the next couple days!

ottawagirl613

I guess a - was a bad choice there. Probably should have written out negative five pounds lol!

Elixandra

Lost 6!! Why? Cuz I "challenged" myself not to gain and I WON!

I'm sure you'll get back on track and recoup the gained pounds. Good luck to ya!

xoxoxo

Awesome! I tried not to go to crazy. And I didnt gain anything eather. :happy:

martinezrl

I gained about 3 pounds, which makes me feel lucky considering how far I fell from the wagon. I've been eating terribly! Oh well, climbing back on... Happy that roller derby practice starts up again soon!

KerriMx5

I gained between 3-5 pounds depending on the day. It is fluctuating. I know why I gained. I am to blame for pie and carbs. My biggest issue is what when I am not working out I tend to be tired and bored and I eat. If I am working out I feel so good I don't eat as much. I won't touch junk food then. I had an unplanned surgery on the 14th. I have since been recovering. Yesterday was the first day I was able to drive. The past two days I have finally been able to go for walks but they have to be slow ones. I can't do any workouts like my usual 30 DS. I should have a follow up appointment next week. If I can get the docs to call back. Once I can get the clear I will be back in action and back to losing. I do horrible if bad stuff is in the house. I don't usually by it but it was here for the holidays.

KerriMx5

I should add I lost four pounds Thanksgiving week. That was also the week my sister was here. I still did my workouts. Kept busy and watched what I ate. This surgery through me for a loop.

mamagooskie

I gained nothing.....I lost 5lbs. I ate what I wanted in moderation and worked out extra. that's why I had the outcome I did.