Sunday, Church, and diet topic.

dodgersprincess

I have often brought up this topic with my brother, but I never talked about it like this. For years I felt that Sunday has never been addressed for us Christians and trying to lose weight. Honestly I feel like I have two off-days with m diet. My real and degisnated off day is Friday. Sunday I find is a problem with Church. Lets think about it. I usualy have my breakfast at 8AM before I head to the 9 Am service. I am lucky though, Sunday morning is all I have with my church on Sunday except during the summer, then I join my church for softball, which I am just watching this year.
during the Fall and Winter I take my mother to her church on Sunday Nights. Which that service interupts my dinner. So I end-up having a pre-church meal and I have dinner after church.
I do try to work-out on Sundays. Lucky for me my gym and where my church has softball is at the same park (believe this or not my gym is in a park).
How do you other Christians handle sundays?

alyson820

I don't see where the issue is, honestly. Church isn't a full day affair, and if you can work your diet and exercise routine into the week day, then you should be able to work it into Sundays, too. If you can't, then why not switch your off day to Sunday instead of Friday?

dessiepenn

Sunday really isn't that big of deal for me either. We attend Sunday School and the full service. I eat a breakfest like usual, go to bible class at 9:30 then the main service and then home for a light lunch. The rest of the day is the same as any other. Saturdays are the hardest for me, that is when the IN-LAWS always want to go out and eat.......

douglasmobbs

There must be some people who are not overweight and go to church.

austelle

Many of my Christian friends on a diet, choose Sunday as their free day. It makes it even more celebratory to worship and get to eat all the yummy food you have been craving during the week.

kdeaux1959

Often eat outs can be an issue with Church... Many families eat out on Church days. Choosing restaurants with good choices can help here. Otherwise, Church has never really hindered my weight loss goals at all. Best wishes on your journey.

secondchance82

Being married to a deacon, it is an ALL DAY affair...I know it's not an all day thing for all christians (who attend Sunday service), but I sympathize with you. Our church feeds the kids, and for me it's easy not to eat the unhealthy food we serve after church because I'm so busy serving everyone and cleaning up after church that it's not that big of a deal. I have a light breakfast on Sundays, and don't really eat till dinner since I have too many things to do while I'm at church to worry about it. It's pretty easy and not hard at all...I'm usually there from 8:30 till around 4-5 in the afternoon. As a christian a little fasting won't hurt!

Jill_newimprovedversion

It takes some planning on Saturday, but I eat a light breakfast on Sunday AM, and have a full meal when I get home- usually something in the crock pot.
The type of meal we'd usually eat any other day of the week around 630 or so, only it's about 1 PM.

Later in the day, anyone who's hungry eats what they'd generally grab for lunch- sandwich, leftovers, whatever.

Been doing this for YEARS, and like I said, it takes some pre-planning the day/night before but
it makes Sunday MUCH more relaxing for me.....

especially when our kids were younger & we'd be running them over to youth group @ 4 pm, and weren't getting home till after the PM service.

BTW, church potlucks were inspired by the devil...........hahaha:laugh:

Karen_ZH

It's not a problem for me. I get up early every day of the week and usually my workouts are done by 8am. Mass for me isn't until 10:30am. I usually just have a protein shake after my workout. After church, our family usually goes out for a late breakfast (more like lunch time).

bdo7

I actually get less time to eat on Sunday, as my family has dinner while I'm away at my evening Bible study! (We have a toddler, so her meal time needs to stay pretty consistent from day to day).

The only temptation is wanting to go to a restaurant after the morning service. We used to do that a lot. Thankfully, the economy has helped in that department, as we can't really afford to do that these days.

Actually, there is a McDonald's RIGHT SMACK on our way home. That has gotten us a few times, I admit.

Fortunately, Sunday is also a great day to head to the park for a hike.

I would say in your case either change your "off day" to Sunday, OR if you give in to the in-laws, then work it off with some exercise. Of course, you can always make a healthy choice at the restaurant, but I know how hard that is. You don't know how many times I have NOT ordered a bran muffin + fresh fruit at Cracker Barrel.

P.S. You might want to consider not having an "off day" in the first place. I know that sounds scary, but it will help you see this whole thing as less of a punishment and more of a new lifestyle. That's the key to making it work.

Every day is an off day anyway, if you can eat whatever you want - just eat the right amount every day!

God bless you, and I wish you the best.

lmelangley

Hmmm.. it's never been an issue for me. Even participating in pot lucks - we have them at my church at least once a month. I don't do regular cheat days, and have never had to "cheat" because of church. If I know I need to be there at a specific time, I just plan what I'm eating for the day around that. No extra meals or extra snacking or anything. Is your eating plan complicated? Do you have to eat at specific times? I guess I'm lucky because all I've done on my journey is to use portion control and try to eat healthier- I eat what I want when I want, otherwise.

MB_Positif

I don't have a problem on Sunday either. We go to the 9:00 service and stay to either serve or have meetings during the second service. I usually eat a light breakfast before heading over there. Throw a granola bar or banana in my bag in case I need it. And I also bring my 20 ounce water bottle. Afterwards we come home and make a late lunch which is usually breakfast food, yummy filling eggs and some kind of meat w/ peppers & onions, etc. We don't always have something to do on Sunday nights so I don't have your problem with the pre-church meal and dinner after, but you've got to get a handle on either keeping ALL of your meals small or finding lower calorie filling snacks for between meals. I personally wouldn't have the mini meal before the Sunday night service. I'd have maybe an apple & a string cheese and then have the dinner when I got home.

puppywalker

I just eat a protein bar or have some greek yogurt before church to keep my stomach from grumbling during service. Then I eat a meal after. We go to church on Saturday nights, but it's basically the same issue. We eat after.

Ne2fine

Well in my family Sunday is a big day for us. After church service, we come home and have a home cook traditional Southern Black Family meal. On Sunday I usually prepare a heavy meal. This past Sunday meal consisted of Collard greens, crown roast with potatoes and carrots, pinto beans, cornbread and pound cake. The entrie meal was from scratch and no shortcuts..no cans box or frozen goods. Since, I'm the only one in the family on a diet I choose to eat in moderation. I didn't eat the cornbread or potatoes and loaded up on the collard greens. Late in the evening I had a slice of pound cake.

I'm really tr ing to maintain my weight with healthy eatting and exercise. I'm currently 140lbs and my goal is 135 lbs. Althought that might not be much to others, but it's a struggle when you are 44 with a family always on the go. That's why Sunday dinner is important to us. We come together and worship, eat, communicate and have a good time.

cmreimer

Sundays tend to through me off too, between church and our community group meeting later in the evening for dinner. Rarely do I have a chance to exercise more than a quick dog walk. I think pre-planning is key; you probably have a pretty good sense of the food choices you have for the day, so adjust your other meals to accommodate. I'm also wondering if it might be helpful to you to reconsider your Friday as an off day? If you could stay on track then, Sunday might be more enjoyable for you as a "rest" day from you plan. I haven't looked at your profile, but are making progress with your goals? If so, then don't worry. Have a great day!

bakz4

I have often brought up this topic with my brother, but I never talked about it like this. For years I felt that Sunday has never been addressed for us Christians and trying to lose weight. Honestly I feel like I have two off-days with m diet. My real and degisnated off day is Friday. Sunday I find is a problem with Church. Lets think about it. I usualy have my breakfast at 8AM before I head to the 9 Am service. I am lucky though, Sunday morning is all I have with my church on Sunday except during the summer, then I join my church for softball, which I am just watching this year.
during the Fall and Winter I take my mother to her church on Sunday Nights. Which that service interupts my dinner. So I end-up having a pre-church meal and I have dinner after church.
I do try to work-out on Sundays. Lucky for me my gym and where my church has softball is at the same park (believe this or not my gym is in a park).
How do you other Christians handle sundays?

I've never had a problem with my Sundays, but then our church routines looks like they may be a bit different. There are lots of ways you can work it out so that you stay on track.

First, why not switch your "off-day" to Sunday in the summer if that is when you spend a good part of the day there. If there are picnics/dinners/any kind of food then bring your own, prepackaged/wieghed. If people know that you are watching/counting calories they will be understanding for sure! Also, bring some healthy snacks along with you if it's going to be a long day. Nuts and fruit are easy to take along.

You asked how other Christians handle their Sundays? For me, I eat at home first. Bible study/coffee hour is at 9:00. I'll generally have coffee but try to stay away from the cakes/rolls that are there. For us, church is from 10 - 11ish, so we either head home right after (well, I take that back, my husband is an Elder, so we usually are one of the last to leave the building)...or we go and get a light lunch somewhere. Sunday is also my day with my husband, so we plan our meals for the week together and then we often go grocery shopping together. I like that he goes with me, it helps to keep me within budget and he is a big help in the store and again once we get home.

Good luck. Know that God is in control if you allow Him to be.

serenity216

I tend to eat breakfast before I leave for church (and make sure it had protetin)

I would also recommend packing healthy snacks like trail mix or protein bars.

Also, like everyone else said, if this tends to be your hard day you could make it your "off" meal (or some people call it a cheat day).

dmpizza

mmmmmmmm Gym on Sunday afternoon or early evening. What's the big deal?

Sarasari

I no longer sleep in on weekends. Sat and Sunday are my designated swim days. I either get an hour to an hour and a half in befoe church and eating out.

You mentioned you are just watching softball this year,but didn't say why. If you are injured are you at least able to walk around the field during this time? You can still cheer the team on,but be moving. And/or bring a dinner you can eat during this time that way your dinner is kept the same time.

Gilllll

Sunday is my day off on diet and exercise. It's freedom day and I eat what I want day and take it easy all day. Because come Monday, it's time to run and watch those calories. We need a break at least for us not to feel we're being deprived. Life's too short.

emilysuelemus

I ussually eat breakfast before church, take a piece of fruit with me, sometimes we go to lunch afterwards if we dont pick a restaraunt with a salad and soup bar, I box half of what I ordered and hubby takes for lunch the nxt day, dinner is always light a sandwich or soup, we do eat it before we go to eve. bible study. always doughnuts and rolls offered at both services but I stay away from them and bring a piece of fruit, nits, or sting cheese with me. Sundays are my off days and I do try to eat as healthy as possible on that day. My ultimate goal is to take care of my temple so I can be of better service for my Lord my God!

CHRISTCENTERED

I'm afraid I have to agree with dodgersprince, Sunday you tend to stray away from your usual routine because one, if you had not prepared dinner, you end up eating out with other church members, or a take out and before you know it, you end up eating yellow rice w/ light gravy and corn bread..hahaha. That's my problem. About a year ago I was very disciplined with my food choices. Since the Holidays of last year I've regained 10 pounds of the 39 lbs. I lost on the South Beach Diet. I made the biggest mistake during the holidays stating. "I'm gonna eat what I want to eat with very little to no movement of exercise. It kinda stayed with me. I started making bad food choices especially on Sunday after a good service of praise and worship it's time to eat! hahaha. I didn't mean to say all of that, but...only because I know exactly what you're talking about. Now I'm faced with the consequences of the bad choices I made. DON'T EVER LET YOURSELF OR YOUR GUARD DOWN. Lesson learned the hard way. My apologies again for running on with this, but it's been somewhat of a release outlet. Thanks for listening~

dodgersprincess

Smiles, I am not married and no kids. The is the reason for no Awanas or Missionettes and or Royal Rangers to be commited to on Sunday evening.

ElizabethRoad

I grew up in a family that attended church, many of my friends go to church, my in-laws not only attend church but are the choir director and organist. All of these people have regular meals on Sundays. I really do not see where the problem lies.