Christmas is coming up in a few months...

13

Replies

  • wilsoje74
    wilsoje74 Posts: 1,720 Member
    Thanksgiving and Christmas are only 2 days, so I eat what I want on those days!
  • I live far away from any family and don't get any time off work for Christmas so I never have that problem. But my recommendation would be lots of vegetables and be conscious of other foods and especially dessert. Personally I 99% of the time pass on any sugary sweet dessert.
  • QuilterInVA
    QuilterInVA Posts: 672 Member
    I continue to eat low carb. I don't care for sweets anymore and all that junk food makes me feel terrible.
  • BlueBombers
    BlueBombers Posts: 4,064 Member
    This will be my first holiday season watching what I eat...should be interesting.

    I will let myself enjoy Christmas day, it comes once a year but I plan to stay on track every other day during the season.
  • p0kers0ph
    p0kers0ph Posts: 250 Member
    I'm going to have more of the things I really want, I love pork with crackling and I love stuffing, so I will have those things. I'm going to try and avoid chocolates and cheese. I think for one day of the year it's okay to indulge a little. I will be sticking to plan though regardless. I'm on a mission to lose around 18lbs by Christmas, and I won't want to undo all my hard work just because it's a holiday.
  • jdm_taco
    jdm_taco Posts: 999 Member
    I don't worry about it and eat all the food I enjoy.
  • Christieson
    Christieson Posts: 36 Member
    Last year on both Christmas morning, and Thanksgiving morning, I went for a mega-burn exercise session (cycling in my case) before tucking into huge lunches. I still went way over on calories, but felt great - a heady combination of exercise endorphins and lots of wine.

    The rest of the "season" I enjoyed the treats that were on offer, but made sure I partook in moderation.
  • ItsCasey
    ItsCasey Posts: 4,021 Member
    I don't really worry about it at Christmas. That's the one time of year that I eat pretty much whatever I want ... all the cookies, cake, and chocolate I can stand.

    At Thanksgiving, I do a hard HIIT workout the morning of, combined with a 24-hr fast leading up to the big meal. It pretty much takes care of itself.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,865 Member
    To those who have been on myfitnesspal for some time, what do you guys do around Christmas and Thanksgiving time to avoid over eating?

    These are just one day of many. They are not routine...they do not comproise the majority of your dietary and fitness lifestyle. They do not make you fat over night and do not stall your progress...it takes sustained effort to do either. I was in the depths of weight loss when the holiday's rolled around last year...guess what...I enjoyed them...I ate all the foods and drank all the wines and didn't go on any excessive workouts to try to burn it off (recipe for a lot of disordered thinking and bad food/fitness relationships). I just enjoyed myself...they are singular event, not every day occurances...and I still lost all of my 40 Lbs and I've been maintaining for 5 months following pretty much the same formula.

    don't get caught up in the minutia of singular events...this is about what's going on overall and how you're livin' overall.
  • kr1stadee
    kr1stadee Posts: 1,774 Member
    But...it is August.

    It's September now, but same sentiment.

    FTR - I eat lots on a daily basis, so a little planning will help me survive the holidays
  • lloydrt
    lloydrt Posts: 1,121 Member
    hey, thats what New Years is for

    Make a New Years resolution to go on a diet on Jan 1, 2014 and then you won't feel guilty.....
  • hananah89
    hananah89 Posts: 692 Member
    I'm going to be in Vegas for the holidays in December. Bring it on casino buffets, you can't push me back from where I came :drinker:
  • Mario_Az
    Mario_Az Posts: 1,331 Member
    don't remind me LOL money spending time
  • LoraF83
    LoraF83 Posts: 15,694 Member
    A little early for the holiday stress threads, no?














    Answer to OP: I eat ridiculous amounts of food, that's how I deal with'em.

    And drink ridiculous amounts of alcohol. Because if you're drunk, you don't care about calories! :drinker:
  • twinteensmom
    twinteensmom Posts: 371 Member
    On the actual holiday DAY, I eat what I want. During the holiday SEASON, I stick with my normal routine - if it fits in my calories it's all good. Actual holiDAYS don't come around that often. Just enjoy the day but go right back to your normal routine when the day is over.

    This!
  • ken_hogan
    ken_hogan Posts: 854 Member
    I'm running in a 5K Turkey Trot so at least I'll have a few exercise calories that day!! :drinker:
  • bingefreeaubree
    bingefreeaubree Posts: 220 Member
    If the celebration is at my house, I make sure that I make plenty of healthy lower calorie options to eat to go along with the regular foods typical to the holiday time. If it's not at my house, I say that I'll bring a couple dishes along, which the host is always fine with, and I stick with those, having already figured out the calorie count ahead of time. For example, during Easter Brunch I brought mini quiches made in a cupcake tin without crust and with those 35 calorie cheese wedges and egg whites. (They were surprisingly delicious!) At Christmas dinner I always bring a ton of vegetable dishes without any butter or oil on them. Basically I just practice self control and only eat low calorie things and some high calorie things in moderation!
  • herblackwings39
    herblackwings39 Posts: 3,930 Member
    I do the holiday cooking in my house so I've learned to lighten up some of the family recipes without ruining them. I also cut back on the variety of dishes. With just two or three of us at home it makes no sense to bake a ham, a turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, cheesy hashbrown potatoes, corn casserole, green beans, peas, cranberry relish, yeast rolls, devilled eggs, pumpkin pie, apple pie, coconut cake, and amaretto cheesecake. My mom does that twice a year on Thanksgiving and Christmas, but she always has a house full to eat it all or cart it off.

    All else fails set to maintain for a week or two.
  • KMMRN
    KMMRN Posts: 104 Member
    Turkey breast (no skin); mashed cauliflower, cranberry sauce sweetened artificially, steamed carrots and brussel sprouts topped with no sugar marmalade, gravy made with fat free chicken broth and cornstarch, mousse made with canned pumpkin, artificial sweetener, fat free cream cheese and low cal whipped topping. Glass of white wine.
  • Cindyinpg
    Cindyinpg Posts: 3,902 Member
    On the actual holiday DAY, I eat what I want. During the holiday SEASON, I stick with my normal routine - if it fits in my calories it's all good. Actual holiDAYS don't come around that often. Just enjoy the day but go right back to your normal routine when the day is over.

    This!
    Me too. One day over your calories won't ruin your diet. When I was stricter with myself, I would feel like a failure if I had a cookie or a few chips even on special occasions. Now I have a treat or two daily, (in moderation). I certainly do not worry about going over calories on my birthday, my wedding anniversary, Halloween, Thanksgiving or Christmas. I think it's great if I can find some lower calorie options I enjoy to include in the celebrations, but I also indulge in the cake and the wine without guilt. :drinker:
  • j75j75
    j75j75 Posts: 854 Member
    I eat whatever I want on any given holiday. If I feel the need I will get some early morning exercise in
  • LAnne16
    LAnne16 Posts: 272 Member
    I'm more worried about Halloween to be honest. All those delicious mini sized Reese's and Oh Henrey's.... All the Rocket's and alcohol...That has me way more stressed than Christmas haha.
    My only worries for Thanksgiving and Christmas is that now that I've been dating my bf for a year+, I'll have to go to both meals >.<
  • jlapey
    jlapey Posts: 1,850 Member
    I eat a little bit of everything that's available! It's the holidays. Just a couple days, not a lifetime. Those few days are NOT going to make or break me. I refuse to stress over my weight thus ruining my memories of holiday, family and fun.
  • Acg67
    Acg67 Posts: 12,142 Member
    Turkey breast (no skin); mashed cauliflower, cranberry sauce sweetened artificially, steamed carrots and brussel sprouts topped with no sugar marmalade, gravy made with fat free chicken broth and cornstarch, mousse made with canned pumpkin, artificial sweetener, fat free cream cheese and low cal whipped topping. Glass of white wine.

    That is a kinda sad Thanksgiving dinner

    For me I try and eat at least as much as I did the yr before if not more
  • micheleb15
    micheleb15 Posts: 1,418 Member
    On Thanksgiving I start with mimosas and brunch with friends and it's all downhill after that. I eat as much as possible on the holidays and realistically until the leftovers are gone. It kind of makes me sad people are already worried about what they are going to eat in a few months.
  • GemmaRowlands
    GemmaRowlands Posts: 360 Member
    I eat within my calories every other day than Christmas Day. Then, I do whatever I like. I eat to maintain on the other days between Christmas and New Year, and stay active to earn more calories. If I have any family meals or anything, I won't count, because sometimes having quality time with family is more important. It's only a week out of the year, there are 51 more to get healthy and lose weight.
  • blah2989
    blah2989 Posts: 338 Member
    Ive cooked all the holiday meals since I was 18. So, Im pretty used to it. This year Im revising all the recipes to make them low cal. No butter, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, instead of regular, more seasonings like fresh herbs, making things sugar free, avoiding canned items if possible. Ex. I love jellied cranberries. Im going to make sugar free cranberry sauce, then add gelatin and "gel" it myself. Then I can control whats in it. Also make sure to exercise and eat in moderation.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    To those who have been on myfitnesspal for some time, what do you guys do around Christmas and Thanksgiving time to avoid over eating?

    Nothing. I over eat. Thanksgiving is just one day so it generally doesn't cause a gain. Christmas is days of partying. I typically gain 5-7 lbs each year. It's gone by the end of January. Not really a problem.
  • Capt_Apollo
    Capt_Apollo Posts: 9,026 Member
    too many people worry about the time between thanksgiving and christmas, when they should be worrying about the time between christmas and thanksgiving.
  • bcattoes
    bcattoes Posts: 17,299 Member
    Turkey breast (no skin); mashed cauliflower, cranberry sauce sweetened artificially, steamed carrots and brussel sprouts topped with no sugar marmalade, gravy made with fat free chicken broth and cornstarch, mousse made with canned pumpkin, artificial sweetener, fat free cream cheese and low cal whipped topping. Glass of white wine.

    That is a kinda sad Thanksgiving dinner

    Yeah, I agree. It would take a heck of a lot more than one glass of wine for me to enjoy that meal.