Cornered by Friends and Family?

Don't mention your diet. No one wants to hear about your diet. A polite no thank you with no offer of explanation is sufficient.

I would second not offering too much information.

If (big if) they are open enough to ask questions and listen, you could educate them about what you are doing and how and why. Maybe even dispel some of the false ideas they've been force-fed.

Don't mention your diet. No one wants to hear about your diet. A polite no thank you with no offer of explanation is sufficient.

Yep.

just say no thanks....

that's ALL you have to say.


of course now that they all know and have heard about your diet they will assume the implication is there...

I'm sure many have had these experiences:

You go visit a friend or family member's home, and they offer you something like cookies. You decline because you don't know how many calories and nutrients are in it, or because you ate a lot earlier, and then... it begins.

"You can have a cheat day you know."
"You need to eat more to avoid starvation mode"
"You won't lose weight anyway, since you're drinking diet soda"
"There are good calories and bad calories"
"Your metabolism is going to slow down unless you eat more"
etc etc.

Why are people so pushy when I mention anything related to my diet? I never get this kind of reaction when I bring up what kind of car I choose drive, what kind of clothes I choose to wear, or what classes I choose to attend. As soon as weight loss is even hinted at, I get loads of fallacious comments and pressure from everybody to eat more. How do I stop this and why does this happen?

I understand what you are going through, and when you lost +100 lbs weight and turn down food like cookies and cakes (especially the traditional stuff during the holiday season) it doesn't matter whether or not you mention diet, everybody KNOWS you are dieting. And I understand that family or friends can indirectly sabotage you, or say dumb things like ' now, don't get too thin, it's unhealthy". You need to be strong and just stick to your convictions. You aren't the only one suffering this BS, hang in there. Say no thanks, and if they ask again, remind them that you have already said no thanks - usually they get the message at that point, unless they are truly on the path to sabotage, where you then are relinquished to repeating no like a broken record. Be strong and take care.

When you put info out there, people usually think it's a topic of conversation on it and we all know how much most people love giving their tale on something.

Well to be fair, OP did say "when you go to a friend or family member's home." I should hope your friends and family members are close enough to a) listen to you talk about things in your life, including healthy endeavors and b) notice that you're looking smokin' hot. So yeah, they're aware. But especially at the holidays they want you to enjoy being with them and sometimes enjoyment includes food!

I had issues with office food over the past month and learned a lot from people's responses about social eating. I've changed my behavior as a result. Instead of saying no thanks:

1. At a coworker's birthday celebration I took a piece of apple pie. I ate what I wanted and threw the rest away at my desk where no one else would know.

2. A different coworker brought in candy today and offered me a piece. Rather than say no thanks I took it, ate what I wanted, and threw the rest out after she had gone.

I don't think there's a thing wrong with saying no thanks. I did, on the day my office had a Thanksgiving feast on the same day as my birthday when I wanted to save up my calories for a piece of cannoli cake with my family. I'm just saying I'm grateful for learning here on MFP that there are other options that don't draw attention to my eating habits.

Culturally we have a complex relationship with food. Eating together is a way of bonding. Bring or providing food is a way of showing you care. Food is a part of our celebrations and a symbol of a good, rich, enjoyable life. Food is a pleasure. The amount of food we eat and what we eat are also sources of guilt for some / many of us. Consuming "unhealthy" or the "bad" foods can be seen as a sign of weakness. Eating too much can seem like a personal or moral failure. Food is a temptation to a "wrong" way of life. Someone urging you to eat probably starts by wanting to include you in their "family feast" . When you say no, and especially if you mention being in a diet it can bring up their own conflicted feelings about food, eating and social relationships. They may feel that persuading you to eat with them is a sign of your accepting them and belonging to the group. They may feel that your eating assuages some of their guilty feelings / fears of being judged about "bad" foods.
As much as possible it is easier to avoid these complex issues. So talk to a few "safe " friends, or those of here at MFP about the diet, exercise, weight loss etc. Complement and thank those who offer food and treats, but politely decline. If someone just won"t stop do your best to remove yourself from the situation. In the end stick to what you know is right for you and try to be patient with others who are negotiating the same difficult food issues we all share.

Just take the cookie and put on your plate. Play around with it, crumble it a bit and voila! People will leave you alone.
If they ask you why you aren't eating it, just say you already ate a couple