Is it appropriate to go on a diet during the Christmas Holidays
misshoneyz2dab
Posts: 62 Member
I've been told by a lot of people, that I should avoid going on diets during the Christmas period. Should I still lose weight in December?
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Replies
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Christmas is one day, not a whole season. If you put off putting your health first until January, it's just longer until you get where you want to be. There will always be things coming up, Birthdays, holidays, Easter, Christmas, Valentines etc - how you prioritise them is up to you.48
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Three years ago, I started my diet a week before Thanksgiving. I still enjoyed the meal, but I worked out and watched my calories aside from that. I actually lost almost 30 lbs by my birthday in early February that year, and still haven't gained it back to this day. So I'm living proof that it can be done. I wanted the weight off more than I wanted all of the food..that was all I needed.
ETA: actually, it's a great time to be at the gym, too. My gym is usually pretty bare this time of year. You can get in and see what you like to do before the January insanity hits.11 -
The real question is what do you want the most? Do you want the food that has put you in your current "I need to go on a diet" mode or do you want the body you're dreaming of? I'll allow myself to indulge on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day, but the rest of them are going to be spent putting in the work!!9
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There's always an excuse to not try and lose weight at any given time. You can spend the entire year coming up with excuses or you can just go ahead and do it.16
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If you're working consistently towards your goal, eating in excess a couple days a year won't hurt your progress.
If you need help, send a friend request.3 -
I pretty much eat meat, vegetables and gravy for my normal diet anyway lol. Christmas dinner seems healthy to me?! Or if not I dont think it would need much modification to make it a healthy meal. Like just have a few more vegetables on your plate and a bit less meat, things like that, so you can still eat the same food but still be healthy..5
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I'm going to continue my cut through the holiday season. I know that a couple of days I'll be over and my weight will either maintain or go up slightly. But, because I'm planning on keeping on my cut, I won't have to worry too much about my weight possibly getting out of control or falling into old habits.3
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Save your splurging for the actual celebration days, and stick to the plan on all other days. Don't go whole hog and start backsliding if you don't have to, but don't sacrifice having a fun, delicious time with friends and family either.Ready2Rock206 wrote: »There's always an excuse to not try and lose weight at any given time. You can spend the entire year coming up with excuses or you can just go ahead and do it.
Also this. ^^^3 -
It isn't impossible to watch your calorie intake over the holidays. Eat at maintenance level on the actual holiday. Stick to your goal the other days of the month.
Today is November 20th. Set a reasonable sustainable goal like 1 lb a week and start logging today.
If you plan to go on a very restrictive low calorie diet I'd say you will not have a very happy holidays and will probably not end up being succesful at sticking to it.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10479934/is-it-really-just-one-day/p13 -
Go on a diet when you're ready. Christmas is one day. Good luck.2
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I started my diet at the end of a November and went right through til my goal weight in the following early March. It can be done, but it is your decision alone. Go forth and own it! If you decide not to start until after the holidays, don't make that an excuse to do all the crap crazy eating 'to get it out of your system', just be normal. You'll be happier for it.5
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I made the mistake last year of telling myself 'it's Christmas, I can treat myself'... throughout the WHOLE of December! I gained almost ten pounds and have been yo-yoing those same pounds up and down for the last year. So this year, I'll enjoy myself in maintenance on days when events with friends are happening (parties, nights out, celebrations for the end of the university semester) but eat in deficit the rest of the time. The only exceptions will be Christmas Eve, Christmas day, and Boxing day, when I'll go all out. New Year's eve will probably be maintenance again.
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Let's face it, even Santa could afford to lose a few pounds.7
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I will go against the grain and say that if I was completely new to dieting I would not start over the holidays. I would make it my goal to maintain and start making better food choices in preparation for smart calorie cutting after the holidays. By next year's holidays your new healthy habits will be second nature and it may be less stressful to cut over the holidays.
That's just what I'd do and did before start my weight loss project in 2014.11 -
I've actually started dieting several times during the holidays. For many people, the period of Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years becomes a time of non-stop indulgence. Rather than gain 5 or more pounds during those two months, by paying attention to what I eat, I can lose a few pounds, or at the least maintain my weight. Even if it's just a matter of being careful 6 days a week and indulging on one, that's better than indulging 7 days a week.4
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Alatariel75 wrote: »Christmas is one day, not a whole season. If you put off putting your health first until January, it's just longer until you get where you want to be. There will always be things coming up, Birthdays, holidays, Easter, Christmas, Valentines etc - how you prioritise them is up to you.
^^^ This, one thing I used to do really bad was make the excuse "I'll start after this birthday" "after this anniversary" "maybe I'll get my butt in gear after our vacation". Once I reached 120 lbs over a healthy weight, I finally realized that I cannot make that excuse any longer. Another point I'd like to make is that it should never be thought of as just some diet. Making healthy choices and eating smaller portions is a lifestyle change. With that being said...I began my new way of eating July 2nd. Since then I've been through birthday parties for both of my daughters, camping trips, trips to the lake, family gatherings, and Halloween. Each event has been treated the same and that is with me logging what I eat. It works, I am down 52.9 lbs as of this morning. Major holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas I may allow myself took up to maintenance for that one day. That is the key though, one day! You cannot treat the holidays like a free for all with food. Allow yourself to eat goodies, but make it fit in your calories.7 -
OP I don't know who you converse with, but 3 days of Holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's) are usually days of over indulgence, but you can be consistent and in calorie deficit the rest of the time and still lose. I wrote a thread on this.
http://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10479697/that-extra-2-5lbs-gain-each-year#latest
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Been in fitness for 30 years and have studied kinesiology and nutrition
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I started using MFP on December 21st last year. Lost 35 pounds, and am at maintenance now. So holidays, shmolidays.7
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Why do you need someone else's approval for when it's okay for you to eat healthier or lose weight?9
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Maybe have Christmas day off, but not the whole holiday period. I am going to have a day off tracking for Christmas but the rest of December will be tracked4
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