Welcome to Debate Club! Please be aware that this is a space for respectful debate, and that your ideas will be challenged here. Please remember to critique the argument, not the author.

Will you log foods on Thanksgiving or no?

124

Replies

  • Im logging......no matter how ugly it is. Doing a 15 mile walk first thing in the morning so I will have wiggle room :)
  • maura_tasi
    maura_tasi Posts: 196 Member
    maura_tasi wrote: »
    I most likely won't log. I usually don't on thanksgiving, Christmas, and NYE. I'll have some calories banked for those days and also have a nice workout in the morning (after breakfast and presents on Christmas morning of course). I'm not on my phone during these holidays because I'm with family and choose to keep my phone in my purse. It would be difficult for me to remember everything I had and the portion sizes without keeping a note in my phone. I just plan on having normal sized portions and sticking to a few adult beverages. I allow dessert, but just one and not a sample of everything on the table :wink: and I make sure to not make it a weekend long event filled with all of the leftovers. I have my one yummy treat meal and then get back to business the next day and wait for the next holiday to roll around.

    to the bolded, i agree, i don't want to sit at the table and search for things during the meal. we had friendsgiving last night and i snapped a quick picture of my plate which wasn't out of the ordinary in any way (thanks instagram!) and then put my phone away. when i woke up this morning i had the picture for reference and then estimated from there.

    Oh that's a great idea! I'll totally be doing that, I never even considered taking a quick picture!
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    olive1968 wrote: »
    I'm on a logging streak so no way am I breaking it. I also fear I'll fall off the wagon if I get too crazy, so I am planning to eat maintenance for that day but no more. (hahahahaha, well I can TRY)

    The streak isn't actually associated with your diary. It's based on the number of consecutive days you log into the website/app.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
    Also, one thing I've found is that since my family has basically the same menu items every year, prepared basically the same way - I can just copy my diary entries from previous years for a rough estimate of the calories, and adjust the big things like 1 piece of pecan pie vs 2, extra serving of mashed potatoes, two extra glasses of wine, etc. It was a best guess the first year I put it in, but it hasn't derailed my progress yet, so might as well stick with the estimates. For fun I looked back at my 4 years of logging on Thanksgiving. This is for the actual day, we celebrate a second time the Saturday after with another side of the family.

    Thanksgiving 2016: 1891 calories (did not make my sweet potato casserole, went with roasted instead)
    Thanksgiving 2015: 2532 calories (full on everything - first full year in maintenance)
    Thanksgiving 2014: 1959 calories (recently transitioned to maintenance, trying to be cautious)
    Thanksgiving 2013: 1876 calories (actively losing)


    I also bank calories the days leading up to it, eat a small breakfast that day, go for a long walk in the morning, and try to avoid eating anything big later in the evening, maybe some popcorn if I'm feeling peckish.




  • RoxieDawn
    RoxieDawn Posts: 15,488 Member
    Yes I am and I will exercise that morning as well.

    For us its the same menu/same recipes already built in the recipe builder from the past 4 years except a new pie I wanted to make this year. So there is no reason really for me not to log and stay on point.
  • Bluetail6
    Bluetail6 Posts: 2,989 Member
    Yes, I'm going to log. We are going on a road trip with friends. I will have my scale with me. Logging isn't a chore for me. I will prelog what I can, however :p
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,563 Member
    maura_tasi wrote: »
    I most likely won't log. I usually don't on thanksgiving, Christmas, and NYE. I'll have some calories banked for those days and also have a nice workout in the morning (after breakfast and presents on Christmas morning of course). I'm not on my phone during these holidays because I'm with family and choose to keep my phone in my purse. It would be difficult for me to remember everything I had and the portion sizes without keeping a note in my phone. I just plan on having normal sized portions and sticking to a few adult beverages. I allow dessert, but just one and not a sample of everything on the table :wink: and I make sure to not make it a weekend long event filled with all of the leftovers. I have my one yummy treat meal and then get back to business the next day and wait for the next holiday to roll around.

    to the bolded, i agree, i don't want to sit at the table and search for things during the meal. we had friendsgiving last night and i snapped a quick picture of my plate which wasn't out of the ordinary in any way (thanks instagram!) and then put my phone away. when i woke up this morning i had the picture for reference and then estimated from there.

    I LOVE this <3
  • olive1968
    olive1968 Posts: 148 Member
    malibu927 wrote: »
    olive1968 wrote: »
    I'm on a logging streak so no way am I breaking it. I also fear I'll fall off the wagon if I get too crazy, so I am planning to eat maintenance for that day but no more. (hahahahaha, well I can TRY)

    The streak isn't actually associated with your diary. It's based on the number of consecutive days you log into the website/app.

    Oh right! But it works the other way in my head...
  • Evamutt
    Evamutt Posts: 2,794 Member
    This is the first year in my life where it's going to be me & hubby & the dogs so I'm going to weigh & log. I'm having turkey , mashed potatoes, a little home made cranberry sauce, no stuffing or pies but my son is making us his delicious chocolate cake with butter cream frosting so that will be the cause of my going over. If I were going to someone's house, I'd just pick the "thanksgiving dinner" on mfp
  • Moxie42
    Moxie42 Posts: 1,400 Member
    edited November 2017
    I usually don't but this year I'm going to. Mostly out of curiosity. I don't think I eat much more on Thanksgiving than any other day (more varieties of food but I tend to just take a very small bit of everything) and I never eat more than one plateful. I'm not worried about going over my calorie allotment but I'm curious to see if I actually do, especially since I'm so busy cooking/prepping I usually eat very little else, if anything, that day. Really, it's the wine that will probably put me over, lol! Gotta deal with the inevitable drama somehow ;)

    ETA: I'm not planning on weighing the food. Just estimating as best I can. And NOT doing it at the table!
  • Nomseys
    Nomseys Posts: 43 Member
    Yes, I will. I log every meal everyday. Thanksgiving will be no different.
  • jamesakrobinson
    jamesakrobinson Posts: 2,149 Member
    edited November 2017
    I am a bit confused.
    On feasts I try to log using the "eyeball" technique (a scale and a graduated cylinder would be frowned upon in most social settings LOL) but I don't make even the slightest attempt to refrain myself from enjoying thoroughly... Call it a cheat or a carb-up or a refeed... Whatever.
    The point for me on those days is to still try to get an idea of what it does to my body composition over the next couple days. If I have zero data I can't make educated decisions in the future. Go ahead and have the next beer or crack open another bottle of wine... Slap on another giant spoon of mashed potatos with sour cream and butter, pour on the gravy, have seconds (or thirds) of dessert. Just log it all to the best of your ability when you have a few moments (while waiting for the coffee and Baileys maybe)
    That way you have a point of reference over the next few days to see the actual effect.

    Not logging anything doesn't negate the macros (calories if you aren't quite as particular) you took in. You just won't have any idea how to expect your body to react at the next feast.
  • KANGOOJUMPS
    KANGOOJUMPS Posts: 6,474 Member
    OF COURSE.
  • Jancandoit7
    Jancandoit7 Posts: 356 Member
    I'll log guesstimates just out of curiousity, but plan on eating whatever I want. Having a much smaller appetite now will prevent me from going completely insane- having these splurges to look forward to makes weight loss much more endurable for me- however, I will not be keeping leftover desserts in the house :'( - will send those home with someone.
  • HDBKLM
    HDBKLM Posts: 466 Member
    Yeah I'd log it (though this year I won't be in the US on Thanksgiving), not because I have any intention of staying within my calories, but because I don't see the point in only tracking the 'virtuous' days. I like looking at the general trends and don't freak out about the occasional day when my calories spike. I can see how a day like that fits into the context of how I did over a whole week or month, for example.
  • Mrs181
    Mrs181 Posts: 36 Member
    I will probably pre-log it tomorrow but I'm not going to worry about it on Thursday.
    I'm running a 10k in the morning as well.
  • JillianRumrill
    JillianRumrill Posts: 335 Member
    mph323 wrote: »
    I lost my mind and signed up for a turkey trot :o First ever organized 5K. It's supposed to rain. I expect I will be useless starting directly after dinner.

    YOU CAN DO IT!!
  • H_Ock12
    H_Ock12 Posts: 1,152 Member
    Nope...I'll log in to keep my streak, but I' won't log. I'll be running in the afternoon, hiking on Friday, and lifting on Saturday so Thanksgiving will just go toward my gains.
  • mph323
    mph323 Posts: 3,563 Member
    mph323 wrote: »
    I lost my mind and signed up for a turkey trot :o First ever organized 5K. It's supposed to rain. I expect I will be useless starting directly after dinner.

    YOU CAN DO IT!!

    :)
  • Unknown
    edited November 2017
    This content has been removed.
  • leggup
    leggup Posts: 2,942 Member
    Nah, wouldn't be accurate since I'm not cooking.
  • JeepHair77
    JeepHair77 Posts: 1,291 Member
    I probably won't log, or if I do, it'll be a big guesstimate. Thanksgiving in my family has lots of people bringing over lots of different things - and everyone's "recipes" are incredibly unscientific.

  • chnkysoup
    chnkysoup Posts: 79 Member
    I probably will log as good as I can...it's hard to calculate calories in some of those items. I'm not too worried about the food though. It's going to be the wine that tips me over the calorie edge! Can't wait!
  • apullum
    apullum Posts: 4,838 Member
    Already pre-logged my Thanksgiving dinner. I'm cooking so I control all the ingredients. My calorie allotment will go up, though, because I'm running a 10k turkey trot. I don't see the point of not logging. You ate it, you should log it, even if it has to be an estimate.
  • fritch_gets_fit26
    fritch_gets_fit26 Posts: 40 Member
    I am not logging my food, but I am going to be conscious of what I eat. I am bringing the mashed potatoes (which are my favorite), but instead of having them myself I am bringing a smaller thing of mashed cauliflower (cringe).

    I am also working out that morning.
  • JasonMcS
    JasonMcS Posts: 96 Member
    We had Thanksgiving with my wife's family this past Sunday. I tried to log it. I found it next to impossible. I tried to estimate what I ate and still find it hard to count exact calories in prepared food. Dressing??? Really How would you know as everyone makes it differently... I tried. I plugged it in and estimated high. I had a bite of pecan pie and some low fat banana pudding that has reduced calorie vanilla wafers and fat free cool whip... How would you know how much of what is in a cup of that stuff? Home made macaroni and cheese? Did they use whole milk? Velveeta cheese?

    I just estimated high and worked it extra hard to make up the difference. So my answer is that I will log it but I won't let it make me crazy.
  • Kimblesnbits13
    Kimblesnbits13 Posts: 369 Member
    J72FIT wrote: »
    I will not be logging Thanksgiving, nor Christmas for that matter. I have learned through the years that it's not what happens between Thanksgiving and Christmas that makes a difference. It's what happens between Christmas and Thanksgiving...

    Oh i've done a tooooon of damage that 1 month between thanksgiving and christmas! (But I have a history of binge eating so that explains it) I'm much better these days.
  • LB30
    LB30 Posts: 109 Member
    I will log. But, I'm not going away for the holiday this year, so that will be much easier and will make more sense. If I really want something, I'll have it, but I will log. Next year, when I do go to see extended family, no guarantees. :)
This discussion has been closed.