Surviving Thanksgiving

Short answer: Don't worry about it.

Unnecessarily long answer:

1 - A single day isn't going to break you IF you have the motivation to get back on track.
--If you don't then stay away from the temptation as much as you can.

2 - You aren't going to gain back anything in the long term if you get right back on track the next day.
--If you are one of the OCD types that weigh in after every trip to the bathroom you WILL see an increase due to the amount of food and the SODIUM (which makes it all mega-tasty).

3 -Only you can prevent a disaster.
--You know your trigger foods and level of willpower. If you turn into a ravenous beast after one bite of mashed potatoes then don't eat any thus limiting the chance of a 'mashed potato relapse'.

What I'm going to do:

We have dinner at my baby-mama's parents' house every year. There is going to be so much that's not congruent with my paleo lifestyle up for the taking. I'm going to eat the stuff that I really, really want and pass on the stuff that isn't that big of a deal to me (SWEET sweet potatoes). I'm probably going to tear up the stuffing and make the mashed potatoes beg for mercy and put a hurtin' on the green bean casserole. One thing that I know I won't be having is bread. I can pass on bread, it's never been my bag baby.

If you are hell-bent on keeping to your diet then:
A - count calories and stop when you run out of numbers.
B - eat the stuff that is less 'bad' for you. Nom on the white turkey, maybe have some sweet potatoes that DON'T have brown sugar, butter and marshmallows (yuk) and green beans or a salad. If there isn't going to be anything prepared that is 'safe' to eat for you then make it yourself - no one, NO ONE that I know has ever complained because I brought some more food.

Bottom line:
It's Thanksgiving. Enjoy yourself and your family and stop stressing... there's plenty of time for that at Christmas.

We are having Thanksgiving with two sides of the family this year, and one happened already on Saturday. The things I learned from that:

1. Try to workout in the morning before you go to dinner. I always thought it was crazy when I saw those people jogging the day of Thanksgiving, but this year, I did it myself. It made me fell more comfortable to have those additional calories.
2. Indulge a little -- not a lot. It was totally fine for me to have a piece of Almond Roca. Did I really need three?
3. Don't eat what you don't want. I love homemade pumpkin pie, but I'm not a fan of Costco's. Why waste calories on something that wasn't really that great?
4. Log your food. It's pretty eye opening. When I go "over" on a particular day, I try to think about what I ate and what I can do better the next time. ("I would have been right on my calories if I didn't eat X.")

I know this is going to be a really tough time of year for me. I want to make sure that all the work I've done for the past 6 months doesn't get blown away in one holiday season. I'm hoping that "Lose weight" doesn't have to be one of my new years resolutions this year! :drinker:

I have not read all the other comments but to me, it is one day- I plan on working out and I want to enjoy my family, friends, food, and wine. I will not be counting calories that day.

Word.

Maybe I should have said "surviving" on my post rather than coping. Oh vey did I get flack for my phrase! In my case I'd watch it. I think one day CAN make a difference. I have trouble getting and staying motivated.

What I did on Thanksgiving meal #1 was filled my plate once with the things I absolutely loved. I exercised and I ate light for my evening meal. I didn't feel stuffed and miserable and I did and do feel in control.

Last year I found using a smaller plate helped me. Everyone had these huge plates stacked full of stuff and I had just a small saucer. I used a teaspoon to serve myself and ate what I wanted...as long as it fit on my plate and I only got one scoop from the teaspoon. I ate at two houses and was over but not as bad as it could have been! Last year I took a break from working out for Thanksgiving, wont be doing that this year a workout it a must. Good luck!!

I would suggest also, out of personal experience, pick your favorite food item(s) ahead of time. Get them in your head. Then make sure you eat those and try to skip the ones you don't LOVE. Why waste your time on the items that you may have any other time of the year. You want to enjoy your food and not binge later because you felt like you missed out or like me, get obsessed with the one or two items.

I also let balance food diet go out the window because some of the food items there, I don't see but twice a year. I LOVE our families rice dressing, the turkey and the corn casserole. Then I love the pumpkin pie the most. So I make sure I get a healthy portion of those items and maybe a little of all the others so as not to hurt anyone's feelings. I EAT the top items on my list then leave the rest and lean back like everyone else and say how full I am.

Enjoy!!