This sunday is Easter and i wont lie, i know that i will be cheating. My family makes too many special foods that we only get once a year for me to totally not eat them at all. My question is during holidays when you know you want to let yourself enjoy them, but not risk your weightloss so far how do you manage? Do you set out a plan of what you will allow yourself to eat before the day..or what? I am actually scared of sunday because i have worked so hard and i do not want to gain the weight i already lost.

Thanks

You have to decide what you want more...to not gain the weight you have lost back or to be able to eat whatever you like, without regard for your plan. You can't have both. The only way to lose weight on holidays is to stay on plan. That doesn't mean you can't taste everything, does it? Just don't go crazy!

For me, I work what I want into my calories/plan. It's worked so far, so why would I change now? My old way of eating is what got me fat.

I know that we each have different ideas of what being successful is around the holidays. For some people gaining only a little bit is successful. For others maintaining is successful. And for others still losing something is successful.

You have to personally decide which successful you'd like to be this coming Sunday.

There are only two holidays a year that I've decided are "special". I feel successful on both of those days if on my weigh-in I have maintained about where I am or only gone up a tiny bit. Thanksgiving & Christmas Eve. That's it. Every other holiday is not worth me overloading on extra sweets & treats & whatnot.

When I do "let go" on those evenings, I still have a few rules that I follow. For example, I'm allowed to have a serving of everything that I want at Thanksgiving, but I'm not allowed to eat things that I don't like and would have only taken originally because they were there. (Turkey? Meh. So I don't eat it.) Christmas Eve is more open ended eating-wise, but I still have to drink enough water, eat enough vegetables, get in my exercise etc. If I do all that, I find that even though I may be going over my points, that I don't go over as much as I would have without following those rules.

I think the biggest key is planning ahead of time. What is acceptable to you? And what is not? Is there a certain sweet/sweets that you look forward to every year at Easter? Then plan to have some of that. Is it just a meatloaf that your family makes every Sunday? Then skip over it today.

Remember this....Failing to plan is planning to fail. So your best defence is a good plan!!!

It all comes down to calories in calories out.

So here is what I do...

Kick up the work out routine a couple notches add an extra 30 minutes on the treadmill 3 or 4 days.

Drink lots of water, more than usual.

Take a good look at some of the family favorite recipes and see if you can make them healthier. Substitue low fat or fat free dairy products, reduce the sugar to half the amount (most recipes you won't be able to tell the difference.) Also look over the family favorites, try to calculate approx calories in a serving. This will give you an idea of where you are at calorie wise.

Bring an emormous veggie platter with some humus or a low cal dip (I dip raw veggies in salsa or salsa with a small amount of fat free sourcream mixed in.)

Eat slowly!!!

If you decide to have some ewww gooey dessert make sure it is a small portion. Savor each bite, use all your sense to eat it. Then be done!! DO NOT tell yourself just because you had a piece of dessert the whole day is shot and eat whatever you want.

Have a plan and stick to the plan. The key is to enjoy the time with family, feel satisfied and not leave feeling guilty for the choices you made.

A plan definitely helps--and it doesn't have to be a tight, formal plan with every ounce in place, but just some idea that you can follow once you get to dinner.

For example, you could plan portion and serving control: Decide what your favorite foods are, go to a calorie site and look up what a "serving" of the food is and how many calories are in it. Then, use this information to plan what you'll be eating at Easter dinner. For example, you could restrict yourself to a large slice (or 6 oz.) of ham, a small scoop of scalloped potatoes, some salad with the amount based on how much dressing and what kind is on it. You could skip the dinner roll, and have a small sliver of pie. PERIOD. No seconds, no mindless eating. Skip the appetizers, or portion them accordingly. If alcohol is involved, set a limit on the number of drinks you have. Two is plenty for most people.

See what I mean? These are just sample foods--you can look up your own.

And, keep in mind that one day of eating over your calories is not going to make you permanently gain back all your weight lost, although the next morning your weigh in won't be fun due to water retention...

Jay

I always make sure I get my meat in first and then follow by just 1-2 tablespoons of everything. Notice I didn't say serving spoons. Some spoons can hold a half cup or more of food. I also make sure I eat only one plate of food (not a problem since the gastric bypass) and have only one small piece of my favorite dessert. I used to try them all. This way I get to taste all the comfort foods that are there during the holidays and still know how much I am putting in my mouth.

I agree with all of the above. Make a plan, which should probably be a bit more lenient than your plan on other days so you don't feel like you're cutting out special, once-a-year foods. Pick your favorite things, don't eat things you won't miss. Eat lots of veggies, drink lots of water, and avoid the scale for a few days afterward (off-plan foods tend to be SALTY).

I eat a good breakfast before I go to my holiday meals (they are always at lunch), so I'm not starving when we eat. I eat a little of each thing that I like, but like every other meal, I eat slowly!
I just KNOW I'll be hooking myself up with a Cadbury egg this Easter - my favorite Easter candy!! But instead of eating it in two bites, I'll be savoring the taste!

I totally agree with all the good advice given above. Smart ladies here. All i've got to say is "there is always something that is going to tempt us". We celebrate with food. My advice is not to over indulge, have a small helping of the food you really like. Remembe, it's not the last time you will ever see this stuff. It'll be there next year when you've lost the weight. Don't let Holidays get you off your plan. Honestly, we can always come up with an excuse to eat. Don't use this as an excuse.

My family also makes special foods at certain times of year that we only eat once a year. Here's the way I look at it: Am I really going to spend the rest of my life not enjoying these family traditions? Of course not.

One day of eating "badly" (and I use the word losely) will not kill all the progress you've made. And it won't take you off track unless you let it. So allow yourself to relax a little on *special* days. As others have said, make a plan - but don't beat yourself up if you don't stick to it 100%.

Have sensible portions of your favorites on Easter with your family, and then wake up the next morning and get right back into your regular eating plan.

Remember that this is the rest of your life - you have to be able to accomodate these things every year. Otherwise you'll psych yourself out with the idea that you can never celebrate Easter with your family again because of food. And the whole point of learning to eat healthily and maintain a healthy weight is to learn that we're not controlled by food - we control it.

.

I used to be able to justify overeating in almost any scenario - friend got a promotion at work - let's go out for nachos and magaritas! I had a tough day at work, I need a container of Godiva dark chocolate ice cream. Heck, it's ARBOR day - I should have something special!

Figuring out what REALLY deserves celebrating and what is just social or excuse eating was a big deal for me. My own birthday - yes. Christmas dinner with my family - yes. A baby shower at work for a coworker I don't really know? I'm skipping the cake/ice cream.

Easter dinner with your family sounds like a true holiday worth celebrating and let's not kid ourselves - in our culture, celebration is FOOD.

My advice - celebrate the MEAL not the day.

* Fill up your plate with healthy food, take small servings/bites of everything delicious you love (if you're just so so with Aunt Mary's home made potato salad - SKIP IT).

* Not sure about your family, but if there is booze, limit your intake, it can make it tough to make good food choices!

* Do NOT agree to take anything home with you. If they insist, pitch it before you get home. You do not need to go home with an entire platter of twice baked potatoes. This is very important - you need to get right back on track!

* Listen to your body, if you get really stuffed - stop eating!

* Bring something yummy that you can eat without worrying about. A beautiful salad with healthy olive oil and lemon dressing (a dark kale with wild rice and yellow peppers makes a lovely salad), a layered dessert with fruit, whipped cream, chopped angelfood cake,etc. Whole wheat rolls, a veggie with healthy dip appetizer tray, there are tons of choices and most hostesses are really appreciative!

Don't be scared - I always tell myself one meal did not make me a heavy person. I indulged on Christmas day during my weight loss and still lost 2 lbs that week. Now that I'm maintaining, I have a lovely meal once a week (with wine, dessert, sometimes bread out of the basket!) and have no problems maintaining my weight loss.

I always plan for holidays & special occasions. I plan to eat whatever I want on that special day. Thanksgiving is the biggest for me, because I LOVE PUMPKIN PIE! - and I never eat it during the entire rest of the year... only on Thanksgiving! - but I also know that "one day" ain't gonna make or break me.

With that in mind, I also don't normally deprive myself of anything that I truly want. I don't believe in deprivation, I believe in portion sizing & caloric intake. I believe depriving myself leads me to binge & fail. At least, that's been my experience. And I'd rather have a little heaven than a lot of ****.

DITTO - - - 100%

Pssst BP -- I see your ticker is dropping -- WTG!!

This is all WONDERFUL advice...my personal realization has been - don't deprive myself!!!! Last night (okay several nights this week!) I have been eating a handful of sour apple-o candies, or a cup of lowfat icecream with gummy bears. Not the most healthy choices, I know...but they've all been within my calorie limit for the day. And it makes this whole change so much less scary for me!!!

On Sunday, I plan to snack on raw veggies and water while the meal is prepared....then I will eat one plate of food...skipping anything I can stand to go without. If I feel full, I will stop, but if I am enjoying what I am putting in my mouth (and not just eating to eat) I will finish every bite. Of just that one plate. So that's my plan...but whatever actually ends up happening, I will know that I ate at least a few less calories than in previous years just by being AWARE! And I'll get right back on track on Monday.

Good luck...and try not to be scared! Easter is about so much more than the food

I feel a lot better after reading all of the advice. I do plan on enjoying myself but i also agree with all of you that i should try to plan ahead. I fully intend on sticking to the advice that a lot of you ladies gave me about eating the things i reallyyy have to have in moderation and the rest that im not crazy about..just not indulging in at all. As someone said...one meal did not make me this way so it will not ruin me. I tend to get all crazy and feel like its the end of the world if i "blow my diet" but like someone told me...of course im not going to never eat these foods again so i need to learn how to treat myself on these days but not go overboard.

I really appreciate all of the answers! thank you sooo much