Let's all talk about our Thanksgiving plans. For me, if I mentally walk through the day and anticipate the challenges, I can make a plan to deal with the potential pitfalls.

Thanksgiving will be at my parents' house this year and I'm in charge of baking the pies (pumpkin, pecan, and apple). So that's challenge #1 - baking without nibbling. My plan is to bake the pies the day before, right after I've eaten a meal.

Challenge #2 - too much alcohol. Plan - none for me, otherwise, I lose my willpower over food. I'm not a big drinker anyway, so it's not a big deal.

Challenge #3 - appetizers and munchies. Plan - take veggie tray. Sit far away from the bad stuff. Don't go hungry!

Challenge #4 - too much fattening food. Plan - make sure I eat earlier in the day so that I'm not starving. Eat LOTS of turkey and veggies. I'm not one who does well with small portions (then I want more) so I'm better off avoiding the bad stuff entirely.

Challenge #5 - dessert. The toughest challenge. Here's what's worked for me in the past - telling DH that I'm not having dessert and that I need his help. All he has to do is LOOK at me across the table and say 'do you really want that?' and then I'm OK.

Of course, some people do just fine with Thanksgiving as a free meal or with taking small portions of everything! I know myself and have learned that a free meal knocks me off-track for days, so isn't worth it for me personally. All our strategies are going to be different since we all face our own unique challenges.

Anyone else want to share?

I have a fabulous pumpkin pie recipe I will post--uses silken tofu instead of high fat evaporated milk. This reminds me I was also going to post my "modified" carrot cake and cheesecake recipes.

My strategy this year: we are going to Montreal. No temptation, no family conflict, no stress. My family lives far away, my in-laws are closer but if they go to my brother-in-law's place, that never seems to work very well for us.

My cold is still lingering so I have only exercised once this week. Oh well, it happens. I need the extra rest in order to recover.

Take care.

My strategy is that I'm in control of the meal, and aside from my husband and kids, only my mother and step-father will be here. Due to a combination of food allergeis and being just plain nuts, their diets look even weirder than mine. They don't eat any processed foods, wheat or anythng containing corn syrup, or dairy for my step-father. So just putting together an edible meal may be a challenge!

We will be going heavy on fresh vegetables and salad. Homemade cranberry sauce is a must, and home made apple and pumpkin pies. I'll have a sliver of each, and maybe a spoonful of stuffing (that''s where I'll get into trouble if there's trouble to be had). Then my biggest temptation willbe to not eat all the turkey skin and dark meat. Mmmmmmm..... Love it!

I think it's going to be a mini-free meal for me. But I'm going to be doing so much housecleaning and getting ready, that it shouldn't set me back too much!

Oh- ONE glass of red wine! I will make sure Dh and Dd remove my glass and refill it with water! Dd is 22, she's be quite happy to have my second glass



Mel

a little different this year. i will be spending it have a GIRLS MOVIE DAY with one of my closest friends... and perhaps a diner for dinner... yipppEEEEEEEE

For us Thanksgiving is a nice comfy relaxed day at home. I generally bake just a turkey and veggies. We eat very few desserts, and I don't think I'll be buying or making any this year. It's never been a big day for me. I feel like a wet blanket here.

But for us it's a more personal holiday- I spend extra money on food to donate to the shelters for their meals and food baskets prior to the holiday, and then we enjoy a nice meal and eat turkey left-overs for a week or so. Hee,hee.

I do plan on making some small baked potatoes, and using some of that tub margarine without the trans fat. I also like bare naked cold baked potatoes as a snack.

I also plan to keep up on my fitness walking program this holiday season.

Allie

I have used this strategy successfully for the past few years at any meal involving roast turkey, Thanksgiving and/or Christmas. Its my favorite meal of the year and my goal is to enjoy the meal totally, but not overeat. I am not looking for a calorie deficit, just a draw.

The real prize of the meal for me is the turkey and trimmin's. So I totally, absolutely totally, avoid all appetizers. They just dull my hunger which I want to use on the bird. I will drink one glass of wine however.

For the meal, I have pre-selected the items I will eat. Its always the same. Turkey thigh meat without skin, mashed potatoes, stuffing (if its good bread stuffing), and gravy. One average serving of each. And maybe green salad if the greens are appealing and fresh. Then I absolutely slowly savor the entire plate of food. No bread, no butter, no cranberries, no veggies, no ravioli, no sweet potato, nothing else but the 'big 4'. I have come to really not like the feeling of being full (as opposed to satisfied), so seconds are out.

There is usually dessert, pumpkin pie. This I play by ear, but I wont eat it then no matter what. If it looks good and I want a piece, I will ask to take a piece home for later or the next day. I have been known to toss it in the trash on the way home but not always.

Not necessarily only at the holidays, one thing I dont like is a hostess pushing a dessert onto me when I dont want it. I have found saying, thank you, but I am full now, and asking to take a piece for later, then ditching it on the way home works. Some may find this offensive because of wasting food, but the hostess is satisfied that I want some of her delicacy, and I am satisfied because I didnt want to eat it in the first place. And it gets her off my back about eating the dessert. This only works reliably if you toss it along the way (in a trash bin) before you get home.

Jan

Last night I went to a party for the girls. It was a last minute gathering for an out of town old friend. It was mostly appetizers at were good. If there is a meal following, I can avoid appetizers, but when they are the meal, its more difficult. I need to find a default eating strategy for this sort of circumstance. I'm going to be in another one tomorrow afternoon too.

I was aware I didnt want to eat too much, but I was vulnerable none the less and ate more than I would have liked. I did eat slowly, and allowed much time to pass between having the tidbits, but you know how it can go. Perhaps because I was aware from the beginning that I was in jeopardy of eating too much, it seemed worse than it was. I still want to develop a better party strategy so there is something for me to follow.

There was alcohol, I dont drink that much, and I dont want to give that up. I suppose I could limit myself to a half glass of wine.

I was very pleased that this morning the scale, which I expected to bite me in the posterior, did not. Up only a quarter pound. Big surprise esp since things were salty. And I was pleased to note I was physically hungry upon waking which does not happen if I have eaten too much the night before.

Anyone have any ideas?

Thanks, Jan

I always try to start the day with a decent breakfast and some exercise, lately a 5K Turkey Trot of some sort, to put things in perspective. This year it's just DH and I, so we'll stick with grilled chicken, plain green beans, salad, probably some stove top stuffing made with very little butter, and he'll eat jellied cranberry sauce straight from the can--ick. I will make some dessert out of canned pumpkin, ff sf vanilla yogurt, artificial sweetner and pumpkin pie spice--very nice.

For a more traditional Thanksgiving in my family, eating begins about noon with the appetizers, and ends about 4, with dessert following around 6 or 7. I usually try to stick with the veggie tray for an appetizer, mostly skinless turkey, big salad and veggie portions, and very small tastes of mashed potatoes and stuffing. Maybe a dinner roll if they are good--no butter. I will usually have a reasonably sized piece of pumpkin pie, a couple hours after dinner, with no whipped cream of any sort. I try to avoid nuts and cookies, since I don't know when to stop after I get started, and any alcohol tends to weaken my resolve.

The same basic strategy works at Christmas, except that it is harder to get the morning exercise with presents and family breakfast, and there are many many more cookies, both in variety and quantity. But that's another holiday.

I will also try to drag family out for a walk after dinner if the weather cooperates, usually a couple hours later when their 'misery' has passed. They feel better too.

What I do in a circumstance like that and it's not too last minute is eat a meal before leaving the house... then I am not hungry at all or nibble very little... Limiting myself to only a half glass of wine is not possible for me, I wine too much for that... I drink the whole glass or nothing at all......

If I go out for a meal I order the lightest thing on the menu, if its at a friends I normally wear tight clothes which means that I wont eat as much and then I only have a glass or so of wine. Watering it down with diet tonic water, soda or lemonade is always good. I also sometimes take fruit with me if I know there is going to be a really elaborate desert and have that instead. Take something unusual and enough so everyone can have a try.

Hey you guys - interesting topic...holiday/party eating strategies! (BTW since they're VERY closely related, I took the liberty of merging Meg's and Jansan's strategy threads).

My strategy? Well...a lot of it has to do with Jim's and my personal lifestyle. We live in a small apt, and don't entertain - I leave that to my SISTER, who lives within 'spittin' distance' down the block and LOVES to entertain, thank God. She knows I don't really cook either, so I'm generally relegated to bring something from Draeger's, like a pie or rolls or some fresh veggies or whatever. Our family holiday meals are always the same and unchangable - any time there's been an attempt to alter the menu, mutiny has been threatened.

Since I can't handle the two-day migraines that follow drinking, and I don't really have a taste for vino (to the disappointment of my dad, who LOVES a good wine - they DID move to Napa Valley after all - I'd rather have me a good WHINE!) alcohol is not really a problem for me. I allow myself a few appetizers, although sister generally doesn't set out anything more than nuts prior to T-Giving dinner. What has worked for me is taking one helping of dinner and eating it slowly. Generally, I don't have room for dessert -- maybe a bite or two of pie, but usually not. And as far as leftovers - we just take home a few, mostly stuff like white meat turkey.

Oh and YUP - my gym is open on Thanksgiving morning, and as always, this gal will be there

As far as parties go - we will probably go to a couple this season, not enough to really make a dent. I've pretty much stopped all holiday baking - I used to bake DOZENS of cookies and breads and stuff, but ultimately too many of them ended up down my esophagus, and no one NEEDS them. (I might make Jim a cranberry bread, but then again there's SO much of that stuff at our work anyway, it's not like he's going to be deprived!)

Bottom line - as the Megster said, it's really all about PLANNING! Enjoy the holidays but realize it's not ALL about eating.

Hubby's little sis is coming and the two of them love to prepare the big dinner together. Since they manage to use tons of butter on everything, I've decided to try two new recipes that are a bit healthier and include them on the menu. Then, I can take turkey, veggies and sample my own lighter dishes. I do better if I just skip the really fattening stuff. I can't just take a little.

As far as dessert goes, I'm going to make as many sneaky substitutions as I can when I make the pies. No one ever has any idea that they are eating less sugar, fat, calories, etc.

My plan is to begin and end the day with a walk around the neighborhood or get in a good workout at the gym.

Today I went to another gathering with only lots of appetizers served. My over-arching plan going in is to participate in the event, yet to not overeat. I want to eat the food served in the spirit in which it is intended, and enjoy it like everyone else, but to also stay within the bounds of moderation. I do not necessarily want to have a negative calorie day, but mainly not a plus one.

So I tried something new today. I decided to allow myself between 5 and 10 appetizers tidbits. (this was dinner) I did not know what this would look like on the plate, or how it would work in my head. I did think it might make me choose more carefully, and also give me a specific number rather than just choosing things that appealed and ending up with too much. I had a plan for a change.

It was kinda fun going down the line picking and choosing and avoiding. I felt as if I had a food credit account with only so much I could charge. I chose more carefully than usual. At the end of the line approaching the dessert section, I had chosen 6 small items on the 5 inch plate. There were 4 dessert types just ahead, and I promptly forgot my plan and wanted to take one of each..... Argh!. But like a fog suddenly clearing, I fortuitously saw the light and chose only one item, a lemon square. So that was 7 total items. I ate them slowly and with relish outdoors while overlooking the sunset over the pacific ocean. Very pretty evening here. I did go back for 3 pieces of lean rolled smoked salmon that was especially good. So in all that was my ten items, It was not too much, nor too little. It was a goldielocks amount - just right.

I am very pleased how well this strategy worked. I dont know if it will always work, but at least its a plan that prevents me from feeling deprived coupled with some form of structured moderation. Next time I will also be ready with a default dessert plan - just one small item, and only if it looks good.

Jan

Jan,

Congrats on a great strategy! And what a good idea. I'll have to remember that one.

Anne

I found an article in the Washington Post this morning about maintaining through the holidays. I think that we here have hit on the major ideas already , but thought it worth passing along: http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp...nguage=printer