Hey guys! So I was having an honest heart to heart with my husband and I asked him to honestly tell me how I am physically perceived by other people (because I think my self-perception is skewed). He said that I definitely look chubby now, but at 158 lbs I really start to loose the "chubby look." So I looked at my calendar and saw that the Jewish New Year is in 5 weeks, and 1.5 weeks later is the Jewish holiday of Sukkot. This equation makes for double trouble. There will be lots of friends, family and eating. So in preparation for this I have decided to create an ambitious goal for myself and try to lose 2 lbs a week to reach 158 by the holidays.

Let me explain why I am so adamant about creating such an ambitious goal....
1. I am going to see all my friends and family on both my husbands and my side of the family

2. Orthodox Jews believe that over these holidays we cannot use electronics or money which means no driving, TV, music or shopping to take my mind off of eating. Just tons and tons of free time confined to the house with lots of amazing food and family that, let's face it, can drive me pretty crazy.

3. Every synagogue and community has a different attitude but in the synagogue I go to the women tend to get pretty dressy for the holidays. That means there is a lot of pressure to look nice. Also, on these holidays there are long prayer services every day. Being in dressy confining clothing while feeling fat for extended periods of time is the most uncomfortable thing I can imagine.

This has the potential to be a recipe for disaster. I'm not going to freak if I don't reach my goal but I feel very strongly about coming close.

ADL ~ I'm not Jewish, but I hope you won't mind if I comment anyways -- we have the same pressures at family or religious holidays in the Christian community too; and yes, much pressure about what we weigh and how we look, although I believe that GOD loves us all the way we are.

You know, darker colored clothes look more slimming and can make you appear like you have lost another 10 lbs too. I think that you could probably lose those 10 lbs or more by your holidays, and if you chose the right clothing, you could look 20 lbs slimmer. The most slimming colors are black & navy, but burgundy, dark green, and dark brown come in a close second. Black and navy are classic colors anyways, and I have noticed that black slacks are esp slimming. I believe the same goes for skirts & dresses.

I'm not sure what kind of clothes you wear at your celebrations, but classic styles like A-line skirts and dresses are much more comfortable too. You could choose your clothes ahead of time and find the ones that look the best, yet feel comfortable too.

My in-laws are Reform, but I'm pretty familiar with the idea of tons and tons of free time confined with delicious food and crazy-making relatives.

My answer for dealing with this one is lots of long, meandering walks. Long enough that no one wants to come along (except my spouse, who also wants to escape the family) and meandering enough that if anyone decides to follow us, they'd be out of luck. Getting lost is a bonus!

I also tend to wander around with a glass of flavored water (mineral water with lime/lemon/orange dropped in is my first choice, but I'm flexible). A half glass of the worst wine available will do in a pinch. When the urge to put something in my mouth kicks in, I drink some water, or chase my piece of fruit with a straw. When I need to escape "Oh, I need to refill my water!" or "Y'know - this really needs more lime." Someone new always seems to distract me before I make it back.

I have little rituals for long meals with many traditional delicacies I'll have to partake of. I put my fork down between bites and don't pick it up again until I've swallowed. I participate in conversation between bites. Everything that can goes on the plate before I eat it. It's all designed to make me eat more slowly - both so I can feel full, and so we can move on to the next course.

Good luck!

I am also gearing up the the yom tovim. And I am deciding on menus that will work for me and for my family. Which means separate foods for me. I love curry and cumin spices b/c they obliterate my sugar/sweet cravings. my DH can not abide with the smell of cumin/curry.
So who's needs are primary?
I will have to cook my foods first, freeze them and then cook for the family. I will re-heat on the blech or plata separately. I can not safely eat hummus so I will buy the breand my family likes rather than make my own.
I hate clothing shopping. There is nothing tzinnus available for my body type.
I sometimes wish we could wear burkas.

2lbs per week is doable. I don't have the same pressure to eat and since I can't touch gluten I end up passing up on most things anyway. I'm thinking I might need to do some shopping too which I also HATE. Ugh.

flourless - I love the walk idea. I already asked everyone in my family to go on big walks with me. Walking plus marathon banana-gram games should do the trick.
lucindaarrowspark - I know this store is a bit pricey but have you tried white house black market? I don't know how tzinnus you dress but they have very well made basic clothing that has lasted me a long time. I agree it is hard to find stylish tzinnus things unless you get really lucky at the mall or shell out a ton of cash on central ave in woodmere (I see you live in NY so maybe you know what area I'm talking about??).

One big thing that keeps me on track is actually keeping Kosher. After eating meat you are supposed to wait a period of time before eating dairy (I wait 3 hours). So to keep me from tempting foods I purposefully eat meat. 2.5 more weeks until the holidays...wish me luck!!! I'll let you guys know how I do.

I fell so far off track with my eating. Now it is hannukah already and I have gained weight since the holidays. I had 2 latkes on Sunday but since Monday I have given up all my trigger foods. i get stressed out reading the newspaper and all the negative press about Israel. And bad news about the goings on in Williamsburg brooklyn that I want to turn to food to dull the anxiety.

lucinda, I can sympathize with the idea of food as comfort but you know what, even though we eat all the comfort food we can find, the situation that causes anxiety remains the same. Why not concentrate on being as healthy and strong as you can be ?