Is anyone else determined to stick to their diet plan/calorie count this Christmas?
My family is coming in on Saturday and they're all big eaters and big drinkers. They're also really pushy about food ("Try this. Have some of this. Oh, eat this! This is great! Didn't you have any [some food]??"). They're the type to get offended if you turn down food. God forbid I say I'm on a diet, that would not go over well.
I'm implementing a few strategies:
*Always have a non-alcoholic/calorie-free beverage in hand
*Load up on veggies
*If insists I take something, I will and just put it back when no one is around or throw it away
That's a hard one when families don't understand and support your healthy living goals. I would try the truth, explain to them you are trying to live a healthier lifestyle and am reducing the amount of calories/treats you eat and that you wish they would be supportive in helping you.
When people are pushing food on me, I like to use phrases like, "I'll get some in a bit." or "Let me get a drink first." and then never get back to what they were pushing on me. By that time, they've usually forgotten it. If they hand something to me, I'll take it and maybe in a bit set it down somewhere or just don't eat it.
I think if you can get past their initial "take this food from me and I'll be happy" while not actually eating anything, that's serves everyone's purpose.
I know sometimes we should stand up for ourselves and give a flat out no because of our plans, but sometimes that confrontation with certain people is just flat out not worth it to me.
Its easy to not appreciate the little things, like having family that -while obnoxious and insane about a great many things- doesn't bug me about my weight or what I'm eating. Thanks for the reminder.
My advice: Compliment the food, whether you've eaten it or not. In scenarios when people do push food on me, it seems like they are primarily interested in two things: that I am having a good time and that I know how awesome their (insert dish) is.
i tell them that i love their food and often ask about the recipe, since i'm big into cooking myself...even if i havent actually eaten any of their food LOL....i'll carry food around and give it to my kids instead...
however most of the time i end up caving in a little bit and having bits of the food, sometimes i totally cave too...so i'm not always strong and not always willpower but when i do, those are some of my strategies
for me personally ive found that filling up on veggies, or water, or whatever makes no difference because when i eat, i often eat when full anyhow...my signals vs desire to eat are all crossed up in my brain
I absolutely plan to stick with my healthful eating plan through the Christmas season! There is no way I am losing any of the progress I have made.
I am fortunate that no one tries to force food on me... but in the past when people have, I have just calmly said I am content with what I am eating and let them know I am not bothered by THEIR eating all of it in front of me. Usually that solves it... but if not I still will NOT eat just to make other people happy.
One thing my doctor has encouraged me to think is "Do I need this?" When offered something that will get me off track, instead of saying I don't want it (which would be a blatant lie LOL) I say "I don't need any, thank you." Big difference, and it is the truth. I want a LOT of things that I don't NEED.
I'm working too hard to get this weight off and I will stand firm and not be deterred because someone else wants to "force feed" me. I am very blessed because I have the type of friends who will say "good for you!" when they see me pass up the "goodies." But since you don't have that, you are going to need to be even stronger and politely but firmly say NO
I dont have children and I have a very small family that doesn't tend to do anything for the holidays and my man is working up north and won't be around. So all I have to do is worry about drinking too much vodka and jager. I avoid that and I'm good.
I'm going to cheat a little because I want to, and it's a planned cheat. Other than a glass of eggnog, I will be drinking only water and I will eat before I go so that I'm limited to bites of everything.
I'm fortunate in that I'm cooking for my side, so there won't be any pushers at that event. With my inlaws? Try a little of everything and refuse seconds. Then everyone is happy. I know my MIL is working hard to make sure everything is friendly to our diet, so I don't foresee many issues.
In my country Xmas means always at least 3 days of really severe overeating, that's the time of the year when we surpass the US meaning of "lot of food". For me it was 3 days of feasting, eating everything from meats to cakes. Now I see I gained about 3-4 lbs, having a fridge full of leftovers, and I will probably gain a bit more, and then loose it again
In my country Xmas means always at least 3 days of really severe overeating, that's the time of the year when we surpass the US meaning of "lot of food". For me it was 3 days of feasting, eating everything from meats to cakes. Now I see I gained about 3-4 lbs, having a fridge full of leftovers, and I will probably gain a bit more, and then loose it again
It's similar in my family. It was 3 days of excess. On Christmas eve, the family cooked a massive roast. On Christmas day they cooked a goose. We're not even a huge family and we had sosososo much food, it was insane.
Last edited by CabernetKitty; 12-27-2012 at 11:06 AM.
Avoiding Excess Calories this X-Mas?
