Well... after a frustrating day yesterday, it was met with yet another today.

It was my company Christmas party.

I had a breakfast bar, a lean cuisine...

and then the party

I had 1 mixed drink, 2 stuffed mushrooms (stuffed with spinach), grilled trout, and a baked potato, 1 roll, and a small piece of cheesecake I only ate the cheese part not the crust .. but still! .. .and 2 cups of russian tea with cream.

I came home and did a exercise video... but not the same as going to the gym.

I can't wait to get back on track tomorrow... I hate feeling like I'm failing

Just thought I'd share

Hey...you didn't do bad at all! I didn't even go anywhere except the crummy mall and I ate 700 calories work of Mrs. Field's cookies! And I hated myself for the customary ten minutes and decided to get back on the horse...at least you came home and did some exercise...I didn't even do that! I'm a mess! But I'll get right back on horse tomorrow and you will too! You got this!

Thanks

I just got home from the only big Christmas party we attend.

Yeah, I ate too much, had a couple of drinks too. Had a good time. It's only one party. I enjoyed it. Won 25 bucks too! Back on track in the morning.

Hang in there ladies! Hate to sound cliche' but it really is a journey. Everybody is still on it, so all is good!

That's another reason I don't care for *cheat* days, because getting back on track is so difficult. It's much easier to continue to stay on plan, then to veer off and have to "get back on".

And I can't wait to hear that you have! And you will.

Make certain of it. Plan out your day ahead of time. Plan the heck out of it. Every bite, lick, taste and crumb. Stick to it like glue. Don't give yourself permission to veer off. Don't give yourself permission to veer off. Don't give yourself permission to veer off.

It's definitely not the end of the world, or the end of your journey toward a smaller healthier you.

And you've inspired me to prepare well for my holiday office party, which begins with a "cookie mingle" where we all bring in plates of goodies to share, and ends with lunch at a fancy pants restaurant. My husband and I will bring in South Beach appropriate cookies (hah!), eat something brought by someone else if they worked to make it SB appropriate (since my entire office knows how I'm losing weight), and enjoy my absolute favorite steak salad at lunch (no bread for me).

I'll make sure I've "filled up" with water before the mingle begins, and focus on enjoying the time with officemates, rather than time with my tummy.

Whew.

Not even close to failure.

I know that some people do not have "cheat" days, because it is hard for them to get on track again. For me it is the opposite. I like things like Christmas parties, and Thanksgiving Parties etc. It is the part of life that makes life fun and fantastic, and in my world, good food, good friends and good drink is what it is all about. So, once in a while life happens.

The difference now, is that The holiday meals are one day, not three months of indulgence, Parties are one block of time in a day, not the entire day, and I set up those time limits from the get go. If we have a party, wedding, event etc. Then I make good choices the rest of the day, and if it happens to work out that I make good choices at the event that is good too.

I personally think that sometimes we work our selves up into this panicy frenzy about events that happen. We dread these social situations that are part of everyday life and we build them up SO big, that it almost sets us up to feel like we are failing.

You did great! Hardly a blip on the radar of the scale I am sure. Now it is over, move on the Christmas party was a few hours in a journey. Just get up tomorrow and make the best choices you can and have a few more glasses of water.

Good luck!

This is where calorie counting comes in handy - your breakfast and lunch probably totaled around 400 calories, say your target is 1600 per day, that left you 1200 for dinner. Then you count up what you ate and you might find that you only went over by a couple of hundred. Or if you are planning in advance then you know you can have 1 mixed drink, the fish, veggies, a roll maybe and a small piece of pie. No stress, no guilt.

Also, if breakfast had been something nutritious like oatmeal with a little almond butter and raisins, and your lunch had been a wrap filled with hummus or chicken and lots of veggies and then maybe and apple or orange for dessert and a hard boiled egg before the party, you wouldn't have gone in there starving with your body craving food.

The OP had a cheat day PRIOR to the xmas party, I'm not sure if you are aware of that. And I don't believe the xmas party was a planned splurge. So clearly, the OP does have a difficult time getting back on track. As do many of us, but certainly not all.

I agree that Christmas parties, Thanksgiving etc are definitely parts of life that makes life fun, fantastic, special and something to look forward to.
Being with people, socializing during holidays is very enjoyable and a very satisfying part of life. Luckily during the course of the year there are dozens and dozens of times for such opportunities. Between all the holidays, birthdays, weddings, anniversary's, barbecues, and social events that come up practically non-stop.

But the year I was losing, if I were to overindulge in each and every one of those special times, I would have never, ever have lost the weight. Never. Ever. I would still be at least obese (if not super morbidly obese) or most likely - dead. Yup, dead.

Sharing good times with people does not have to involve overfeeding myself and taking in too many calories.

Life happens. Yes, that's what I was counting on!! I was fearful for my life and I wanted that life to keep on and continue to happen. And I did the best that I could to ensure that by keeping my calories in check, regardless of the situation. It came to be that I finally valued my health,my life and that quality of life more than my tastebuds.

And man oh man did I have a good time! It felt great to be in control and not have the aftermath of "why oh why did I eat that - and that - and that?"

We all have to do what works for each of us - and what doesn't.

I must say I love your advice and everything you just said speaks so true to everyone here.

Awww, thank you. But not everyone, trust me, not everyone. .

I would like to mention, now that my life is no longer in dangerand I am down to a healthy weight, I do have my splurges. And they are 99% of the time at a social event. But most definitely not at each and every one. We are very fortunate to have many special occasions to share with family and friends and if I were to have a splurge at each and every one, I'd be working my way back up to super morbid obesity again - and real quickly at that. What I do is look my social calender for the month ahead and decide in advance which events I will stay within my calorie allotment and which ONE, I will have a splurge.

Now that I'm slim, trim, fit, healthy, active and have added confidence, self respect, vim and vigor (and an INCREDIBLE smokin' hot wardrobe) I look forward to those social functions more than ever. Food is an afterthought at these events. Not the main purpose of them.

I totally agree with this. You were not a failure and honestly, I think you did very well. It was a small blip and you may have eaten more than planned but it doesn't look horrid to me. I'd say move on and use it as a learning experience for the future.

I agree with Nelie! A perfectionist mentality is sure to get you in trouble. You did pretty well, and you can use this to learn to get better for the future!

I completely agree with this. This is something I had to learn myself. When I used to go on a "diet" I did the freezer meals and I did the bars and all that. I know it's convenient, I know it makes it easier, but that stuff isn't nearly filling enough for what it is, nor is it really all that good for you. AND that is why I could never lose the weight before, I was always hungry and eventually that led to a binge or just giving up. I really think eating less processed stuff and getting more whole food and unprocessed protein will help you a lot. The calories you got out of that meal and bar, would have been so much more filling, so much more bulk and SO much healthier coming from meals like what sea suggested.