So I'm a college student and about to go home for the summer. My mom is super excited.She told me she alreayd went grocery shopping and bought all of the ingredients for a week of my favorite meals. A week of really bad for you but delicious food. I am going to eat it and enjoy it but I will just have to make sure I work my butt off excersing too. I might gain a pound or two, but I will be ok. It's only one week.

Any advice?

From your response it seems like you've already made your decision - that you're going to take consequences (unhealthy food and weight gain) of the trip, without fighting it. One of the biggest challenges with weight loss is going out of your comfort zone - things are fine when you prepare your own food and are in your own home, but when you have to go somewhere else and rely on someone else, things get much more difficult. The good news is, it's not impossible!

It definitely depends on what your favorite meals are. If you're serious about changing your lifestyle, though, you should tell your Mom and family, and see if you can take the meals you love and make them more nutritious - add vegetables, or use healthier substitutes. Working out will help too, but if you are on a diet plan, don't give up on it just because it'll be convenient and delicious. Losing weight is not easy, and if you keep on doing what you've always done, you'll always get where you've always gotten.

Good luck with your trip - enjoy seeing your family!

Wow. And I can't wait until my DD comes home from college so I can have her eat a few better balanced meals! I warned her of the freshman 15 and she no doubt ignored me. She said on her last visit that she needs to lose weight. But I won't be pushing "diet" down her throat. I just won't be buying the crap she's been subsisting on! More salads, more veggies, more fruit and less chips and pasta.

There's really only so much exercising can do in order to combat an entire weeks worth of high calorie foods. Unless perhaps you plan on running marathons all day.

Can you maybe talk to your Mom? Tell her how much you appreciate the sentiment, but you are really trying to get to a healthier place. Maybe she could trim the recipes, make them healthier. Or just make maybe one of your favorites. Also tell her that you're trying to find NEW favorites. Lower calorie and healthy ones. Just as delicious mind you - but healthy all the same.

I, too, thought when I read your post that you have already made your decision. But perhaps there is still time to tweak it a little bit. Talk to Mom and tell her that you want to lose some weight. Try to "healthify" the meals - more protein, substitute simple carbs with complex ones (e.g. if potatoes have a sweet potato instead of reg. one; if pasta make sure it's whole wheat, etc), add lots of veggies and fruit (Can you have salad with each meal so that you eat less of the oh-so-tempting food) and control your portions.
You can do it!

Honestly, why don't you take half a portion of each of your "favorite bad foods" and have several healthy side dishes (i.e. veggies, fruit, etc) at each/every meal?

That way, you can still enjoy your meals with your family, not slight anyone's feelings, and also not have to worry too much about gaining in the one week you're at home

~ tea

Yes, I agree that portion control will be a key part of it! You know what foods aren't the best--eat less of those, or skip them completely if they're not worth it. Another strategy: if your mom is in the habit of buttering vegetables or other foods before they get to the table, or putting gravy on things, you could ask her to save you some on the side without butter or gravy so you can add your own. But if it's a food like garlic bread that's heated with butter on it, you'll just have to limit yourself.

I wouldn't splash cold water all over your mom's excitement that you're coming home--metaphorically speaking. But you could always mention that you've been trying to eat healthier, if the topic of food comes up.

Good luck! Enjoy the foods you choose to eat!

Jay

If your mom is an awesome cook, then tell her you are trying to eat healthy...surely if she's a good cook she could make some awesome tasting "lite" meals that will get you started on your weight loss. (according to your ticker you just started and are already finding an excuse to quit!)

My advice is to take advantage of a personal chef for a week and get your groove on to get some weight off.

I agree with the others that said talk to Mom. I imagine that she will be glad to work with you to help lighten up the meals.

Yeah. Most of what she is making is going to be okay, theres about two meals I am a little worried about. Taco night, and Pasta night. Pasta night is going to be hard because we are very Italian and the sauce she makes she only makes over special occassions and it's a family recipie from Italy. The tacos, I can make it better by putting less to next to no beef and beans and loading it up with lettuce and tomatoes and no sour cream, and I will opt for a soft shell over a fried shell. The other meal is baked chicken with stuffing which be okay if I go without the stuffing and bisquits. Usually she makes vegtables with every meal anyways.

I am going to be home for 3 months, but it will be up to me to eat what I want. I'm just wored about that first week of dinners.

It's not that I have made up my mind to ruin this new healthy food kick I am on. It's the opposite I am already looking for ways to eat around it. I'm not going to eat crappy food then just get on a kick of eating ice cream and ho hos all day because I already ate something not as good, no way!
I haven't weighted myself but I already feel like I have lost some. I can see it.

My mom is very understanding and she will understand. Thanks though guys! Don't worry, this isn't going to be the end of it for me.