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Willa
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| Posted: Dec 16 2010 at 1:42pm | IP Logged
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Last spring I lost twenty pounds. Traditionally, I lose in the spring and then gain almost all of it back between Thanksgiving and the beginning of Lent. I want to break the cycle this year!
Is anyone else in this boat?
Anyone else have goals for healthy eating while still enjoying the holiday season?
If so, please use this thread to share resources, encouragement, updates (on here, or links to your blog) and so on, so we can support each other.
Or if you are still in the middle of your weight-loss journey and don't want to lose your momentum during this season, please also join in.
I will try to bump up the topic every now and then if there is interest 
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Willa
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VanessaVH
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Well, I am not actually trying to lose weight, just to maintain because I started this pregnancy 25 lbs overweight from the miscarriage (still don't understand why my body kept gaining even after the D&C.....) And the nurse at the Drs office said I should gain 15-20 lbs this time.  I highly doubt that will happen, as with the others I gained 80, 60 and 50. I am going to try really hard to make it less than 30 though. As of 15 weeks I have gained about 6 or 7 lbs.
So I would really appreciate the accountability on not overindulging in Christmas goodies and to keep up my exercise!
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JodieLyn
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Oh I've got a good way.. but I don't recommend it.. have a tooth ache so that even tempting treats aren't very tempting  
Some of the best advice I've seen is to find ways to endulge without overdoing it.
Eat healthy before going out to a party with high calorie snacky foods.. be picky.. only eat what you really want.. don't eat just to be eating.
Drink water. I find it helps greatly to drink a glass of water before having any other indulgent drink.. then I'm not thirsty and gulping down a soda just to feel like I'm quenching thirst (when I'm not really doing so).. drinking water first my special drink lasts longer and I enjoy it more.
Get exercise.. not only are there all sorts of treats abounding but time to get any regular exercise is eaten up in all the extras too. Try and maintain your regular activities that include physical activity.. or add some in.. are you getting enough snow for some snow shoeing or nordic skiing? Shoveling snow? chopping wood.. I know that my kids often do those two chores but it's a handy way to get some exercise too and they don't usually mind a break.
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Chris V
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A few simple things (generally) work pretty well for me: probably the most important is to get the day started right - so this means *no* pecan pie for breakfast (no matter how incredibly delicious it is with a hot cup of tea! By eating a good, healthy breakfast, I've set the tone for the day. And along those lines, do not have a moment of overboard indulgence! Easier said than done, I completely understand, but if you're anything like me, then when you've had two cookies, it's much, much, much easier to say "well, why not one more? I've already blown it today!". ... so essentially, if I've had two or three treats that day, I'll have ten and say to myself (ever so quietly and silently) ... I'll "be good" tomorrow. That's the beginning of the rapid downward spiral into the weakness that is *me*.
And lastly, I drink tea. A lot of tea. It seems to me that if I'm drinking tea, I feel as though I am (in a way) eating something. Drinking tea is different than having a glass of water - it's water with oomph - not so blah - not so *empty*.
But with all of this trying-not-to-gain-weight, it *is* ok to treat yourself to a little something. If you don't, then you're cheating yourself out of life's simple pleasures! For what is the holiday's without just a smidge of indulgence? Happy Healthy Feasting!
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Willa
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Chris V wrote:
| But with all of this trying-not-to-gain-weight, it *is* ok to treat yourself to a little something. If you don't, then you're cheating yourself out of life's simple pleasures! For what is the holiday's without just a smidge of indulgence? Happy Healthy Feasting! |
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You are so right! I want to be able to enjoy the good things of the festive season, without over-doing it --- pecan pie and tea for breakfast once in a while sounds like it COULD be fine so long as it doesn't turn (for me) into eating half the pie before lunchtime! Which it probably would for me! So that balance is what I hope to manage!
Thank you all for the ideas shared so far! Keep them coming please!
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Willa
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Grace&Chaos
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It's been 1.5 yrs since the birth of baby #6 and I'm still about 15 pounds over from where I started. Right before thanksgiving I told myself I had to at least try to maintain and/or improve my waistline during this holiday season.
So I started reading Bob Greene's The Best Life Diet. I've only read through his phase one (which he recommends you stay on for at least a month) and so far I'd say I'm doing things that of course can be common sense to some but to those of us whom prefer comfort it's not that simple.
His suggestions are to:
** increase your level of activity, so instead of lazily doing one or two Leslie Sanson walk sessions I've been doing at least five a week.
** I've stopped eating anything two hours before going to bed (in a previous thread we talked about watching a video with dh and endulging on a treat after the kids are down, sigh  , no treats for me ).
** I've stopped drinking soda and increased my water, tea (hot/cold) intake.
**A big one that I've had trouble with for a long time is HAVING BREAKFAST, slowly I'm having a bowl of yogurt with granola or some sort of fiber cereal with a cup of coffee and some fruit.
**Eliminate six problem foods from your diet, I stopped buying drive thru take out for myself and I've only had on Starbucks drink since I started. I'm pretty sure that just those two things make up six bad foods.
**He also suggests taking in some daily supplements (I haven't done this one yet).
I haven't weighed myself since I started this (he suggests you don't look at the scale until the four weeks are up) but I have noticed a tremendous surge of energy and my cloths are fitting differently  . We'll see where this leads.
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Betsy
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I have a two way to help feel fuller before you eat, which will in turn help you eat less.
The first is to take 2 tablespoons of good quality Coconut Oil about 20 mins. before you eat. (I added it to a cup of tea or coffee)
The second is in the same vain, take 1-1.5 oz (2-3 teaspoons) of Apple Cider Vinegar mixed in 8 oz of water 20 mins before you eat. (I use hot water and add Stevia or honey--I have also worked up to 1.5 ozs).
I do believe that these two methods work plus if you google them Coconut Oil and Apple Cider Vinegar have a tremendous amount of heath benefits worth consuming it alone.
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VanessaVH
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Betsy wrote:
I have a two way to help feel fuller before you eat, which will in turn help you eat less.
The first is to take 2 tablespoons of good quality Coconut Oil about 20 mins. before you eat. (I added it to a cup of tea or coffee)
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Have heard many good things about the coconut oil and I do use it for cooking, but I would use caution on doing spoonfuls of it if you are prone to gall-bladder problems, coconut oil is still grease, and can still bother you... I can really feel the "greasy gut" feeling if I eat it plain or use too much in a recipe....
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Nique
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What about aimimg for a good night's sleep? Every night. That means going to be at a reasonable hour (for me)
I heard more than once this helps with weight loss AND gain.
Thanks for the thread Willa!
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I had always thought that once you grew up you could do anything you wanted - stay up all night or eat ice cream straight out of the container. ~Bill Bryson
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Chris V
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Betsy wrote:
I do believe that these two methods work plus if you google them Coconut Oil and Apple Cider Vinegar have a tremendous amount of heath benefits worth consuming it alone.
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I agree, both have many good health benefits. I don't take Apple Cider Vinegar regularly (although I have in the past); but I do take a heaping teaspoon of Coconut Oil everyday (by itself); I heat it gently over steam, until it is liquid, then drink it. Coconut has tremendous healing benefits for digestive ailments (from colitis to cancer). I use it for my colitis with excellent results.
... I've never heard of any ill-effects with gall bladder, Vanessa; I'll definitely have to learn more about this; thanks for mentioning it!
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Elena
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I'm trying to work in the 30-Day Shred. It's only 20 minutes but it's tough!
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MicheleQ
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Elena wrote:
| I'm trying to work in the 30-Day Shred. It's only 20 minutes but it's tough! |
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Oh that's a killer workout!!
I lost 25 lb. this summer (which puts me at a weight I haven't been at in least 10 years) and have been maintaining since September. But the tempting treats, busyness of moving etc have me creeping up a bit so I am trying to pay better attention.
I lost by counting calories burned and calories consumed. A daily deficit is what did the trick for me (I used a bodybugg).
For me exercise is really important. If I don't exercise I don't have the stamina to resit the food and keep things on track. And with the food it's not about deprivation. I can eat anything I want but only so much. Moderation and all that.
I run for my exercise and I love it. It's a break for me mentally. It gives me time to think and recharge. The challenge right now is the cold. I can run on a treadmill at the Y but it's not the same as running outside.
And with that I am getting off this computer and going to run right now --thanks for the motivation!
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DominaCaeli
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MicheleQ wrote:
I lost by counting calories burned and calories consumed. A daily deficit is what did the trick for me (I used a bodybugg).
For me exercise is really important. If I don't exercise I don't have the stamina to resit the food and keep things on track. And with the food it's not about deprivation. I can eat anything I want but only so much. Moderation and all that.
I run for my exercise and I love it. It's a break for me mentally. It gives me time to think and recharge. |
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I could have written this almost word for word! Running is really important for me in terms of staying fit mentally and physically. For example, I started Thanksgiving Day with a long, hard run and it both allowed me to eat what I wanted that day without gaining weight (I had burned 1200 calories, after all!) and--more importantly--reduced my urge to overindulge. When I am active, I just feel better overall, and I have more willpower.
That said, I don't exercise on "days of rest" like Sundays and Christmas, and although my husband and I count all of our calories every day, we don't count on Christmas and Easter. Those are days of feasting for us! For me, it's about monitoring my eating and getting plenty of hard exercise over the whole season.
Also, I do eat treats every day. Since I count calories, I just make sure they fit in my daily allotment. So I rarely feel I am missing out on all the Christmas baking going on around here!
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cathhomeschool
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I am not overweight but do tend to gain weight in my belly and it's really noticeable (to me, anyway) when I creep up too high. I am not good at counting calories (too depressing) and am not consistent with exercise. I tend to be "all or nothing" so it's hard to enjoy eggnog and pumpkin pie, etc this time of year without going overboard. It doesn't help that we spend most Christmases at my parents' house where there is no such thing as "overboard." What has helped me most is to serve myself on small dishes. To drink eggnog, I grab a shot glass. I can refill it once or twice and still get lots less than when I serve myself in a cup. With ice cream, I don't get a bowl at all -- only a spoon (and then I heap it on, but how much can you fit on a spoon??). For an occasional splurge I use a small tea cup.
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MicheleQ
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cathhomeschool wrote:
| I am not good at counting calories (too depressing) and am not consistent with exercise. I tend to be "all or nothing" so it's hard to enjoy eggnog and pumpkin pie, etc this time of year without going overboard. |
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I was always terrible at calorie counting and hated doing it but I have to say that after a while it becomes pretty intuitive. Logging my calories helps as well because I do tend to think twice before eating something. Being able to see where I am calorie wise at any given point in the day really has helped me to find some balance in my eating and stay on track. And there are days I don't count or log at all (most Sundays --holidays etc.) but I find myself mentally counting and making better choices.
I do understand the all or nothing mentality because I have it too but I work hard to overcome it because it has never served me well in any area of my life.
Oh and exercise consistency, yeah I was always terrible at that too. But knowing I needed to burn a certain amount of calories daily to create the deficit I needed to lose weight really helped with that. And being able to see a tangible number on how many calories I burn keeps it interesting and makes me push a little harder than I might otherwise.
Please understand I am not perfect at doing any of this. If I do it, it works. If I don't, I gain and get lazy. KNOWING that helps though.
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Michele Quigley
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mama2many
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for shame... I've had weight loss surgery (lap \band) and I lost 50# before I got pg with #5.. Now I'm back up to delivery weight!! But nursing all the time, sitting ALL THE TIME, and only being able to eat "one handed" foods... make it so hard. PLUS the lap band, a lot of the good healthy foods get stuck, and I end up getting sick.  I am at a loss here..God has me in what seems to be the weight my body is happiest at. boo
Blessings to y'all!!
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Grace&Chaos
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MicheleQ wrote:
| Please understand I am not perfect at doing any of this. If I do it, it works. If I don't, I gain and get lazy. KNOWING that helps though. |
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I think this is the key. We know what we should do and it is so easy and comfortable not to, well said Michele.
Thanks for the post Willa, it's keeping me on tract and motivitated. 
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Jenny
Mom to dds(00,03) and dss(05,06,08,09)
Grace in Loving Chaos
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Willa
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| Posted: Dec 22 2010 at 12:25pm | IP Logged
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Maintaining weight during holidays
Quote:
| people often fall into two traps this time of year: splurging with a pledge to get back on track after the holidays or depriving themselves of food to make up for past overeating. When they do the latter, she says, they tend to overeat again. |
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I'm more likely to fall into the first trap! It's tempting for me to think "enjoy myself now and restrict after New Year's" but I am trying not to encourage that thought and instead think "if I gain 2-5 pounds it will be WAY easier to deal with later than 10-15"! So then I try not to deprive myself of the good things but think in terms of maintaining healthy habits and not over-doing.
I've been finding it helpful to:
--Keep exercising -- even mild exercise is way better than nothing. In fact, mild works better for me because I am motivated to keep at it longer and make it a bigger part of my life.
--Mix vegetables with everything -- if I want to eat ham and scalloped potatoes, say, I take about 1/2 or 1/3 of what would seem like a "normal" serving and then mix it with vegetables. This takes just as long to eat and is way more filling and way less calories too.
--"Bowl" servings -- instead of a big plate put my meals in a bowl which naturally limits portion size.
---While I'm cooking or baking, have a healthy crunchy snack like carrots around, or sip some wine, rather than keep eating whatever I'm cooking.
--not eat a dessert food unless I've already eaten something "solid" and then only take a baby-sized portion. If I still want more of the dessert, I commit to waiting for an hour -- often I lose the incentive.
These things seem to work for me WHEN I do them as Michele says
Thanks everybody for contributing, I am doing better maintaining than I have for years and I am sure it's because of the outside motivation and support! Please keep sharing if you want to -- I'm hoping to keep the thread going till Epiphany
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AMDG
Willa
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cathhomeschool
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MicheleQ wrote:
| I was always terrible at calorie counting and hated doing it but I have to say that after a while it becomes pretty intuitive. Logging my calories helps as well because I do tend to think twice before eating something. |
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Though I don't count or log calories, I do look at labels and websites that list the calorie content for fruits. That really does help and I do think twice before eating! It also helps that I've looked at exercise websites to see how many calories different activities burn. (so discouraging)
Another thing I've noticed -- When I am in a good exercise habit I naturally gravitate towards more healthy foods. I think that I feel better about myself and am mentally more willing to take care of myself.
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Janette (4 boys - 22, 21, 15, 14)
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4Real Forums : Tea and Conversation
Topic: maintaining weight during holidays
