Thursday, October 18, 2012

'Tis the Season

Hooray holidays!  Yes, that delightful time of year is approaching that many of us have historically taken as free license to gorge, or at least sneak in a few treats we wouldn't indulge in normally.  Y'all know I'm the queen of moderation; that said, here are a few little... well, "guidelines" really that I find helpful to remember.

  • Calories from the candy taken from your child's Halloween stash still count.
  • Ditto the candy you bought to give out to the neighborhood kiddies.
  • No, just because you "accidentally" overbought the Reese's Snack Size Pumpkins doesn't mean that you personally must ingest them all to avoid wastage.*
  • Thanksgiving is one day, people.  One.
  • No, not two.  I don't care that Great Aunt Paula brought her butter, cheese, mayonnaise, sour cream and bacon dip that you may never have a chance to eat again before you die.  ONE.
  • Despite what the retail establishments would have us believe, Christmas, too, is one day a year.
  • No, Grandmother Mercy's famous chocolate pecan marshmallow surprise cookies are not an exception.  
  • Yes, I know she baked them special, just for you.
  • Fine, just tape them to your ass and be done with it.**

In other words, everything has a caloric toll no matter what the calendar says.  I keep tracking over the holidays because it keeps me honest and I do better with visual confirmation that, yes, I really did eat THAT MUCH yesterday so I need to be sane today.  It's what I found works for me because otherwise... well, that list didn't leap fully formed from a vacuum. 

Have a good one, y'all.  And be smart.

*Not that I, personally, would ever have done this...
**Seriously, you might as well.

12 comments:

Jeanette said...

I track on the holidays too, just like any other day... it feels insane when I put in my Thanksgiving dinner, but it also keeps me honest!!! I realize I do NOT need to eat 4000 calories, even if it is just one day. The past two years, I've been going over my 1800 limit by about 1000 on Thanksgiving and Christmas... plenty of room for second helpings and dessert, but not enough room to derail all my hard work :D

Amanda said...

Exactly, Jeanette! And with me, it fits in to my normal mode of eating. The higher-calorie days for that week may be higher (and may be just one day, because I hear you on the Thanksgiving Extravaganza), but the rest of the week has to be normal, because otherwise I will lose my ever-loving mind.

And my wardrobe. It's the latter that concerns me more ;)

Angela Pea said...

Yes! Yes! and More Yes!

I've resorted to handing out Almond Joy's at Halloween, because I absolutely HATE them and will not nosh during the witching hours. It's so much nicer now, too, that my kids are not so interested in trick or treating.

Also over the past many years, I've been paring down the Celebration Recipes, making them lower fat, lower sugar, and I make less so there aren't any leftovers. Except for turkey, because leftover turkey sandwiches are just too awesome!

Michael Mock said...

Ha-ha! The holidays are no threat to my impulse control, because I don't have any to begin with! Showed you, holidays!

Oh, wait. I probably shouldn't be proud of that, should I?

Lyn said...

Thanks for the "guidelines". It was as if you had tiny little cameras in my home (or a microchip in my brain). :) I need to start doing SOMETHING soon, because I've got 50 pounds to shed before my 25-year high school reunion next fall {gasp}!

Amanda said...

Angela, sadly I haven't met the candy bar I wouldn't greet with joy so that's out for me. This year I'm just handing the candy duties over to my husband and fleeing for my dance class. The children's candy is safe(ish) because my boys know their mother and will happily hide their haul from me.

Bright boys :)

Michael, hee! Well, depends on your needs honestly. If you don't need to exercise control then why worry? :)

Lyn, LOL!! I think we share a brain on this. Like I said, these examples didn't form in a vacuum ;)

Leigh said...

Love this! The holidays are just like any other day for me. No treats! But I do get lots of turkey...which I love:)

Jenn said...

True, true, true!

I've been reading some blogs and it seems that some poeple are already preparing for all the 'treat eating' they will be doing!! Me, I'm working on getting in a mind frame where I will celebrate the DAY and not the FOOD. It was a nice break to read something like this. If we all stay focused, we can get through the holidays without any damage.

Lisa said...

"Fine, just tape them to your ass and be done with it." lol! I say this all the time. It's usually accompanied by a visual in my brain with said item firmly attached to my ass and belly with bright silver duct tape.

The "holiday preparations" kill me.. people psych themselves up and pre-plan their excuses. All for eating something that takes 25 seconds to eat and contributes to an ever expanding ass.

I won't even get started on the whole "eating because someone gave you something really special and you don't want to hurt their feelings" issue....

Norma said...

Stop making so much sense, Amanda. You're making all the YOLO/FOMO "why am I still fat?" bloggers look bad. ;-)

Norma said...

I had to come back and report: just staggered into a blog that I wish I hadn't seen. The obese ("200ish" is her self-description) author is currently planning to "allow" herself some "holiday indulgences" for the next 2.5 months, and will stay off the scale until the New Year. At which point she hopes to find a gain of "only" five pounds or so, which is not a really big deal, because her clothes will still fit, and plus, she is totally getting herself a gym membership for Christmas. I should really gouge my eyes out so I stop reading this stuff.

Amanda said...

Oh dear :( I know that mindset -- been there, done that.

I wish the blogger the best, but I swear it's times like this I think I have a crystal ball. I've been wrong before... but on stuff like this, it's a rarity.