What is your plan for holiday assault?

Triathlon Forum
1

some of us are determined to stay on the straight and narrow over the holidays and not get sucked into a vat of cookie batter or egg nog.

for me personally, there is nothing worse then coming upon Jan 1 with a stomach the size of a snowman’s. so, i’m choosing the straight and narrow, given that i’m just happier that way.

now to be fair i’ll admit that it’s easier for me than some of you, especially since i have a home office and do not have any secretary spread side effects…no jars of candy, or people shoving cake in my face, and no company party to cope with! obviously all of this is a huge plus because i can control my environment, but there are still temptations just by virtue of the season, and by living in America.

Everything is going well so far, but i have 2 days in particular where i expect major temptation and all kinds of pressure to eat. That is Christmas Eve when my in-laws have a COOKIE PARTY. Also, late afternoon on Christmas Day my mother in-law will have all kinds of fatty dips and stuff. the cookies i can deal with, but sour cream dip, cheese dip, gads i love all that stuff.

My plan is this:
-fill up the house with good whole foods. there is no reason not to eat something good, because bascially that’s all we have!

-plan a non-traditional Christmas day brunch with fish, yams, spaghetti squash, wilted salad, pineapple with super dark chocolate shaved on top, spiced tea (YUM)

-keep training! holidays are not an excuse to stop, IMO. plus, i have more down time. if i don’t train, i’ll just get my little self into trouble anyways.

-limit the cookies at the cookie party. pick a couple that i really want to eat. and that’s it. if none look good, then put my coffee on the plate instead of a cookie.

-most importantly, do not sit IN FRONT OF THE DIP. imagine it going straight to my butt. globby sour cream right on my thigh. SIT AWAY FROM THE SNACKS AND TAKE A BOOK TO READ BECAUSE THOSE PEOPLE ARE BORING. lol…

so, what about you? got any plans? or, do you plan to eat until your face falls off? (no that there’s nothing wrong with that!)

Cheers,
Kitty

2

My plan…cook and eat and train…

Christmas eve…Pesto Salmon Wellington (I just made this up…gonna make some basil pesto, slather a nice salmon filet in it, and then wrap it in store bought puff pastry dough, and then bake), with roasted asparagus and nice white wine.

Christmas day…Standing rib roast with mashed potatoes and green bean casserole, served with a cabernet sauvignon.

Of course, there will also be plenty of beer standing by…

Spot

3

that sounds good. no dip? lol…

dip is the devil.

4

I’m going to implement the same plan I utilized for Thanksgiving. Over that weekend I actually lost almost three pounds.

The secret is: DO ALL OF THE WORK

On the schedule:

Full meals for both Christmas Eve (6 people) and Christmas Day (14 people). We’re talking complete, multi-course feasts.

Baking 5 different types of cookies, including extremely labor-intensive Linzer and Venetian 7-layer styles.

Baking 8 mini-loaves of banana walnut bread for my kids to deliver to our neighbors.

Assemble a pre-maid ginger bread house with my kids on Christmas Eve.

Including all of the assorted wrapping, Santa duties, etc., I figure I’ll be on my feet, working, from dinner time Friday night through 9:00 pm on Christmas. Minus the 4 hours of sleep per I’ll get, it’ll be about 60+ hours of craziness.

That should be good for at least 3-4 pounds, no matter what I eat/drink.

See, easy!! :wink:

6

My plan:

Eat whatever meals are prepared by either my wife or our chef.

Train everyday:

Run 60 minutes off road
OR
Ride indoors for 2 hours
OR
both

Oh, this is done everyday even if its not holidays : )

7

My family is a statistic for heart disease and not open for change. So, I do what I can to resist the goodies, and then bust my butt starting in January to kill the 2 lbs that I put on over the holidays.

8

Hey that salmon sound good.

And your x-mas day menu is almost exactly like mine. I’m also doing the rib roast and mashed taters. But I’m gonna give my haricot verts the ol’ shallot and olive oil treatment.

I’ve got a shitload of beer standing by - I’m gonna offer Brooklyns’ Winter Ale, Samuel Smiths’ Winter Welcome Ale, and La Fin du Monde, among others.

I havent decided on the wine yet. I’m leaning towards a 2003 Sequoia Grove Cab. from Ca. My wife wants Ferrari-Carano Merlot, so we’ll see.

9

Kittycat, Sounds like you’re thinking about it and making a plan which is really important. Like you said, not sitting near the food is a big one for me. Also, not drinking or just having 1 drink is another big factor. Not only does alcohol have lots of empty calories, it helps you lose all resolve to keep on the straight and narrow.

Having said all that, i often try to have 1 total binge day during the holidays. You get to enjoy all the bad stuff at the beginning, but by the time it’s over you’re feeling terrible. If you feel terrible enough it’s a really good kick in the pants to do better with your life. And one day of overeating is not going to cause serious long term weight gain. It’s probably stupid, but I play it careful with the food and drink nearly all the other times.

10

eat and be merry.

11

well, the dip…that is a big thing for me. i’m concerned that if i eat it without worry, then i’ll continue to do so for the next few days. creamy fats are irresitable to me. it’s been hard to change my taste, but i’ve finally done it! the stuff is like crack, i swear. even a little makes me begin to crave it.

sigh.

12

You’ve got the right idea…MAN RULE!

13

“do you plan to eat until your face falls off?”

That’s me! I’ll still be doing some running and I’ll also ski several days. Back to being more serious after the first of the year. Working off the holiday weight gain always gets me motivated to train.

14

I agree…January 1st is D-Day. After that it is back to my eating regiment and excessive training.

But until then I eat whatever is on the table, drink all the beer in the fridge and let the chips fall where they may!

15

snowboarding!

17

Dip is one of the few food items that is not a personal demon of mine…but…

Have you considered making/bringing a dip substitute?

A relatively healthy bean puree is easy to do and pretty tasty.

Start with throroughly cooked (or canned, if you can find good imported ones) cannelini beans, or chick peas - really any “whitish” bean will do. Fresh fava’s are good too, but they’re harder to come by.

Toss them in a food processor, add any combination of extra’s you like: olives, sundried tomatoes, roasted garlic/fennel, herbs(basil, rosemary, thyme), etc.

Some salt and pepper. Blend in the processor with good quality olive oil and a bit of the beans cooking/storing liquid until you get the right consistency.

It’s good on bruschetta or garlic toasts and as a dip or crudite. And certainly healthier than a sour cream based dip.

18

I consider egg nog my recovery drink during December…It does have a 4:1 CHO/Protein ration doesn’t it?

19

which club - the greybeards?

that Anchor looks good even at 8 AM

20

I eat with my cats. We all share the same food which is healthy and not tempting to overeat. And won’t have any one over for Christmas and no one has invited me so that takes care of any temptations.
Just kiddingabout the cat food. But you’re right try to keep good food around. But have a weakness for pumpkin pie. Not good…

21

I have already lost the battle! This last week I had too many xmas parties and dinners with relatives. I hope to step up my workouts and eat light this week.

22

dad, i haven’t thought of this, thanks! it’s a great idea and is something i can do anytime in addition to holidays.
i have made a “bean dip” that is whole beans, with mushrooms, tomato or whatever, baked, but never blended up like that. honestly, i hadn’t even thought of it. you’ve made my day. :slight_smile: