There is no question that we’re entering the roughest season of the year (at least in the U.S.) for those of us who are watching our weight. It’s especially hard for those of us who have to put the holiday feast together. But believe me — it’s possible to put on a great Thanksgiving dinner and still succeed in your goals.

Last year in addition to Thanksgiving and Christmas & New Year’s Eve, my brother got married and relatives from thousands of miles away came for the party. It was a wonderful time — but one of the best things about it was that I learned to have fun without over eating at all.

An Eat4Today Holiday Pledge

Today is the last day until Monday that I have to be at the library. And I PROMISE to watch for comments and visitors closely throughout the next 5 days. If you need someone to rant at. Or a friend. Or encouraging word. I’ll be here. And I’ll be posting a little more often during these days as well.

Let’s take things just one day at a time and prove that even food holidays can be fun for the weight conscious.

Are you nervous about Thanksgiving?

FARFetched stopped by yesterday with an insightful comment. Referring to a post he wrote on his blog (The Eating Season) this time last year, he opened our discussion about Holiday Eating. And gave us a great name at the same time.

. . .Why do we have so many holidays at this time of year that involve candy, big meals, or both?

It actually makes sense if you look at it on an instinctual level. This is the time of year when non-tropical creatures are working on storing up fuel for the winter. Winter fat has a couple of survival advantages: one, you have a reserve when regular food gets hard to come by; two, fat insulates, so you don’t burn as many calories to stay warm. Calories, after all, are a measure of heat… although a dietetic calorie is 1000 “chemical” calories (or a “kilocalorie”). I don’t know why. So it makes sense that we, on a sub-conscious level, would look for excuses to load up on the chow this time of year.

Nowadays, we have other ways to survive the winter. Grocery stores are well-stocked with fresh produce from South America . . .

As he said in his comment:

You can skip the stuff you know isn’t going to help — or take small samples — and fill your plate with veggies and other stuff that does help. The filling-up part gives you an excuse to avoid Aunt Millie’s TurboFat meatloaf (”I’ll get some later”).

Regular readers know that I’m all in favor of the “I can eat this later” school of eating managment.

This is such a critical time for those of us who worry about food & eating issues. How can we help each other keep our eyes on our goals without losing out on the season’s fun?