Countdown to Christmas

[ItRainsItPours]

All welcome!

Supportive thread for setting goals including self care and fasting, and chat in between!

@loveyouradvice I should probably write DELAY in big letter in my fridge 🤣

I have to say eating a bit cleaner this year will probably help as I am looking forward to having a huge range of cheeses to nibble on more than the things like quality street.
I will also try to drag my family out for some decent hilly walks but will go on my own quite happily. Weirdly I find I have less appetite after exercise. Just have to hope for nice crisp weather.

I too have mixed emotions about the festive period and having to spend time with one relative in particular who was responsible for my not great childhood. At the end of the day I want my dc to enjoy Christmas and I don’t want to be the cause of arguments but I don’t look forward with unadulterated joy. I do look forward to Boxing Day when it is just me, DH and the dc.

Maybe we should list things we are looking forward to that are not food or drink related. For example the new Wallace and grommit, the gavin and Stacy Christmas special and as I said having time to get out for some walks.

Oh @EmbraceTheBeans my heart goes out to you – so very very tough, and so understandable. I totally get the longing to be in a carb coma, just blotting out the pain as much as one can. I hope you can be nurturing to yourself this Christmas, able somehow some of the time to focus on yourself and all you have created, with your two lovely adult daughters – and your lovely fit strong body that you have developed through the power of embedding new habits this year.

I love that quote about Christmas being a magnifying glass, @GameOfJones – so very true.

And what a lovely idea @Clearingaspace ... what we are looking forward to, that's not food... For me, yes the new Wallace and Gromit and long stompy walks (inviting friends to do this rather than supper worked wonderfully well last year), and hugging and hugging my DD who's back from Uni and I haven't seen for almost 4 months. Definitely watching the Eddie Redmayne Day of the Jackal with her. And aiming on Christmas day, to have time to just chat to niece and nephew – there’s only 7 of us this year so I’m hoping to spend less time organising/cooking and more time enjoying/relaxing.

I’m trying to embrace the almost-forgotten playful side of me more – recognising that “being responsible” gets in my way so often. So yes, dancing round the kitchen to favourite songs and decorating the tree and house. And I’ve started singing sessions online – just using videos on Youtube, and I find it hugely uplifting. ... and keep not finding time for it, despite wanting to do it daily for a few minutes

I think the biggest gift Christmas gives me is that of time – time I can choose how to spend, which also means reading a novel in bed in holiday mode when I wake! This always feels so wonderfully indulgent.

Well, I'm feeling triumphant - back at 11.5, phew!

SW 14.2
TW 11.2... and 11.5 for Dec/early Jan before I recommence
CW 11.5... so two pounds down from last week

Now the challenge is to stay there, or thereabouts until early January. I'm giving myself a little leeway so 11.5-11.8 is fine, and if I stick at 11.8 or more, I've asked my DH to have a long walk and talk with me (I'll need to coach him on this as he's very laid-back and non-interventionist normally).

@EmbraceTheBeans – I’ve not yet managed to be a grown-up grown-up around food so this will be a HUGE challenge for me. It’s something I really want to be and it will feel an enormous and powerful step forward if I manage it... the reality is that I’m normally that greedy kid in a sweet shop, stuffing their face with any and everything with room for three puddings afterwards. I love your pragmatism around binges that may happen – they are just that, no drama, no disaster

This thread is so helpful – I find new thoughts coming into my mind as I type. Reminding myself that I can do hard things is going to help (another post-it for the bathroom mirror!!) and remembering that a fear I’ve had since my early 20’s, that of sleeping in a house by myself, is one I conquered earlier this year. I was so fed up of the power I let that fear have, of needing to have all the lights on, not falling asleep until 3 or 4 am and jumping at every sound when DH was away. And now I can dance around a dark house when I'm alone and enjoy it!! Tapping into that fed-up-ness of letting other things have power over me is going to help me this Christmas.

The best way to ‘win’ after adversity is to enjoy life and look after yourself. Sounds like that is working t the moment @EmbraceTheBeans so take the win.
I am laid low with a cold this week so having to rest up and eat more but fingers crossed I feel a little better today. On the plus side I have the Christmas radio times which I will devour at the weekend.

Good morning all – how are Christmas preparations going for you?

Power is such a good word @EmbraceTheBeans – and thank you for the wonderful compliment about my writing! I truly treasure it. I love that your SAD is non-existent this winter and that you are experiencing a whole different December having built up strong subtle habits – what a powerful step forward!

Yes - I am going to drink to the POWERFUL women we are on this thread - powerful women who can do hard things, and can cherish our hard-won bodies and new habits through the festive season while enjoying and relishing some deliciousness and other lovely non-food things about Christmas, especially spending time with those we love

Oooh! Christmas radio times – what a great reminder @ItRainsItPours – something I love looking at and often forget about in our increasingly digital age

So far so good for me...but I knew these would be the easy days, when I can decide what and when to eat and drink...long sociable days start on Sunday, until 2 or 3 January, with only a couple of days when I can easily have short eating windows (one of the main keys for me in maintaining weight loss)

SW 14.2
TW 11.2... with 11.5 my goal over Christmas/early Jan
CW 11.4

Feeling a bit nervous! I’m keen to post daily on Mumsnet during this time – does anyone else on here fancy mutual support for these key days? Or shall I set up a separate thread for this, given our small and fluctuating numbers – I feel so close to those of you on here, so if you are up for it I’d prefer it but it might not be realistic?

Wishing you all wonderful Christmasses enjoying gorgeous food and nurturing our hard-won bodies at the same time.... My mottos are Delay Don’t Deny (imagining@ItRainsItPours you doing the same, and feeling kinship with you as we both employ its power) and I have power over food and can do hard things

I’m happy to keep chatting here @loveyouradvice , I suspect we will get new joiners when we start our next thread in the new year. For now this is quite a cosy corner with a small number of know posters which is quite nice.
Everybody finished work/school today and the Christmas food is all out. I normally wait till Christmas Eve but the schools have finished quite late so it feels like time. I will let you know how I get on with my delay don’t deny and trying not to binge whilst enjoying everything that is available 🫣

Great approach @ItRainsItPours - enjoying everything and employing delay dont deny to encourage restraint. I'm willing you forward to success and looking forward to hearing how it goes

Like you, I enjoy this cosy corner - and yes, there will definitely be an influx of newbies in Jan!!

i am a disaster area and tempted to just enjoy Xmas! BUT, that’s what gets me in trouble so I will try and post too! My aim tomorrow will be to weigh in and stick to a 12 hour window. Happy holidays for term time workers!

When I go quiet it's because my eating is a bit disastrous 😬 but I'll be back in charge of myself about halfway through January when the cheese is finished, so I'll see you lovely bunch then xx all good wishes in the meantime, this is such a nice corner of the internet xx

@Clearingaspace - absolutely, something is always better than nothing and each of us deciding our own Christmas strategy is powerful: Congrats on deciding on a 12 hour eating window, to weigh in tomorrow and to post on here too ... and the art of this whole deal as @EmbraceTheBeans talked about upthread is not thinking that a lapse (however protracted) is the end of the world, it's just what's happened, no drama. I see it as a step sideways in my weight loss journey, a space in which I learn more about me and my eating so I'm stronger as I move forward.

I'm also finding - at the moment - that my definition of enjoying Christmas is changing. I feel better if I eat better so Im going to eat delicious cheese and chocolate (but aiming for a bit less than normal), to ignore the stuff Im indifferent to (mince pies and christmas pud apart from Xmas day) and to eat lots of healthy stuff alongside (bowls of tomatoes tangerines and physalis on the side, and cold veggies which I love in the fridge) - and gazpacho and kombucha as top tipples alongside the alcohol.

I'm loving @ItRainsItPours approach of thinking about the non-food stuff we really enjoy - long walks, curling up on the sofa with a movie and kids, playing board games, reading a novel in the bath...

@HarpQuartet - I totally get it, I'm the same - and have been missing in action for big chunks of time before. I'm looking forward to seeing you mid January - or earlier if you decide to pop in.

Hello all, I'm still here but like others I tend to go quiet when I'm not doing so well! I have stayed at 13st 9lbs so far in December but had ideally wanted to lose more before Christmas. I will definitely be back with a vengeance in January.

For now, I'm trying to keep up the fasting even if the food choices aren't great. I did an 18 hour fast yesterday and 22 hours the day before. We have a lot of socialising coming up so the next week or so is going to be tricky.

@GameOfJones I'm applauding you - to go off piste and stay at the same weight is amazing! A huge triumph - my weight rockets up.

And congrats on a couple of long fasts before Christmas eating starts

Lots of socialising is the challenge for many of us in coming days - and one well want to learn to navigate in coming years to look after our hard-won bodies.

Do you have goals for the comings days you'd like to share? Such as eating windows or what you'll eat?

I think we can all enjoy the festive food and support each other in our chosen goals

That sounds ideal @loveyouradvice.

my kids have treated me to lots of cake today and it was wine at a musical last in London last night but I have ticked off 12 hours! Will try and be done with calories by 8 tonight.

I think I need this Christmas daily posting to be honest! My weigh in wasn’t good I haven’t maintained - but it wasn’t awful. So basically I think I will try and fit in at least one longer fast/ omad between Xmas and new year. I did quite a few omads last year and it worked quite nicely.

Had party food at family buffet today but am on track for 16 hour fast. It definitely helps with damage limitation!

Hurrah @Clearingaspace - daily posting it is! I'm on here daily from today and look forward to being companions through our festive time - full of enjoyment without eating too much, and full of other pleasures which we will truly savour - whether a movie with kids, or a long cold walk

You are brilliant with your fasts - Congrats on 16 hours! That's what I am aiming for and recognise that if it almost works, that's better than not having one.. today I start eating at 1pm (and will push back a bit if I can) and recognise I may have a 9 hour window with DC arriving back late and celebrating with them, having not seen each other for 4 months.

Yesterday was my first seriously challenging day with wonderful sociable wedding in the evening - I ate in an 8 hour window (hurrah!) and had a tiny portion of pudding, and not much alcohol so taking it as a win, despite eating more than I meant of the healthy stuff. And lots of dancing surrounded by enthusiastic young people - bliss!!

I am weighing myself each morning, aiming to stay as close to 11.5 as possible. A great discipline for me, as it helps me keep on track - especially as if it goes over 11.7, I'm going to pull right back - but before then I'm enjoying Xmas Eve huge dinner (I'm even making sticky toffee pudding!!) and a relatively uninhibited Christmas Day, while hopefully making "conscious" choices about what I will eat rather than unconscious ones, which I am very prone to

SW (Xmas): 11.3.8
CW: 11.5.6
GW: 11.5

Sending huge hugs to you @EmbraceTheBeans and recognising what a tough time of year this is for you. Thinking of you lots as you embrace/challenge/sideline the demons - What it takes is what it takes, and that's okay.

One thing I'm going to try this year if/when I feel myself slipping is to capture my successes in a book - to take myself to one side when I find myself making unconscious choices, and take time to reflect and capture my successes, big and small. I know you have build strong habits this year, step by step you have created successes for you and your body on so many fronts.

At least that's the idea ... I'm aware that when I start making unconscious choices, there's a wee demon on my shoulder that encourages me to ignore any sane voice within me, and just binge without feeling or thinking. A powerful wee demon - and I'm going to see if I can be more powerful this Christmas, entering a contest I have not yet won

Sending Christmas love and power to all the wonderful women on this group - together we can do it, both now and in 2025.

@loveyouradvice your adult kids sound adorable! i love your posts (and everyone’s on here actually), as they give me a pause. There have definitely been some potential overeating situations avoided thanks to posts I have read on here.

I have a thing where when I am anxious it is like virtual shutters or a hood close in around my head and I sort of have tunnel vision (not great when I am driving!). I think this is what happens when I am binge eating - I just become focused on eating all the carbs in front of me! So for the next few days I will try to keep calm, enjoy food and be mindful when eating.

nice non food Christmas activities in the next day or so: muppets Christmas carol - we watch pretty much every year; nice walks with dh; pampering with any bath related Christmas gifts; I won a book in our family Christmas white elephant, so reading that; I have a decent chunk of time off and it would be amazing if I could motivate myself in to some cleaning and organising.

We have put our Christmas food out and I ate tonnes over the weekend. Then it was panto today where I had a lovely local dairy ice cream in the interval. I did manage an 18 hour fast between the two things though. I got some chicken out of the freezer this morning so I could make a healthy homemade curry for dinner. When I got home from panto I went to make the curry and discovered I had defrosted meat balls instead so meatballs chips and beans it is! Best laid plans and all that. I suspect by Boxing Day I will be running screaming from the excess and back on the wagon. I can hope.

Yum @ItRainsItPours lovely local dairy ice cream in the interval - that is one of my fav foods!!

And I love the meatballs/chicken... I once took home made brandy snap baskets and berries with what I thought was my gorgeous cognac and honey ice cream to friends for supper only to discover that my tub of yummy icecream was a tub of chicken stock!!!!! Quick nip to the corner shop...

Congrats on 18 h fast - I'm managing 16 which I am quite proud of.

So like me you are doing a mix of great and less great! Navigating this line is fascinating.

What I noticed yesterday were that there were foods I ate consciously and others I ate unconsciously... yes, pigs in blankets, I'm looking at you! I cooked masses and wolfed down lots of them when DC arrived back from uni - I was conscious around the mulled cider and mac cheese though, and had a mug of soup to fill in gaps.

So today I am going to see if I can eat everything consciously ... big celebratory dinner tonight ... a great test.

And tomorrow's plan is to enjoy everything in an 8-10 hour window, with a focus on tangies/baby toms/physallis/olives to snack on rather than chocs/cheese/nuts which are my downfall... I can hoover those up very unconsciously with the hand/mouth axis almost operating independently

I will check in tomorrow morning and report how this eveing goes! Good luck to you @ItRainsItPours We're doing great and I'm finding reporting and reflecting here is helping my resolve

SW (Xmas): 11.3.8
CW: 11.6.0
GW: 11.5

@loveyouradvice i was forced to eat my pigs and blankets consciously just now as we only had 3 each! They were very delicious, but I would happily have had more. Yum. Good plans for your fast

@ItRainsItPours my teens, eldest in 2nd year uni, refuse to go to pantos as they are traumatised by audience participation from when we sat in the front row once! I am a bit gutted as it’s so Christmasy 😂 well done on your fast.

I won’t be fasting this evening as I will need to eat a mince pie and half a carrot at 1 am as my 14 yo wants to keep all the magic stuff going.