Xandra Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 Here come two tough months, with celebrations revolving around food, traditionally the unhealthy variety. Staying healthy through these holidays is a challenge for many people. For example, I've been thinking about how to survive Thanksgiving. Do I eat anything I want for an entire day? Take sample bites but not full servings? Restrict my offroad to specific dishes? Or try to stay on plan through the day? Similar thoughts about Christmas week, when I'll be hosting 17 people, most from out of town. Share your plans and strategies here. Maybe connecting with others who are struggling with the same issues will help us make it through the holidays with a smile instead of a burp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GFChris Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 While I'm no longer doing a Whole30, I've remained gluten-free (have been for 7 years), and in my home I haven't consumed any non-gluten grains, dairy or legumes since my Whole30 ended in late June. I've resumed drinking wine but not as much as before - maybe a glass or two a week, max. I'll have quality dark chocolate sporadically. Will only have non-gluten grains, dairy or legumes at someone's home for a meal or if it's something very special out at a restaurant. If sugar is in a sauce, dressing or other ingredient, I'm fine with it.I pretty much plan to follow this way of eating through the holidays. We'll be at someone else's on Thanksgiving, we host Christmas Eve and will be at someone else's Christmas Day. The people whose houses we're visiting know I'm gluten free and have hosted me many times in the past, so I know I'm assured at least a gluten-free meal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Andria Posted November 2, 2013 Share Posted November 2, 2013 Christmas Eve, Christmas Day & Thanksgiving will be at my SO's parents' home this year. I will likely offer to make something that is Whole30 compliant( Brussels & bacon sauté) or a paleo-fied dessert (I have a recipe for a Martha Stewart gluten free chocolate pie! YUM!) since my Whole30 will be complete by then. I will definitely indulge in wine!! I will be most concerned about avoiding gluten and dairy, not so much sugar. There isn't much that tempts me except for a wonderful dessert(oh, and WINE!). Unfortunately, for Christmas Eve they are having lasagna! Gah! I will probably bring a meal for myself. Normally, we would go to my aunt's for Thanksgiving, and I hate to say it, but her meal and desserts are hands down out of this world, I really would have had a hard time there. My SO's family's house, not so much....;-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChickenNoodle Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 I host both Thanksgiving and Christmas, and my husband and three daughters are all very gluten intolerant, so we are used to GF holiday meals. I always make plenty of healthy snacks, veggies and dip, stuffed mushrooms ( without bread crumbs), olives, etc...so we do not come to the table starving. I make gravy with GF flour, can't really get too far around that. I will make both white and sweet mashed potatoes and sautéed mushrooms and green beans, along with the standard turkey. We will paleo-fy a dessert....I have a recipe for some pumpkin pie squares that look awesome, and maybe something chocolatey. We are post 30, so will do our best to strike a balance between enjoying the day and relaxing our normal food restrictions and limiting the exposure to the junk that we really do not want to consume. I highly suggest that if you are hosting and plan to change up the traditional recipes....warn people! I first paleo-fied our thanksgiving several years ago and had a very annoyed mother in law! Now I tell everyone " if you have a favorite dish that is important to you to have on Thanksgiving, please bring it" my mother in law always brings nasty sugar and marshmallow smothered sweet pots ( from a can, no less BLECH!) but they are an important tradition to her. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrsStick Posted November 3, 2013 Share Posted November 3, 2013 I'm currently working this out for my Thanksgiving. We're going to my MIL's house and she's been pretty good to work with on it. My husband's aunt has Celiac's disease, so she's used to having to ensure things are gluten free. I've been emailing back and forth about what I would like to eat and what my two must-have foods are (strawberry-cranberry sauce and my mom's sausage dressing) and what I'd prefer out of her list. Thankfully, they do their sweet potatoes baked in the skin and you can adulterate them yourself - no marshmallows or sugar added here! The straw/cran sauce will probably be the sweetest thing I eat in terms of added sugar since it's whole berry sauce (from scratch or a can, likely a can as we'll be travelling from Alabama to Texas for the celebration) and frozen strawberries. The whole berry sauce has a lot of sugar. I'm going to try to avoid as much grain/sugar as I can. We'll see how it goes... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjena Posted November 4, 2013 Share Posted November 4, 2013 My plan is to stick to normal sized portions of the foods I love during meals. That means no grazing/snacking and no eating foods I can eat anytime or that I don't care about. So, at the IL's Thankgiving, I'll eat the sweet potatoes and salad that I bring and some turkey and that's it. I don't care about the rest. At my mom's, I'll eat the mashed potatoes because she makes them the way I love them, but it's not worth it to me to eat them at the IL's. I also plan to just say not to sugar the best I can. That's the hard one for me. Very, very hard. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronswife31 Posted November 9, 2013 Share Posted November 9, 2013 We're on the home stretch with our first whole 30 (day 26) so we'll be in the re-intro stage for Thanksgiving. I'm planning to stay pretty close to what I've been eating for the last several weeks as I don't want to take the chance of being sick during my family's day. I can be perfectly happy with turkey, vegetables and a tiny bit of cranberry sauce. Our veggies are always pretty naked anyway so I won't have a problem with the marshmallow thing. (shudder) I'm thinking of making a crustless pumpkin pie with some maple syrup for sweetening and using the whipped coconut cream. I can add vanilla this time! Christmas will be harder. It's not just one day. It seems to start at least a week ahead and go right through till New Years. We have so many favorite foods that are traditional and not whole30 friendly. The trick will be to pick and choose what will be the treats and how often. I have about 80lbs to lose so I need to be diligent to not get back on the sugar wagon. YIKES! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katiew822 Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 I will be done with my Whole 30 on Nov. 19 and Thanksgiving falls on Day 9 of the reintroduction phase. We're going to my aunt's house so it will be difficult to control the menu. How bad is to to eat mashed potatoes with gravy? They're so good and it's only one day a year. And maybe pumpkin pie. I mean, technically I'm done and I probably already would have figured out my sensitives by then? Any tips? I do definitely think that doing this Whole 30 will help me to make better choices during the holiday season so I'm looking forward to giving it a try. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GFChris Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 I will be done with my Whole 30 on Nov. 19 and Thanksgiving falls on Day 9 of the reintroduction phase. We're going to my aunt's house so it will be difficult to control the menu. How bad is to to eat mashed potatoes with gravy? They're so good and it's only one day a year. And maybe pumpkin pie. I mean, technically I'm done and I probably already would have figured out my sensitives by then? Any tips? I do definitely think that doing this Whole 30 will help me to make better choices during the holiday season so I'm looking forward to giving it a try. Well, the mashed potatoes will likely contain dairy and the gravy will likely have flour, so how you do on dairy and gluten reintros will give you a good indication of how eating these items will make you feel. You can make a more informed decision on how to proceed once you complete those reintros. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AmyS Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 Great thread - I've discovered that after eating Whole30/mostly Whole30 for a year now (wow!), I just can't take a break from it and eat whatever I want to anymore. I had childhood allergies, coincidentally, to most of the foods prohibited on Whole30. Nowadays, when I add those formerly allergenic foods back in, I start to get hives. Like, almost immediately. Anyway, this is an issue because I'm not planning on being on a Whole30/WholeSomething during Thanksgiving and Christmas and New Year's; but I'm becoming more and more aware that regardless of what I call any particular day's eating plan, I can't just grab a plate of stuffing and gravy and go for it anymore. I had planned on taking the holidays themselves off of compliant eating, but I'm gonna be miserable if I do that. So - these ideas for compliant appetizers/veggies/main dishes and less harmful desserts may become part of my repertoire this year. That's not what I had planned, but there we are. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GFChris Posted November 10, 2013 Share Posted November 10, 2013 Another thought: it's not only what you eat during the holidays to be able to enjoy and feel good during the season. For me, I also need to maintain my exercise routine and mindfulness practice. My ideal exercise routine is 4 one-hour workouts per week at the gym: 2 days cardio, 2 days strength training. My mindfulness practice is 20-45 minutes of a daily practice, which could be anything from sitting and focusing on my breath, to gentle yoga, to a body scan. These practices, together with how I eat, help me to stay present, focus on what and who is important in my life and deeply enjoy the holidays. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdugmen Posted November 12, 2013 Share Posted November 12, 2013 I'll be spending Xmas away from my family/SO family, so I'll be in charge of the menues. My Whole 30 would be finished by then, but I'm not planning to deviate a lot from it, at least not on the main courses (my SO is not on the paleo/primal/whole30 wagon, but he loves vegetables and would eat anything I prepare). But (and this is a big but) I might let myself have one or two of the traditional nougats I've always had in Xmas (gluten/chemical free). I'll only have a bar (about 300 grams?) for both of us+any guest for the whole of the Xmas celebrations, so I'll have no chance to overdo it! And, as Chris said, continuing with an exercise routine is quite important... and keep sleeping for at least 8 hours a day! I love the holidays and I'm willing to enjoy them as much as usual Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rozamu Posted November 12, 2013 Share Posted November 12, 2013 What great topic! I have no idea what I plan to do, yet. No gluten or dairy for sure. I've decided hives aren't worth it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Xandra Posted November 13, 2013 Author Share Posted November 13, 2013 Thanksgiving is decided. We'll be going out for a buffet meal with an amazing menu. So I 'll offroad for that buffet but that is all for that day. Still working on Christmas, specifically alcohol. My father is ordering cases of wine. And there will be all kinds of food. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 19, 2013 Share Posted November 19, 2013 The week before Thanksgiving last year, I finished W30 #2. I did have a few rules for myself: I did not eat anything that wasn't homemade. Rolls from the store.. nope! Canned whipping cream.. nope! I skipped the alcohol and drank water. I snacked on fresh veggies and had a few deviled eggs. I skipped the stuffing as I'm never a fan of that to begin with. I did have a small scoop of both mashed and sweet potatoes. I filled my plate with salad, turkey meat, cranberries, fresh veggies, small scoop of the potatoes, a broc casserole. I only had one plateful, ate slowly and stopped after that. I skipped pie because I wasn't hungry enough to enjoy it. My biggest piece of advice is to not stress and enjoy the day with your family. Don't let your food choices (or not choices lol) overshadow the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trezkholl0806 Posted November 19, 2013 Share Posted November 19, 2013 Check out nom nom paleo - they have several recipes on there that sounded/looked delicious... Turkey, homemade cranberry sauce, and a roasted brussels sprouts dish. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stinawants Posted November 21, 2013 Share Posted November 21, 2013 Great thread...was hoping someone would just post their menu. LOL! Since I am hosting Thanksgiving, I have most of the say. I will have to serve mash potatoes for my dad. For my husband and I, there will be cauliflower mash...and will hopefully trick my kids in to eating it. ;o) As per Trez's suggestion...off to check nom nom paleo. Will also check out The Foodie Project. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 21, 2013 Share Posted November 21, 2013 Great thread...was hoping someone would just post their menu. LOL! Since I am hosting Thanksgiving, I have most of the say. I will have to serve mash potatoes for my dad. For my husband and I, there will be cauliflower mash...and will hopefully trick my kids in to eating it. ;o) As per Trez's suggestion...off to check nom nom paleo. Will also check out The Foodie Project. We had a great thread last year with great ideas and lots of links.. let me see if I can find it. I was post w30 during the holiday last year but there is still some really great ideas in that thread. Here! http://forum.whole9life.com/topic/4208-lets-talk-about-thanksgiving/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.