CTodd, I see you have almost reached your goal!!! Can you give me some idea of what you do on the regular? When I look at where I am and how far I have to go on my goal it seems impossible.  You have done it.How long did it take you to lose that much? Any advice? 

Thanks everyone for all the great ideas! I am feeling more confident. one plate is it for  me! Food will always be here. I'll always have an opportunity to eat. This goal of losing these pounds is gonna be a dream come true. So I am feeling strong now guys. I had my weigh in for November at the gym.I was very discouraged. All I lost was inches. I gained 3 pounds. The lady said it was probably from lean muscle. It just feels like another mountain to me. I wanted to just go home and pig out. Then I noticed when I am discouraged or depressed I tend to eat. My goal is 10 pounds by my weigh in in December. Thanksgiving is going to have to wait. : )

CTodd, I am so impressed. 120 pounds lost. That is amazing and proof that we are on the right track and can do it to! I would guess by now you know what will work for you! I do like the idea of a hike up the bluff.

Now back to turkey. When I was a kid I loved turkey. My Dad laughs and says he had to watch when he carved the turkey because i was always right there waiting to grab the first little bit that didn't make it to the plate. Well, I still love the turkey. I am, now, the turkey carver and the turkey cleaner after dinner and  I am afraid the turkey nibbler. I am thinking turkey might  not be too bad to nibble on. Is that right or am I being guilded by my bad self? That might be a problem for me. And the subject of left overs. I also love left over turkey, especially hot turkey sandwiches, so I think most of the left overs will go in a nice vegie filled turkey soup.  

oh yes! I plan to eat a little....but just a little...of EVERYTHING I want. I have found that just a small amount of something "forbidden" makes me not want to eat it as much and then I can just ignore it. Definitley, going to drink a lot of water while I cook so I am nice and full before the meal. I love the tight pants idea too! I also plan to be extra good for a few days before and a few days after to make up for the extra calories I'm going to be eating that day. I think too that I'm going to try to convince my family that a nice hike through the woods after lunch would be  a good idea if it's not to cold yet. We will see how well that goes over.

I just posted about this too.  So far I think the best thing to do is come up with as many healthy foods as possible so we can eat with less guilt.  Hopefully we'll have some good suggestions on my post soon.

I have my Thanksgiving plans in my head now. If we have company I will make the usual turkey and dressing, mashed pots, sweet pots (which I hate) and a couple pies., but I will eat turkey with a dab of mashed pots, no gravy, no pie, (oh, but what about cranberry sauce?) I haven't delt with that yet. I can rely on my family cheerfully taking care of the pies. If our company does not make it, Thanksgiving will be no dressing and no pie. My husband is as supportive as ever even on this.

One bite of pie will do me at this stage in and I am reconsiled to not having any. Maybe next year. I do have an idea for pie filling that is not too high calorie. I use sugar free jello and when it is nearly set I stir in a couple big spoons of cool whip and let it set in a pie shell or a dish. This is fancier and creamier than plain jello and does not require a crust for those of us who are eating with care. I know cool whip has calories but I doubt it is as bad as pumpkin pie or my favorite pecan pie. It is also a favorite with my Dad on Thanksgiving.

MsSkinny:

One tip would be to offer to help cook some of the food. That way you can control how much salt is added, you can uuse 1% milk instead of full fat for the mac and cheese. The Turkey is probably good for you (as long it isn't "deep fried"). Stay more towards the corn green beans and collards, instead of mac and cheese and casseroles, where you know there will be hidden calories.  Keep to one plate. I try to use the "slim fast" plate suggestion for dinner as my guide. split plate into sections mentally in your head. One section for 3-5 oz turkey, one section for startches a small scoop of dressing and potatoes, then three veges to cover the largest part of the plate. Green beans, corn, sweet potato (no marshmellows). Add a med. salad on the side. Drink plenty of water before your meal. 16 oz at least. I suggest starting with the healthy salad first then the other stuff. Eat slowly, enjoy your food and the company of your friends and family. Then after dinner, wait. Wait 30 minutes. Let your meal start digesting. Talk a small walk with some family that is encouraging. Talk to them about your diet (life style change), someone in the crowd will walk with you. Then after the mini-walk and digestion period, decide..."do I want/need dessert"? If so what? A small slice of pie? a cookie? whatever is your ideal dessert to make your meal perfect! Then go inside, to the dessert area. Look and see what's there. Try to decide where you want to spend your calories. At easter I tried to decide what I wanted more and extra slice of pie and an extra walk or a small cookie and just a few jumping jacks...

Start with preparation now. If your going to be doing the cooking, start looking for healthy versions of your recipes now.  Tell you other relatives to consider altering the recipes with low-fat dairy products to save calories. Or using a salt-sub stead of salt for flavoring. Don't hide your lifestyle change. Share it. Let other join you on your journey.

Good Luck!

I have always loved Thanksgiving.  But, I must admit, I'm nervous this year b/c I will actually be trying to limit my food consumption.  I still plan to eat with everyone else, but will be VERY conscious of what I put on my plate...and mainly HOW MUCH.  Seems like any time there is a food related get together, it is SO easy to fix my plate and then when I sit down I'm embarrassed that there's so much food on it.  When there are a lot of options, even if you only get a small portion of each dish, the calories can still add up astronomically!  I know that the A#1 things I want are turkey and cornbread dressing.  I will also have tiny portions of the desserts.  I LOVE Jodie's idea of tight pants and a TON of water before the meal.

One problem I run into is that I have TWO T'giving functions to attend...and I do the vast majority of the cooking.  I cook everything but the turkey (stepdad makes) and the sweet potato casserole (grandmother makes) at my mother's house for the actual day of Thanksgiving.  And, I make everything but the turkey (neighbor makes) at my dad's house the Saturday after Thanksgiving.  So, I am constantly around food Wednesday (cooking), Thursday (cooking / eating), Friday (cooking), and Saturday (cooking / eating).  The ONLY positive thing about this arrangement is that I will have no evil LEFTOVERS to contend with since we leave to drive back to Iowa early Sunday morning. 

So, I think that besides the constant water consumption, I just plan to try to stay in high gear.  I'll be on my feet practically all day for nearly a week, so I'm just going to try to move as quickly as possible...to burn as many calories as possible!  AND, I will take my focus away from eating by worrying about everyone else's needs.  I will use my nervous, wanna eat everything in sight energy towards trying to be the best hostess I can be.  Looking forward to more tips.  God Bless -- Hilary

Good thing to be thinking about....ahead of time...As for me, my family is large (no pun intended here! LOL!)...and all 50-60 of us get together with a potluck...I always bring the turkey & gravy and the meatballs & gravy...one sister provides the mashed potatoes, one sister brings dessert, one does vegetables, one brings buns, and one brings salads...everyone else brings whatever they want.  This year, besides the meat, I plan to provide fresh veggies, a fruit bowl and some knox blocks...healthy lo-calorie items that I can gravitate to if I start thinking I need to eat more...of course, I will have a piece of pie...not going to go crazy with it though.  And then, if it isn't too snowy and icy, I will see if any of the others want to join me in a walk...I am determined not to let one day interfere with my goal...Thanksgiving is a time to give thanks and my health is number one on my list....would be foolish to give thanks for my health and then stuff myself with food....gotta stay focused.  We have come this far and we can survive another food-filled holiday.  Really, it is all over in a matter of hours...we can handle it, we are determined and we are going to be looking so good!!!  Bring it on!  Believe in yourself!   Hugs, SisterC

My strategy will be ...... wear the tightest pants I own (and no unbuttoning allowed), and drink LOTS of water right before the meal! But I really the like the game idea too, maybe even a jigsaw puzzle.  I think planning ahead and being prepared is the key.  We can do it!