We WISH You A Disney Happy Holidays – December Challenge

[zonkvadr]

Hi, all. This is my first time joining one of these challenges and I'm so happy I found this board. I am a single mom with two wonderful sons who works full-time and is struggling with financial issues right now.

I started jogging in the spring but stopped about a month ago when I realized I would not be able to make a trip to do my first 5k at the Wine and Dine. A month later, I can see how helpful the jogging was as practically all of my clothes are now too tight! So its back on the program for me. My goals for the month:

Lose 5 pounds
Increase water intake
Jog 3x per week

We celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas and I'm working hard to get in the holiday spirit this year! Guess that's another goal!

I look forward to getting to know everyone.

 

[piglet1979]

Hi, I am Stephanie. I am married with 2 kids (DS 11 and DD 10). These two keep me really busy between all of their activities. My son plays 3 sports (soccer, baseball and basketball) and my daughter has just recently decided to start horse back riding lessons. My son also does Karate.

We live in Northeast Ohio so winter is here. We have really only had 1 day of snow so far and November has been a little bit on the warmer side then normal. Next week the temp is supposed to dip down to the 20's.

This month my goal is going to be to lose 1.5 pounds per week. This is what I need to meet my goal by August. So that will be a total of 6 pounds. I think this is very doable. My husband and i have put together a good plan.

1. Cut back on eating out. Instead of a few times a week maybe only a few times a month
2. Go to the rec 4-5 times a week. We have put a schedule together for this
3. He will cut back on the beer on the weekend and I will only drink pop when we go out and at a get together.
4. For me add in more water or I should just add water since I don't really drink it. My goal for now is 20 oz a day. Will add more over time

We have several obstacles this month

1. A party with some old coworkers from the daycare I used to work at 10 years ago
2. baking cookies with a friend
3. My son's surgery.
4. Star Wars Movie
5. Christmas eve at my house
6. Christmas day at my mom's
7. Day after Christmas at my dad's

One big plus is I am on vacation (just at home) from the 18th until Jan. 3rd. This should give me more time to get the workouts in. Also, my husband is off too but her has to back on the 2nd where my office is closed that day. This should help as I am not sure how things will look after my son has his surgery. We may not be able to go with each other to work out like we have been. Have the days off gives us more time to split it up and still be there for him

We have several traditional in our house. This is our favorite time of the year. Our tree always goes up the day after Thanksgiving and stays up until the weekend after the 1st. We always bake cookies and tons of them. We used to do this with my mom until she was diagnosed with Celiac and can't be around the flour. We have also started a new tradition for now. We go and see the new star wars movie. We always have my husband's family over on Christmas Eve. We are the only one's with little kids. it makes it easier on us. I make a big Thanksgiving meal except for last year when half the family couldn't make it so we have Filet instead. We always have the Santa Tracker on. The kids love it. The kids have been starting to question if he is real so I ma not sure if they know or not. Then Christmas morning the kids have us up at least by 5 if not earlier to open gifts. I make a big breakfast and sometimes my dad and brothers come over. Then later in the day we go to my mom's. Then we go to my dad's one day around Christmas. it changes every year. This year it is the day after. And then somewhere in here I have to find time to shop.

It is such a busy time of the year but we love it.

 

[Oneanne]

Hi, I'm Lizanne. I'm a singleton from Seattle Washington... the great grey north country. Struggling with my weight has been a life long occupation: I am currently heavier than I have ever been and it is impacting the quality of my life in ways that I absolutely positively must address.

My family has always celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve. I believe this is because we have Scandinavian heritage on both sides... Norwegian and English on my Dad's side and Danish and German on my Mom's side - I think. I'm going to do one of the blood tests this year to affirm this. For 15 years or so our celebrations were pretty much the same with everyone (I have one Sister and two Brothers + their families) gathering together, usually at my place. Things started to shift in 2015, when one of my Brothers moved to Texas, and then again last year when my SIL was so ill. This year there are challenges to face surrounding my Sister as she navigates the first holiday season without my SIL and comes to the anniversary of her passing, which happened right before New Years. I'm hoping it will lead us all in to a deeper more soulful place.

I posted my goals earlier, I'm really focused on releasing the internal struggle and drama and gaining peace within myself... I think this is the path forward to re-gaining better health.

 

[4Mickeys]

Hi, all. This is my first time joining one of these challenges and I'm so happy I found this board. I am a single mom with two wonderful sons who works full-time and is struggling with financial issues right now.

I started jogging in the spring but stopped about a month ago when I realized I would not be able to make a trip to do my first 5k at the Wine and Dine. A month later, I can see how helpful the jogging was as practically all of my clothes are now too tight! So its back on the program for me. My goals for the month:

Lose 5 pounds
Increase water intake
Jog 3x per week

We celebrate Hanukkah and Christmas and I'm working hard to get in the holiday spirit this year! Guess that's another goal!

I look forward to getting to know everyone.

so glad to have you join us. Financial pressure can really affect our moods around the holidays as there is always some expense coming up big and small that adds to that pressure. Your goals sound do-able - you got this.

My husband and i have put together a good plan.

You plan is looking good. It must help that you are both focused on the journey at the moment. My 2 boys started the tradition last time of going to the midnight premiere of Star Wars! They are both big Star Wars fans and I got DS17 4 tickets for his birthday last month - so he, little brother and 2 of his friends are going.

Your schedule makes me tired sometimes but I think it is fantastic your kids are active and enjoying sports. I hope all goes well with your son's surgery - I am sure it will.

Hi, I'm Lizanne. I'm a singleton from Seattle Washington... the great grey north country. Struggling with my weight has been a life long occupation: I am currently heavier than I have ever been and it is impacting the quality of my life in ways that I absolutely positively must address.

My family has always celebrated Christmas on Christmas Eve. I believe this is because we have Scandinavian heritage on both sides... Norwegian and English on my Dad's side and Danish and German on my Mom's side - I think. I'm going to do one of the blood tests this year to affirm this. For 15 years or so our celebrations were pretty much the same with everyone (I have one Sister and two Brothers + their families) gathering together, usually at my place. Things started to shift in 2015, when one of my Brothers moved to Texas, and then again last year when my SIL was so ill. This year there are challenges to face surrounding my Sister as she navigates the first holiday season without my SIL and comes to the anniversary of her passing, which happened right before New Years. I'm hoping it will lead us all in to a deeper more soulful place.

I posted my goals earlier, I'm really focused on releasing the internal struggle and drama and gaining peace within myself... I think this is the path forward to re-gaining better health.

I am loving the quotes you are sharing at the moment - I hope you find more to share with us this month

No doubt Christmas will be a hard one this year - my neighbours are in a similar situation after their young daughter passed this year in early January. They are going away and attempting to avoid the bigger Christmas and just spend it as their little family as they regroup. You have been a wonderful support to your sister - I hope Christmas goes as well as can be expected this year for your family.

 

[glss1/2fll]

I'm also from the Pacific Northwest. I'm 52 with DH of 30 years (he's such a keeper!!) and 2DS in their 20s. One is out of the house and the other is a freshman in college. He comes home in a couple of weeks and we are excited!

We celebrate Christmas, but no decorations go up until after DS2's birthday mid month. They stay up until January 6th (12 days after Christmas!). I do put an Advent thought on our giant whiteboard every day. That means this weekend I need to trudge to the attic and find the box with the calendar of readings in it!

This month I have the last two weeks off work. I am one excited woman!!!! Normally each morning I go to the gym then work. Those two weeks I will go to the gym then be able to walk with my former walking group (darn work hours). That will be fun.

This month I will continue to log my food. I was thinking about upping my steps, but last month I upped them and then a couple days didn't make that goal. I think I'll just leave it the same.

This is a tricky month fellow Disers, but I know we can do it!

 

[HappyGrape]

1) Did I eat smallest number of calories that still allows me to enjoy my day?
No, I didn't actually enjoy my day and went over my calories.
2) No snacking after dinner apart from 1 piece of fruit.
No, and that's why 1 was no. I did good all day but end up oversnacking
3) Minimum of 10 000 steps a day, and my minimal 4 workouts weekly * 20 minutes each?
Yes
4)What did I do great today (or yesterday if reviewing in the morning)
I had great intentions! Lol. That's about it
5)What can I do better tomorrow
I need to stop thinking about all meal, and big plans and focus on doing well now

i eat way too much bread and cheese.

 

[HappyGrape]

I am just reading the news and some weather warnings for Melbourne. I hope the storms/floods stay away from where you live @4Mickeys!

 

[4Mickeys]

This is a tricky month fellow Disers, but I know we can do it!

You bet we can!

I am just reading the news and some weather warnings for Melbourne. I hope the storms/floods stay away from where you live @4Mickeys!

Thank you I am far, far away from that area. It seems to have missed the main area of Melbourne after all but some smaller towns are being affected.

 

[4Mickeys]

Welcome to the weekend. As it is Saturday I thought we could kick off December with the first of many holiday parties/celebrations - an online WISH party. The good part is we can socialise and think about tasty treats and it won't end up increasing our weight.

QsOTD: Please bring a dish to share (either describe or post a pic) - are you going to bring your favourite treat (and not worry about the calories) or are you going to bring a healthier option?

What is your favourite party drink? ​

 

[HappyGrape]

I love bringing some healthier options - dips and veggie sticks,few salads, lean meat like lean burgers! I am making 3 trifles for Chrismtas - one for my mother in law without any fruit as she can't have it, one normal with everything,and one lighter - more fruit less base

 

[4Mickeys]

I have been loving eating fresh berries lately - so I am brining a fruit platter with lots of berries. I am going to be sad when the blueberries go out of season and prices go way up again! A fresh party food I used at my 40th birthday that was a hit with everyone was chicken rice paper rolls.

 

[4Mickeys]

sorry for the giant pics

 

[HappyGrape]

1) Did I eat smallest number of calories that still allows me to enjoy my day?
Yes

2) No snacking after dinner apart from 1 piece of fruit.
1 piece of fruit, small bowl of baby tomatoes with salt so not far off.

3) Minimum of 10 000 steps a day, and my minimal 4 workouts weekly * 20 minutes each?
Yes

4)What did I do great today (or yesterday if reviewing in the morning)
I felt tired yesterday, I went to the gym and only did swim & sauna. I skipped dessert on meal out, I skipped 3 types of dessert home, I enjoyed my meal out and I enjoyed my food home and I can honestly say it was my happy/healthy eating level. If I ate any less, it would have been too little to still enjoy it and if I exercised any more I would have not get my chance to rest properly


5)What can I do better tomorrow
I would love to go to yoga class today but not sure I will get a chance. No meals out, perhaps I can cut some calories if I feel happy to do so.

 

[HappyGrape]

1) Did I eat smallest number of calories that still allows me to enjoy my day?
Yes

2) No snacking after dinner apart from fruit.
Yes.

3) Minimum of 10 000 steps a day, and my minimal 4 workouts weekly * 20 minutes each?
Yes

4)What did I do great today (or yesterday if reviewing in the morning)
It was freezing out but I got to the gym, did 20 minutes strength, treadmill walk watching "this is us" and yoga class.

5)What can I do better tomorrow
Nothing really but I need to get off the couch and prepare some food tonight











Oopps... I spoke too soon (morning update, lol)

 

[dolewhipdreams]

Hey friends sorry I'm late! I realized this morning that I had stopped getting notifications about the November thread so I completely missed the switch to December!

Anyway I'm Ann, a mid 20-something from the great American Midwest. Until 4 days ago I was on Weight Watchers but my subscription ran out and I've decided to shake things up and use what I've learned over the last 6 months to keep myself accountable. This is a little scary for me because of the unknowns. I know that WW worked. If I followed the plan, I lost weight. Simple. But now I'm back in a healthy weight range and just a few pounds above my goal weight and I want to see what I can do on my own.

So for this month I'm not tracking anything. Instead, I'm being mindful of portion size and paying attention to how balanced my meals/snacks are on a daily basis. I'm not really sure how to translate that into a tangible goal, so I'll focus on my other two goals: drink 48 oz water per day, and exercise at least 4 times per week.

We'll see how it goes! I'll be watching the scale but not paying as much attention to it as I have in the last few months. I'm looking for more non-scale victories now and trying to get fully into 'maintain' mode.

Happy December!

 

[Flossbolna]

Hello everyone!!

I am Magdalene, 46, from Germany. December this year is going to be a big month for me, not only is Christmas happening, but I am also getting married at the end of the month. So, the motivation to stay on track with healthy eating is very high! But the stress level is also very high and and I am a stress eater. I need to make sure that December counts and hopefully I can see a little bit of weight loss during the month. I am not setting any goals as I have struggled with losing anything over the last months despite exercise and eating healthy. My doctor actually sent me to an endocrinologist to get me checked out because of my lack of weight loss. But that appointment won't be until the middle of January.

One Christmas event I am hosting every year is an evening where I make aebleskiver, a Danish speciality of ball-like pancakes. You need a specific pan for them and they are eaten with powdered sugar and jam. I always have a number of friends around for this and it is always fun! Not light though... My favourite light winter snack are good oranges!! My father just got a shipment from Sicilly and I just had one as my afternoon snack and it was delicious!!

 

[HappyGrape]

@Flossbolna you kept that quiet! Congratulations! Did you decide where will you live after the wedding! Huge congratulations to you both, happy times ahead!

 

[Oneanne]

Hello everyone!!

I am Magdalene, 46, from Germany. December this year is going to be a big month for me, not only is Christmas happening, but I am also getting married at the end of the month. So, the motivation to stay on track with healthy eating is very high! But the stress level is also very high and and I am a stress eater. I need to make sure that December counts and hopefully I can see a little bit of weight loss during the month. I am not setting any goals as I have struggled with losing anything over the last months despite exercise and eating healthy. My doctor actually sent me to an endocrinologist to get me checked out because of my lack of weight loss. But that appointment won't be until the middle of January.

One Christmas event I am hosting every year is an evening where I make aebleskiver, a Danish speciality of ball-like pancakes. You need a specific pan for them and they are eaten with powdered sugar and jam. I always have a number of friends around for this and it is always fun! Not light though... My favourite light winter snack are good oranges!! My father just got a shipment from Sicilly and I just had one as my afternoon snack and it was delicious!!

Congratulations!

 

[piglet1979]

Hello everyone!!

I am Magdalene, 46, from Germany. December this year is going to be a big month for me, not only is Christmas happening, but I am also getting married at the end of the month. So, the motivation to stay on track with healthy eating is very high! But the stress level is also very high and and I am a stress eater. I need to make sure that December counts and hopefully I can see a little bit of weight loss during the month. I am not setting any goals as I have struggled with losing anything over the last months despite exercise and eating healthy. My doctor actually sent me to an endocrinologist to get me checked out because of my lack of weight loss. But that appointment won't be until the middle of January.

One Christmas event I am hosting every year is an evening where I make aebleskiver, a Danish speciality of ball-like pancakes. You need a specific pan for them and they are eaten with powdered sugar and jam. I always have a number of friends around for this and it is always fun! Not light though... My favourite light winter snack are good oranges!! My father just got a shipment from Sicilly and I just had one as my afternoon snack and it was delicious!!

Congratulations!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Oneanne]

QOTD:

As has been well documented, I'm not a good cook... but one thing I am quite good at is making Caprese Salad. I often joke about having 101 ways to present it, but it's really not a joke at all, I really do have 101 different ways to put it together . So far I've only found one restaurant that I feel makes a better Caprese than I do, and that's Flying Fish at The Boardwalk. In addition to the best mozzarella, I use a Spanish Olive Oil that is citrus infused and a Balsamic reduction instead of straight up vinegar, because it sticks better.





OK I won't post 101 pictures, but you get the idea. Although it's a summer dish the red/green/white colors make it perfect for the holidays as well.

Accountability for the weekend:

I really didn't make any adjustments in my eating towards losing 5 pounds.
I didn't get a walk outdoors done over the weekend, but I will be spending time outdoors tonight.
I did think about gratitude.
And I did think about peace, although I can't claim to have walked thru my days in peace.

You wouldn't know it by the lack of progress towards my goals, but I actually had a good productive weekend. I didn't get everything done, but I got it all started.
* I got a new/second Christmas tree (I just wasn't feeling the first one, so it's getting used outside), and rearranged the living room to suit it and started decorating it.
* I've wanted to swap bedrooms for about 6 months, but kept putting it off because there's so much stuff in the craft-bedroom. I finally got to my "just do it" moment and got thru
a lot of the stuff. I'll do a bit more sorting and organizing tonight and then tomorrow night I'll move the furniture.
* When I got home from the grocery store last night I thought I should probably check the outlet back by the garage to make sure the extension cord for the Christmas lights was really
plugged in - and it wasn't. Whaalaa... the lights all came on. A Christmas miracle.
* Another miracle, I had to clean up the house because my landlord will be in it today, and it only took me 10 minutes to put things right.

Last week I did my annual wellness check for work and everything came back looking good, except for my weight of course. Even my blood pressure was under the new standard so that was great, and quite a relief.