Xmas Tips

[CSLegitimate]

Hey guys + gals, what are your top tips for the Christmas binge?

[AnderJaspo]

Recommend changing that avi, OP.

[JakeSim]

Keep a picture of you with you on your phone showing your progress. View it and then view the food.

OR

Save all your calories for one meal if it's going to be a big one. Then estimate and if you still have calories left, fill er up.

[weknow24]

what are your top tips

Eat.

[BWC101]

Just be normal and enjoy the occasion for a couple of days. Go back to your current or revised plan after it.

[Miickk]

Hey guys + gals, what are your top tips for the Christmas binge?

Maybe just don't worry about it...

[WonderPug]

Enjoy yourself like a normal,healthy individual.

[anonymous]

avoid starting threads like this before redness ensues

[rand18m]

Eat.

Yep^^! And I would add enjoy!!

Just be normal and enjoy the occasion for a couple of days. Go back to your current or revised plan after it.

Yep^!

Maybe just don't worry about it...

Absolutely^!

Enjoy yourself like a normal,healthy individual.

This X 2!!!

avoid starting threads like this before redness ensues

Aw, it wasn't that bad of a question!!

[texicus]

fap before the meal bc you'll be too full after

[JakeSim]

fap before the meal bc you'll be too full after

[Tdiguy]

^^^ I suppose you avoid this as well incase it has calories?/effect you gains?

[texicus]

^^^ I suppose you avoid this as well incase it has calories?/effect you gains?

lol test levels go down to zero every time you fap bro.


notsrs

[JakeSim]

^^^ I suppose you avoid this as well incase it has calories?/effect you gains?

Ya actually!

[Tdiguy]

Ya actually!

Lol pathetic

[JakeSim]

Lol pathetic

Gotta get dem ice cream abs.

[OoChadwickoO]

lol test levels go down to zero every time you fap bro.


notsrs

Man is that why ive been going catabloic at night. Ive lost all my muscle gains since fapping 20 times a day, once every hour, i even make sure to wake up every 1.5 hours to fap after i recharge. feel great (:

[Tdiguy]

Gotta get dem ice cream abs.

Funny guy, you have a disorder and yet you think its funny to try and bash someone who can properly brush my teeth and not scared to eat ice cream lol.....Enjoy you pain, ill enjoy my ben and jerrys yah *******.


Stop fuking negging me for your issues

[JakeSim]

Funny guy, you have a disorder and yet you think its funny to try and bash someone who can properly brush my teeth and not scared to eat ice cream lol.....Enjoy you pain, ill enjoy my ben and jerrys yah *******.


Stop fuking negging me for your issues

Sorry bud. I already eat ice cream and tapioca pudding and all that. I negged you due to the reason I stated in my last post.

[KouRon]

Read this : http://www.leangains.com/2010/11/che...-hedonist.html

Cheat Day Strategies

Here are some strategies you might find useful. They are how I approach cheat days and holiday feasts, and what I encourage my clients to do. First, however let me address what you should not be doing.


1. Don't stress it.

Some people "pre-compensate" holidays by training themselves into the ground and/or reduce calories significantly in the days leading up to the feast. I highly recommend you do not do this, since I can almost guarantee that you will end up eating a lot more than you would normally if you approach holidays or feasts in a "deprived" mindset.

I touched on this issue in "Intermittent Fasting, Set-Point and Leptin." On the folly of "planning" a big meal or refeed at the end of the diet instead of taking it nice and easy, I said:

"...I would sit and plan my big refeed meal at the end of the diet. I would count every day like an inmate counting the days to his release from prison. And once I reached my goal, I would go bonkers, eat a bunch of crap, take several steps back and then go back to dieting in a feeble attempt to make up for my screwed up 'refeed' (aka binge in my case)."

Take it nice and slow - don't do anything stupid in the days before. No need to train your butt off and deplete glycogen, no need to up your cardio to two hours a day. You'll just end up eating more junk if you do. This is due to a combination of psychology and physiology (i.e. plummeting leptin.)

The topic of calorie-compensation is a well-known phenomenon; it's part of why exercise doesn't produce the predicted weight loss in some people. This is based on studies on Average Joes and Janes, and do not apply in most circumstances to the people reading this article. However, with specific reference to holiday eating and cheat days, I definitely notice a tendency in myself to eat more than I normally would if I train or reduce calories in the day leading up to the occasion.

Surely some people get away with it and don't compensate but in my experience those who think they are exempt from the rule are the ones to which the rule applies.


2. Create a calorie buffer.

On the day of the feast, you'll want to make sure you have a buffer saved up for the occasion. You'll either want to reduce your meal frequency as much as you can or reduce your calorie intake in the meals leading up to the feast.

If possible, fast up until the big meal. This is easy and a bit of a no-brainer for those used to intermittent fasting. If you are used to 16-hour fasts per my usual recommendations, it should not be an issue to prolong it further, i.e. doing a 20-24 hour fast ("Eat Stop Eat"-style).

Make sure you eat a high-protein meal on the day before, as usual - preferably with fiber to slow down absorption. That's also a good practice for regular Leangains-fasts but it's even more so important for >16-hour fasts to avoid hunger pangs in my experience. Should hunger become unbearable, which I've never experienced even during prolonged fasting, drink some coffee and/or eat a plate of fibrous vegetables.

The second best strategy if you're not used to intermittent fasting is to use a "high-protein low-everything-else"-diet leading up to the feast. This will maximize satiety for the lowest amount of calories. Here's an example assuming you have your big feast planned for dinner or around evening, 5-8 PM or so:

10-12 PM: 40-50 g protein, trace carbs and fat (~200-250 kcal)

2-3 PM: Same as above.

5-8 PM: The grand feast. Be it Thanksgiving Dinner, cheesecake mastery or whatever else you have planned that involves eating yourself silly.

For a regular guy, the above plan allows about 2000 calories of goodness during the big meal until any significant fat gain occurs. Still, if you're like me you can eat a whole lot more than that in one sitting. Next we'll have a look at what you can do for damage control during the meal itself.

By the way, here's a pro tip: If you don't know how to make a "high-protein, low-everything-else"-diet bearable, you need to try protein fluff. I've yet to encounter a more satiating and tasty high-protein treat.




Protein fluff; I mistakenly wrote that you'd need casein or milk-protein isolate for this, but people report getting respectable fluffs with some whey protein brands as well. Give it a go - you'll love it.


3. Protein priority.

In the short-term, splurging on high-carb, high-protein and low-fat foods would lead to insignificant fat gain, as glycogen stores would soak up most of the carbs (which would severely limit DNL.) However, such an approach is not very appealing, or realistic, if you want to experience the splendor of Thanksgiving and Christmas. I don't know about you, but I never think of the gifts on Christmas - I think of all the food I get to eat

Here's how I suggest you approach the eating spree that is about to ensue:

* Vary fat and carb intake to personal preference but make protein a high priority. "Protein first - carbs and fat for taste". If you think of your meals like this, it'll automatically raise the percentage of protein during the meal, increasing TEF and satiety.

* In regards to the order which you eat your foods, I suggest mainly focusing on protein, fat and volume (i.e. veggies) first and then add carbs in later. In my personal experience, this tends to maximize both short-term and long-term satiety and reduce calorie intake later on. Fat has a latent effect on appetite-suppression, so eating more fat earlier on makes sense.

* Do not neglect food volume - if possible, try to fill up on veggies in your early meals and save the more calorie-dense stuff for later on.

* Sucrose, fructose and liquid calories, i.e. treats, cakes and alcohol, should preferably be added in last, when you're full from the main meal(s).


4. Limit choices, not amounts.

Studies show that when people are presented with multiple food-choices, they eat more. In fact, calorie intake during a buffet scales almost linearly with the amount of different foods to choose from. If I offered you unlimited amounts of turkey and cheesecake, you'd likely only eat so much of it before you felt "full" and satisfied.

However, if I threw a third food into the mix, like potatoes or chocolate pudding, you'd end up eating a lot more - even if you weren't a fan of potatoes or chocolate pudding in normal circumstances. Humans are wired a bit funny and some behaviors are maladaptive in our environment of excesses. Having a taste of everything was a good strategy during our evolution, since it protected again micronutrient-deficiencies.

By "mentally limiting" the food choices you allow yourself, i.e. only eating that which you absolutely love and crave, can be a very effective strategy in regulating calorie intake without feeling deprived. Remember, you don't need to taste of every damn food or treat that is offered. Stick to that which you truly enjoy eating and skip the rest.

[Freshdou]

Eat everything in sight

[ErikTheElectric]

Why would you want to already plan a "binge"? The holidays should be about enjoying yourself and your family members. Not making it solely about how much your going to stuff food into your mouth for a day..

Go chew some gum, or get yourself away from the table if you feel like you can't handle being around "tempting foods".

[ricardoperu]

Eat everything

[fldhkybnva]

I don't binge in the sense of eating everything and anything in sight but for the week from Christmas Eve to New Year's Day I usually overeat everyday with a lot of high calorie foods with moderation (not indulging to the point of utter misery and discomfort, but if I plan to only have a slice of pie or two or scoop of ice cream and then want more I have no reservations and just grab the pint and eat until I don't want anymore). It's a great week of indulgence and for me it's 7 days out of a very long year and it's the season to enjoy food and family and so I don't really worry about it. If I eat a huge intake on Christmas Day and the family wants to go to Chinese buffet or something the next day, I'm all in. If I counted up the calories, it'd probably be somewhat scary especially since most of the foods are high calorie in small volumes but you can eat a lot of them without getting your full, but I tell myself that if I put on 2, 5 or even 10 lbs, the New Year I always get right back on program and any damage can be reversed.

Cliffs: enjoy myself to the fullest, without reservation

[sonnydfrizzy]

Hey guys + gals, what are your top tips for the Christmas binge?

Moderation. And enjoy the event for the friends/family, reasons for Christmas, etc., and not just for the food.

[CSLegitimate]

Great response everyone thank you!