Get Fit Slowly

If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

On Friday evening, Mac and I attended a Christmas party at our friend Jeremy’s. Jeremy and his wife, Jennifer, love good food, good wine, and good friends. This is a a recipe for fun, but it’s also a recipe for overeating. I’m proud to say that both of us made it through the evening without gorging ourselves.

For me, the challenge began earlier in the day. Kris and I spent a couple of hours helping to prep the food. I was surrounded by cheese and bread and meats and cookies. I indulged in a couple hunks of cheese, but that was about it. During the event itself, I snacked some (and even had some peppermint bark), but mostly I picked at the celery and carrot sticks. Celery and carrot sticks. Celery and carrot sticks.

Celery and carrot sticks aren’t exciting, especially to a foodie, but they served their purpose. At events like this, I often eat for the sake of eating. I eat because it’s the social thing to do. Celery and carrot sticks give me something to munch on that’s mainly water and fiber.

Though the wine was flowing freely, I wandered the party with a glass of water in my hand. The truth is I don’t find it difficult to resist wine so long as I have a glass of water with me at all times. (Last spring, I spent a month drinking only water, and it was actually kind of nice.)

At one point, Mac and I posed for a photo to highlight the “before”. Our goal is that next Christmas an “after” photo will reveal much slimmer fellows.

Our heroes: J.D. on the left, Mac on the right

“Hey, J.D. Have you lost weight?” Wendy asked when she saw me. “You look thinner.”

I laughed. “No way!” I said. “I’m at the heaviest point of my life.”

“You do look thinner,” Mike said. “Your outfit must be slimming.” We all laughed. Mentally, though, I filed away my “slimming” outfit for future use.

Toward the end of the party, Mac confided, “I violated the number one rule for avoiding holiday weight gain.”

“What’s that?” I asked.

“I came to this party hungry,” he said as he grabbed another carrot stick.