P. Mehta, RD/ www.healthfulfilling.com
Did you know the average American can end up eating more than 4,500 calories on Thanksgiving Day? That’s not including breakfast or any other late night snacking, just the feast and appetizers. How could it be possible to enjoy the Thanksgiving feast and all the trimmings and not gain weight? You can enjoy the day and keep the pounds off if you treat it like a regular meal rather than a ready, set, go, let’s eat to our heart’s content approach. The key is enjoy, and try to have warning bells or cues to stop you from over indulging.
Here are some tips to help listen to those cues:
1. Eat slowly, enjoy and savor each bite. It often takes 20 minutes or more to recognize fullness.
2. Look forward to leftovers, so you don’t feel like you have to eat a lot all at once.
3. Use a smaller plate if you think you’ll over serve yourself.
4. Eat earlier in the day, try to get the big feast started by 4pm to 5pm.
5. Move around and sit less after the appetizers and meal, especially if you are planning to watch football or a movie; get up during commercials or put the remote control away to get yourself off the sofa more often.
If you have any current health conditions, or are on a prescribed dietary regimen, be sure to consult your physician or registered dietitian. Check out an interesting article by the Washington Post about how large meals can cause health problems if you overeat excessively. You can view it at:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/11/22/AR2010112204836.html?g=0
Have a happy and healthy Thanksgiving!