Did you know that the average Thanksgiving meal can be anywhere from 3000 – 4000 calories! That’s approaching gaining 1lb, (3500 cals to gain/lose a pound or 2.2 kgs) just for one meal! How do you still enjoy yourself and not derail yourself from your weight goals? I’ll share how Im going to approach it in a bit, but here are some web sites I found about Thanksgiving that may help:
Great Huffington Post article, on being thankful.
Another good article, on just how many calories in all of that yummy food!.
Here’s my approach to enjoy myself and still keep on track:
- Since Thursday is the last day of my week, my bonus points are crucial. I try to get as much exercise and keep within my daily budget to maximize the number of bonus points I have for Thursday.
- I absolutely refuse to weigh myself the day after. I’m not going to get discouraged knowing that I may have gained weight that I know will come off by the end of the following week.
- I’ll be very careful for the week following Thanksgiving just to ensure any excess calories are burned up.
- I’ll skip the rolls at dinner. at 50-100+ calories a pop, do I really need to stuff myself with them? I’d rather enjoy the real food, like turkey!
- I always make my own gravy by combining fat free chicken stock, a touch of sherry, flour and 1 tablespoon of the pan drippings (with as little fat as possible). You’d be surprised at the enormous amount of flavor 1 tablespoon has.
- Eat sensibly. No one says you need to pop a button on your pants to enjoy yourself. I like to enjoy a little of everything, and hey, there are always leftovers!
- I’ve never been a big sweets person, so I usually skip the pie, but if you like it, have it! Just think portion size. 1/4 of a pumpkin pie is not 1 serving!
I hope you and your family have a happy, safe, and thankful Thanksgiving!
