![How to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain]()
A few months ago, I asked my friend how her birthday dinner was, and she said, “Which one? I’ve been celebrating non-stop the entire month! I can’t wait for it to be over. I’m gaining so much weight.” I recently asked another friend, “How was Halloween?” She said, “We declared it Halloween week! I ate candy every day, and now I’m disgusted with myself.” Turning October 31 to January 1 into a continuous eating fest is the reason for holiday weight gain. Treating yourself only on the actual holiday should not cause any significant shift in your weight. When did it get this way? When did a one-day birthday or holiday become a month-long celebration? As soon as July 4th ends, Halloween candy shows up on drugstore shelves. Christmas candy is in stores already, and Thanksgiving isn’t even here yet. As soon as Christmas passes, Valentine’s Day candy will be on display, and so on and so forth. The commercialization of holidays is hard on our waistlines. We are bombarded with candy, baked goods and holiday treats for prolonged periods, and it’s hard not to break down and give in long before the actual holiday. I urge you to join me and make it through Thanksgiving without gaining weight. There is a huge difference between one decadent meal sandwiched between days of healthy eating and a month of “trying out dishes for my Thanksgiving menu.” You can do it! Follow these tips to keep those numbers on the scale steady this holiday season: Before the big day Commit to clean eating until the actual Thanksgiving (or other holiday) meal, then resume your healthy eating habits the following day. Don’t eat “holiday foods” until the actual holiday. If you love pumpkin pie, make it your dessert on Thanksgiving, not every day before and after simply because it’s available at the supermarket or leftovers are sitting around. If you’ll be celebrating at someone else’s home, plan to bring a vegetable appetizer or side dish that is diet friendly and that you enjoy, such as a crudité platter with hummus, roasted Brussels sprouts or string beans with almond slivers, to share. Think about what your “ideal” Thanksgiving meal would be. What would you eat? Write it down and stick with the vision. For example, I love anything sweet potato, but I don’t love regular potatoes or stuffing. Just because they’re served doesn’t mean you have to eat them. On the day of the holiday Don’t eat all day long–grazing is for cows! When you graze, your brain has difficulty registering how much food you’re taking in, and you feel like you haven’t had a meal. Be sure to eat a distinct breakfast, lunch and dinner on Thanksgiving day. Don’t try to save up calories for later. Skipping breakfast and/or lunch will make you feel entitled to eating more than you should. If you’ll be eating your holiday meal at lunchtime, prepare a light dinner of protein and vegetables, or vice versa. Some appetizer advice Commit to only eating crudité and/or protein as an appetizer. Save your ‘treating’ for the actual holiday meal and dessert. Choose foods that actually go with the occasion you are celebrating. For example, pigs in blankets, cheese and crackers or mac ‘n’ cheese are not typical Thanksgiving foods, so don’t eat them just because your aunt sets them on the table. Whether it’s appetizers or the main meal, enjoy traditional dishes – turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes, pie, etc. – on the holiday. Your holiday plate A good rule of thumb is to divide your dinner plate into quarters and fill each quarter with one serving of food from each category: Protein: typically turkey on Thanksgiving Savory carbohydrate: mashed potatoes, stuffing, grain dish, etc. Sweet carbohydrate: sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, etc. Vegetable: roasted Brussels sprouts, spinach, string beans, etc. If you are still hungry after your first plate of food, wait 10 minutes before going for seconds to see if you’re really still hungry. If you still want more, refill your plate with another serving of veggies and one more serving of either protein, a savory food or a sweet carbohydrate (not all 3). After that, be done. Save room for dessert! Not crazy creamy green bean casserole or marsmallow-topped candied yams? Don’t let anyone bully you into eating something you don’t really want. Just because your mother in law slaved over her sugar-laced cranberry sauce doesn’t mean you have to eat it. Let the haters hate. Friends and family may be annoyed that you aren’t joining in on the gluttonous merriment and unbuttoning your pants, but why should you have to binge eat just because they are? If people pressure you to join in, do as Taylor Swift sings and “shake it off.” A sweet ending For dessert, choose what you really want. Don’t waste time on fruit when your eyes have been on Grandma’s apple pie. You can eat fruit any day! Thanksgiving is a day to do things you wouldn’t normally do. Survey dessert offerings before you commit. If you were at a café, you wouldn’t order five pieces of cake. You’d pick the dessert that appeals to you most, and you’d purcahse it. Pretend the dessert table is a dessert bar and you have to pay for your order. Pick one dessert, help yourself to a regular sized serving, then sit at the table and enjoy it with some tea. Don’t graze on small slivers or spoonfuls of dessert. Every new dessert you try will stimulate the brain to want more, causing you to eat more dessert than you would have if you committed to just one. After the feast If you have leftovers, discard or donate everything but the lean protein and vegetables. Yes, it’s a shame to waste half of a pecan pie, but that’s Thanksgiving. Excess food is often prepared, and unfortunately a lot of it may not be consumed. Better to get rid of it than have it stuck in your arteries and on your hips!
