Did you know that the average American consumes 3000-4500 calories on Thanksgiving? Combined, we are eating roughly 8.1 billion calories.
Did you also know that the average American male would need to spend 10 hours and 33 minutes on the treadmill to burn the 4,500 calories consumed at the average Thanksgiving meal? (SOURCE)
It doesn’t have to be this way. By approaching Thanksgiving with a plan, you can enjoy healthy holiday eating, both physically and emotionally. With that in mind, here are five quick and easy tips for managing holiday eating.
Five tips on healthy holiday eating.
- Portion control: Allow yourself your favorite foods without guilt but take small portions of each to enjoy them. In general, the following guide helps determine portion control.
- Your palm determines your protein portions.
- Your fist determines your vegetable portions.
- Your cupped hand determines your carb portions.
- Your thumb determines your fat portions.
Small helpings mean you can successfully enjoy everything on the table without feeling the guilt and physical discomfort of overindulging.
- Take ten before reaching for more. It takes some time for your stomach to communicate the feeling of fullness to your brain. After eating your first helping, take a break. Take a lap around the room. Have some water and make small talk. Then check your appetite.
- Careful party positioning: Don’t set up camp by the food. A strategic location will help to prevent absent-minded munching. In addition, moving around (or even taking a quick walk) will help stave off feeling sluggish and over-full.
- Eat some healthy snacks pre-party to avoid going in starving: Nuts, nut butter, avocado, fruit, and eggs are excellent choices, using the portion sizes above.
- And finally, feel free to load up on fruits and veggies: If you are hungry between meals, they are an excellent low-calorie filler between main courses.
Take the next step.
If the thought of staying healthy over the holidays is overwhelming to you, consider that along with our premium swim lessons, One with the Water also offers Barbell Strength Training using the science-backed Starting Strength method to train your whole body. Call today for more information.
Food is not the enemy, and holiday gatherings shouldn’t be a source of anxiety when faced with so many choices. With a little bit of planning, you can be confidant in your ability to navigate the Thanksgiving meal while being kind to your body.
Molly is a member of our creative team, mom of four water-loving babies, and a fierce advocate for CPR training and really early swim instruction.