Little Changes in Thanksgiving Recipes Can Have a Big Effect

The winter holidays, and Thanksgiving in particular, are highly focused on food, and at times it can seem almost impossible to keep eating under control, and keep from seriously overdoing the calories.  As Clinical Psychologist Dr. Denise Lamothe, a leading expert on emotional eating, pointed out in a press release on November 23rd, because of the stress and chaos of the holiday season, "many of us have spent holiday season after holiday season telling ourselves to have just one little treat. Instead we binge our way through, not only the holiday season, but also well beyond the New Year."

Don't Go Hungry

As odd as it might sound, one of the best ways to avoid binging is to not avoid food at other times.  As few ideas along these lines:

• Don't go shopping hungry.  You're more likely to buy more, and opt for more fattening choices for snacks, appetizers, and ingredients for your Thanksgiving recipes, as your body equates it to being 'better' in terms of cravings, having more calories.
• Be sure to have a good breakfast and a modest, healthy lunch on Thanksgiving day, so by the time Thanksgiving dinner rolls around, you won't be as likely to gorge.
• Be sure to wait 20-30 minutes before taking seconds if it is feasible; this will give your body more of a chance to recognize if it is really still hungry.

Make Smarter Thanksgiving Dinner Menu Choices

Just making a few minor changes to your Thanksgiving dinner menu and routine can have a big impact on your calorie count.

• Drink water with lemon instead of wine or soda.  Water is hugely important when eating large meals, even more than normally, as it helps the body to synthesize the carbs you take in.  It also helps if you are planning to drink alcohol, as it will prevent you from drinking the alcohol to simply quench thirst, and helps to reduce or prevent hangovers the next day.
• Opt for lower-calorie ingredients in Thanksgiving recipes, where you won't notice as much.  For instance, it doesn't have much affect on a green bean casserole recipe to use low-fat cream of celery or mushroom soup, but such little changes add up.
• Go for fruits, vegetable and lean proteins as much as possible, especially for appetizers where people tend to get lots of calories without being filling at all.

Other Helpful Tips

A good cardiovascular workout, even a walk of 30 minutes or so, will help digestion immediately after dinner, and over the next few days as well to burn off the extra carbs you pick up.

Remember that dessert is meant to be a pleasant little treat to close the meal, not a whole course.

And finally, don't be so strict with yourself that you can't reach your own expectations, and so simply give up and binge.  A "little" bad is much preferrable to going all out.

photo by Jacob Enos

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• Easy, everyday tips for healthier eating - simple ways to incorporate more healthy food in the diet
• Americans not getting even close to enough fruits and vegetables in their diets says CDC - reasons to try and include more fruits and veggies in your Thanksgiving dinner menu
• How much water should you actually drink? - yes, it is actually possible to overdo it, even on water

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