slides: Ten Tips For A Healthy Thanksgiving Day
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Thursday, November 13, 2014
Emily Johnson, GoLocalPDX Guest Contributor
Photo credit: iStock
Thanksgiving is a holiday tradition filled with family, fun, food, food, food, alcohol and football. Leftovers consist of more food and about 2-5 extra pounds. The average person will consume approximately 3,000 - 4,500 additional calories during the Thanksgiving eat-a-thon weekend.
See Slides Below: 10 Healthy Tips For Thanksgiving Day
How much exercise does it take a person to burn off a 3,000 calorie Thanksgiving Day meal?
- 5 hours of cardio on an elliptical machine.
- Run at a moderate pace for 4 hours.
- Swim for 5 hours.
- Garden for 7 consecutive hours.
- 9 hours of aqua aerobics.
- 5 hours of moderate to intense Zumba.
Most nutritionists would tell you that Thanksgiving is just another day and there is no need to indulge or overeat. While that might be true, it's just not realistic for most people.
Accomplishing your weight loss and health goals means understanding how to balance your meals and enjoy your favorite holiday foods in moderation.
No need to worry There is a way to enjoy Thanksgiving and still keep to your nutrition and exercise goals. Here are 10 nutrition tips for Thanksgiving day.
Emily Johnson is the owner of Portland Fit Body Boot Camp, located at 3228 SE 21st Ave. Portland, OR 97202. Read and download her full Thanksgiving Survival Guide for free, and learn more about Fit Body Boot Camp here.
Related Slideshow: 10 Tips For A Healthy Thanksgiving Day
Here are 10 tips and tricks to keep your diet and exercise goals in tact on the biggest food holiday of the year.
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Do NOT Skip Meals
Limit your intake of calories leading up to the big day. Eat breakfast and a protein-packed lunch before the big feast. If you starve yourself during the day, you could wind up SO hungry that by the time you sit down at the dinner table you eat WAY too much food.
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Lean Meat
Go for lean, white meat turkey to get the most bank for your calorie-buck. Dark meat has about 15 % more calories and 30-40% more fat than light meat. If you prefer the dark meat, then at least take off the skin since that is where most of the fat (added calories) is.
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Protein First
Start with the protein (animal or vegetarian). Start with your protein choice and then work on the vegetables. Leave the starchy carbs until the end. The protein will help slow the brake down of the starchy carbs. All that chewing will help you to feel full before you get to the starch.
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Breathe
Pause and take some breaths. After you finish each dish on your plate put your fork town. Take a couple of slow deep breaths. Enjoy what you've previously eaten before starting on the next dish. The deep breaths don't have to be obvious. Taking pauses and some deep breaths will also help aid digestion.
Photo Credit: shawnzrossi via Compfight cc
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Drinks?
Choose calorie free beverages. If you are going to be having alcoholic beverages then everything else you drink should be calorie free. Skip the pop, coffees and juices. Drink lots of water to avoid the dehydration that comes along with drinking too much.
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Side Dish
Ask if you can make a side dish - make it an easy guilt free dish so you will have at least one thing to splurge on. Veggie dishes don't have to be boring.
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Exercise
Burn calories! The more calories you burn with activity, the more food you can consume without feeling terrible about it. Do not skip the exercise leading up to the feast or on the day of. Make time to get to exercise and raise your heart rate. Your metabolism will thank you for it.
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Your Outfit
Wear form fitting clothing and you will be less likely to overeat. No sweat pants or stretchy pants. No one wants to see you with your pants unbuttoned after the meal.
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Your Plate
Use a salad plate instead of a regular dinner plate. If your plate is smaller you will not have as much room on it and won't overload it with too much of the stuff you shouldn't have a lot of. Also, this helps trick your eye; no one likes to see half their plate empty.
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Goals
Keep your goal in mind! Although you may only overindulge a couple times over the holidays- a little plus a little plus a little adds up to a whole lot. Remind yourself why you are choosing to lose weight and keep that goal in the forefront of your mind.
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Bonus Tip!
Have a hard boiled egg or 10 nuts about 45 minutes prior to the main meal. Having approximately 70 - 100 calories will help you to minimize your level of hunger so you can better control your portion sizes.
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