Move it Monday and Thanksgiving
some tips.
Wondering how to keep healthy during the holiday? Here are a couple of tips:
Healthy Holiday Eating Tips for Thanksgiving
If you are a guest at a Thanksgiving dinner:
- Don't go to the Thanksgiving dinner hungry: we often eat faster and more when we are hungry - therefore eat a wholesome breakfast and lunch on the day to avoid overeating at dinner time.
- Thanksgiving dinner is not an all-you-can-eat buffet: Fill your plate half with vegetables, one quarter with a lean meat and the rest with a starch of your choice. Eat slowly and stop when you are full.
- Turkey - go skinless: choose your 4-oz turkey portion skinless to slash away some fat and cholesterol. Save your appetite for the side dishes and desserts.
- Side Dishes - watch your portion size: go for smaller portions. This way you can sample all the different foods. Moderation is always the key.
- Make a conscious choice to limit high fat items: high fat food items can be found in fried and creamy dishes as well as cheese-filled casseroles in a traditional Thanksgiving meal . For instance, mashed potatoes are usually made with butter and milk; green bean casseroles are often prepared with cream of mushroom soup, cheese and milk and topped with fried onions; candied yams are loaded with cream, sugar and marshmallows. If you cannot control the ingredients that go in to a dish, simply limit yourself to a smaller helping size. Again moderation is the key.
- Drink plenty of water: alcohol and coffee can dehydrate your body. Drink calorie-free water to help fill up your stomach and keep you hydrated.
If you are the honorable chef of a Thanksgiving dinner:
- Substitute high fat ingredients with lower-fat or fat-free ingredients. Learn about the 5 easy steps to recipe substitutions or see table below.
- Leftover Turkey? Instead of turkey sandwiches, use the leftover turkey to make a pot of soup with fresh chunky vegetables.
- Experiment with new recipes: we did a search on Google and found numerous delicious yet healthy low-fat contemporary Thanksgiving recipes. Experiment!
Happy Thanksgiving!
healthy. LIFE.
Reader Comments (2)
I needed to read this!
I'm in charge of dessert and am doing lower sugar options. But ... let's just say "there will be cream cheese"
Oh, this is for Laura, if she pokes her nose in: http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/flourless-chocolate-cake-00000000044848/index.html
OK, not low fat, but low in sugar + flour.
Being the "honorable chef", I never sit down to my own Thanksgiving dinner hungry....good/bad.
Thanks for the tips! Have a great holiday!