When I asked you two weeks ago what you wanted help with the most for Thanksgiving – the VAST majority said help with not overeating. So let’s talk about it!
Having a healthier Thanksgiving is possible, and it doesn’t have to be hard, but it does require one to be intentional about the choices that are made.
Thanksgiving Plate Guide
Since Thanksgiving only comes around one time a year, it can be easy to glorify the Thanksgiving feast and feel the need to succumb to gluttony. We think overeating will be fun – but the anticipation of it is sometimes more fun than the actual eating when it really comes down to it! Thanksgiving dinner is something many look forward to every year, BUT if we overeat, it really does NOT feel good afterwards, ya feel me?
Here are ways to help combat the habit of overeating on Thanksgiving so you can enjoy a healthier Thanksgiving dinner and the quality time with your loved ones.
Focus on the conversations and your family
What’s MOST important on Thanksgiving is to focus on the conversation and spending time with family and friends. Afterall, that’s a big part of the reason for the season too, right? Thanksgiving is the start of the times of the year where we get to see long distance relatives, meet new ones, and have the opportunity to catch up after spending months away.
Ask for recipes so you can make dishes at home! (so nothing feels one-time-only!)
The holidays are my favorite times of the year. If you know who will be doing the cooking in advance, one idea you could try is to get the recipes so you can make the dishes at home! Doing so will help the food at the Thanksgiving feast not feel so much like a one time only opportunity. It helps to reduce your impulse to load up on any and everything because you know some things you can go back to make any day of the week and long after Thanksgiving is over.
Survey the scene first, then pick what looks BEST
Before you fix your Thanksgiving dinner plate, walk around to see what all there is to be offered. This allows you to know in advance what all you’d like to try and helps you prioritize room on your plate for the foods you’d like the best.
Fill half your plate with veggies
A big help to avoid overeating is to first fill your 1/ 2 of your plate with veggies. I’m talking about green bean casserole, brussels sprouts, green beans, collard greens, a salad, or whatever other vegetable you wouldn’t mind eating that day. Reserving half of your plate for veggies is the ultimate way to have serious portion control. YOu’ll thank yourself later!
Make ¼ of your plate protein, the other ¼ starch
Now, the other portions of your plate can be evenly divided between having a 1 / 4 of the plate filled with protein and the other 1 /4 with starches. You know that coveted white meat turkey breast? Yep, load up a 1 / 4 of your plate with that. The remaining slot, have at it with your choice of starchy sides like mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, sweet potato casserole, or dressing.
Only put what you like on your plate
Now while you may be tempted to just add things to your plate just to try them out, but if you want to avoid overeating, only choose the foods you LOVE and that taste good to you – and savor each bite! Yes, you can have cranberry sauce and no you don’t have to avoid pumpkin pie or ice cream. The point is to eat a balanced diet and have portion control. You can still eat what you like, just in moderation.
Make a plate of seconds for tomorrow
It can be so tempting to go back for seconds, especially when everyone else around you is doing the same thing. Well, you most certainly can make a plate of seconds. But I want to challenge you to save it for another meal the next day.
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