I got this from the folks at my DietPower software (as, I'm sure a few other folks on here did -- ) and I thought these tips might be beneficial to everyone here, whether you use this software or not.
Quote:
Without Wrecking Your Diet
How to Pig Out
A Piping Hot Classic*
By Terry Dunkle, DietPower Editor-in-Chief
Lately, I'm getting a lot of spam from websites telling me how to navigate Thanksgiving without gaining weight. To me, this makes about as much sense as being told how to attend a Super Bowl without watching the game. What's Thanksgiving if you can't overeat?
The fact is, overeating on Turkey Day isn't a bad thing; it may actually be good for your diet in the long run.
Reason:
Although starving yourself will make you feel righteous for a day, eventually your pride will turn to resentment. And when overweight people feel resentful, they often eat to "get even." (This usually happens on the day after Thanksgiving, when there's plenty of leftover turkey lurking.)
So, while the food police are telling you to "serve portions on a small plate, to make them appear larger" (hey, are you really that stupid?) and "chew thoroughly and slowly" (on mashed potatoes?), we're going to give you the straight dope.
8 Rules for Healthful Overeating
If you're going to overindulge, at least know by how much. Continue recording your meals in DietPower's Food Log. (If you don't have DietPower, you can download a free 15-day trial of the software right now by clicking here.) That way, at least you'll know how many calories to work off after the madness subsides.
Save up beforehand. If your diet calls for 1800 calories today, cut back to 1300 and you'll be 500 ahead on the Big Day.
Realize that even if you gorge yourself, you can't gain much in a single day. Your stomach holds only about 40 fluid ounces. If you stuff it three times with average Thanksgiving food (40 calories per ounce), you'll eat 4800 calories. That's less than 3000 calories above maintenance for most people -- which means you won't even gain a pound. (The scales may say two or three pounds, but this will be largely water retention and digestive overload, which are temporary.)
Remember this happy thought: The more you eat, the faster you burn calories. When your body sees an excess of fuel coming in, it automatically makes the furnace less efficient so that the fuel is burned more rapidly. This self-regulating system ensures that whenever you suddenly increase your eating, the amount of fat you put on will never quite equal your calorie increase.
Get some exercise. A brisk one-hour walk will burn off 200 to 300 calories -- and make you expend calories a bit faster afterwards, too.
Concentrate on the lower-fat goodies, which fill you up at a lower calorie cost. (A gram of fat contains 9 calories, versus 4 calories per gram of protein or carbohydrate.) Take the skin off the turkey, eat the white meat instead of the dark, choose the cherry pie over the Boston cream, and gobble all the mashed potatoes and cranberry sauce you want. (Eat a ton of celery -- it's 90 percent water and only 7 calories per stalk.)
Watch the booze. Because alcohol contains 7 calories per gram, a 6-ounce glass of bordeaux or chardonnay will set you back more than 120 calories, and a typical 4-ounce martini will hit you with twice that many. Drinking too much may also lead you to eat more than you would otherwise.
On the day after Thanksgiving, don't feel guilty; just get back on the wagon. You've had your fun, just like everyone else, and now you can resume your quest knowing that you didn't miss a thing.
Good advice. Enjoy the day do what you can and get back on plan on Friday. Feeling deprived really gets to me sometimes so I'm going to enjoy and just get back at it the next day.
I second that. The last thing I want my diet to be is a punishment and by always depriving myself thats exactly what it could become. I plan on enjoying myself on Thanksgiving and Christmas and that will mean pumkin pie with whipped cream.I believe that half of our battle is in our heads not just whats on the plate.
Hey Jill, there are some great recipes there! We have TWO Thanksgivings and TWO Christmases every year -- one with her family in NY (where portion control is critical because they're big on the saturated fat,) and the other on our own at home. The one at home is more relaxed, and I do all the cooking, and we have a couple of friends over. And while it's always healthier and "cleaner" than at her mom's house (think pork sausages, baked clams, meatballs, butter-basted turkey, ham.....get the picture?) this year the Sarah-prepared meals will be the healthiest ever. (Across the board -- mashed potatoes, stuffing, veggies, etc... I'm shopping tonight, and I'm prepared!!) And as a special gift, I might even bake a reduced fat cake! (That would be a first, since I usually only bake bread, not sweets....) Jill that site's Orange Rosemary Pound Cake inspired me! That with some low-fat vanilla ice cream would be lovely for a special treat!
Anyway, thanks! As for my approach to the eating, I am a strong believer in portion control with the more off-plan stuff...but I think if you deny yourself any of the treats, you'll regret it afterwards and may act out inappropriately as a result. Better to plan for it, try to take it easy -- and recover afterwards, I say!
Thanks again.....great link! (I'm also going to check out Cooking Light's site; for some reason I'm not getting my subscription and I didn't think I'd let it lapse.... )
thanks for the great tips. kind of puts the day into perspective. I think the key for me is the make sure and get back on the wagon the next day (even if someone will have to roll me up there )
Still More Holiday Eating Wisdom
) and I thought these tips might be beneficial to everyone here, whether you use this software or not.
I second that. The last thing I want my diet to be is a punishment and by always depriving myself thats exactly what it could become. I plan on enjoying myself on Thanksgiving and Christmas and that will mean pumkin pie with whipped cream.I believe that half of our battle is in our heads not just whats on the plate.
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