Wednesday 11.22.12

9 Tips to Avoid Overeating on the Holidays

Sorry about the late post, but we had a turkey fry at our house last night that kept us pretty busy. Everyone brought a turkey or two to try, plus a side and we had Thanksgiving, Round 1. Unfortuntely, I pretty much ignored all of the advice I'm about to give you now and am totally regretting it. Follow these tips to avoid feeling like there's a giant bowling ball in your stomach for 2 days.

1. Eat a healthy breakfast and lunch beforehand. It can be tempting to skip meals before a big Thanksgiving dinner, but this will only encourage binge eating and for your body to go into starvation mode. You have to get your metabolism going so that your body will be ready to burn off all the delicious food that you'll soon be feeding it. 

2. Drink lots of water. Sometimes we confuse thirst with hunger. Make sure that you are drinking plenty of water before, especially during, and after your meal. Drinking water beforehand will make you feel more full before the meal, and drinking during the meal will slow down your eating. Keep taking in water afterwards so that you'll keep feeling full and skip some second helpings on dessert.

3. Use a smaller plate. For whatever reason, if someone gave us a serving platter as a dinner plate, we would probably fill it up - that's just how it goes on the holidays. If you use a small plate, you might fill it up, but at least it won't be as much food.

4. Singler layer your plate, don't stack. Stacking those rolls on top of the sweet potatoes or cranberry sauce on top of the turkey = more food. We usually feel like we need to finish whatever is on the plate, so the more food you pile on there, the more you will eat.

5. Choose the things you LOVE and pass on things that you just LIKE. This especially applies to dessert. If there's pumkin pie, pecan pie, cookies, and brownies, choose one or two that you LOVE, but not all of them. If you love pecan pie because you never eat it except during the holidays, grab a slice; and if you know that you're just eating the cookies because they're there rather than because they're special/that good, then skip 'em. If you want to try them all because grandma made the brownies and cookies and mom made the pies and you don't want to hurt anyone's feelings, go sampler style - small servings of each. 

6. Chew your food slowly. Eating slowly does 2 things: 1) Gives your brain time to get the message from your stomach that you're full, and 2) keep you from finishing your plate while everyone else is still eating, which encourages going back for more just fill the time gap.

7. Before you go back for seconds, wait a few minutes. Stand up and walk around. Waiting  a few minutes goes back to tip #6 about letting your brain get the message that you're full. Sometimes we don't reallize how full we are when sitting down. By taking a lap around the kitchen, you stretch out your midsection and can better feel whether or not your stomach is going that bulging out thing like it's going to pop.

8. Wear fitted clothing. If your clothing is more fitted, you'll feel less comfortable with a super full belly.

9. Don't give yourself permission just becasue "It's Thanksgiving/Christmas/Hanukkah/Your Birthday." Sure - it's a special occasion, but make the celebration about spending time with loved ones, not stuffing your face. As soon as we make it about eating as much as we want, it almost becomes a goal to feel stuffed and overeat. It's ok to get full, but don't tell yourself that it's ok to keep eating after you're full just because it's the holidays.

References: 
About.com: How to Avoid Eating Too Much at the Holidays
Livestrong.com: How to Avoid Overeating on Thanksgiving 
Photo Credit: http://gasoutherncri.wordpress.com/2011/11/21/be-healthy-with-thanksgiving-dinner/

Skill: OHS

WOD
3 rounds:
10 OHS (135/95)
50 double unders