The figures in your calorie counter keep going up as you load your plates and stuff yourself, and the last thing on your mind on Thanksgiving is your waistline.
In a small community, getting invited to Thanksgiving feasts is inevitable, and if you don’t exercise extreme control, you may end up getting more than what you should have after hopping from one gathtering to another.
You don’t have to deprive yourself of a Thanksgiving dinner, but here are some tips to remember:
• Don’t leave home hungry. If you do, you may find yourself eating more than you should and making return trips to the table.
• Eat a wholesome breakfast and lunch so you won’t be tempted to overeat at dinner.
• Go easy on meat but fill your plate with vegetables instead. Eat slowly and stop when you feel you are full.
• Go skinless with the turkey. Slash the fat away and stick to a smaller proportion.
• Go for smaller portions with the side dishes so you will have room for all the different foods served.
• Limit your intake of high fat items. These are the temptations you usually find in fried and creamy dishes but if you really cannot resist the temptation, go ahead but stick to smaller portions.
• Drink plenty of water to help fill up your stomach and keep you hydrated. Coffee and alcohol can dehydrate you.
• Got lots of leftover turkey? Don’t convert it into sandwiches and other recipes that require additional slabs of fat and cholesterol. Try making a pot of soup with fresh vegetables.
• Experiment with new healthy recipes.
• Take a walk outside afterward to digest your dinner. It will make you feel better and avoid the temptation of crashing on the couch for a nap.
Combating drowsiness
Have you experienced feeling suddenly tired and sleepy after stuffing yourself with the juicy delicious turkey dinner so that all you want to do is curl up in bed and sleep until the next holidays come around?
An article titled “Does eating turkey make me sleep?” at www.kids.org reviewed by Dr. Steven Dowshen states that the cause of this drowsiness after eating turkey is L-tryptophan. Turkey meat contains lots of an amino acid called L-tryptophan, which is just one of the amino acids or building blocks in our bodies.
The article states that when people eat foods that contain L-tryptophan, the acid travels in the blood from the digestive system and enters the brain where the acid is changed into another chemical called serotonin.
Serotonin helps people calm down and go to sleep.
When you eat a big dinner, it increases the blood flow to your stomach and decreases the blood flow to the brain.
This means that the more you eat, the drowsier you will be after your meal.
Remember: Moderation is the key. The day after, it’s no longer Thanksgiving but the calories and fat are there to stay. And don’t forget that Thanksgiving is just the beginning of the long holiday season. Leave room for Christmas, New Year and post-New Year parties.
