Happy Thanksgiving! As your coach I am treating this as your final pep talk before the big day, so here we go. Before the party:
- Review tips from the past couple of weeks.
- Don’t go to dinner hungry. Make sure you have a good breakfast and lunch. Many people starve all day thinking this gives them the right to cheat. Skipping your other meals will do nothing, but add to a slowing metabolism and probably cause you to eat more calories and fat at Thanksgiving dinner.
- Drink plenty of water. Alcohol and caffeine can cause dehydration.
- Don’t hoard leftovers. Send food home with guests when possible.
- Don’t let family members push food on you. It is not rude to say you are full or request a smaller helping of something if you are being served. Watch for grandparents and other relatives over serving your child. If you are a parent that uses food to show love, I urge you to work on stopping that habit immediately.
- Don’t forget to take the skin off of the turkey.
- Don’t forget the 80/20 rule. Do your best to eat 80% healthy and treat yourself 20%.
- Last, but not least. Never feel like you blew it! If you have a lapse and overeat a little or let your child overeat, you are human and it is Thanksgiving… Nobody is perfect. Candidly, I know I am going to have some mashed potatoes and gravy. It’s a once to twice a year opportunity and I’m taking it. But I will control my portions and hope that you will do the same. Remember to stay mindful and present to why and what you are eating. You can do it!
Have a great Thanksgiving!
With Karen's education and eighteen years experience in the preventative health, nutrition, and fitness fields and personal experience battling weight, she could not ignore the growing obesity epidemic, especially after the announcement by the surgeon general stating, this would be the first generation to die before their parents due to obesity. This is not a legacy Karen wants to leave behind.