If you celebrated Thanksgiving yesterday, I hope you had a lovely day full of good food and great family and friends. I also hope you have no regrets about your eating behaviors.
Thanksgiving and other holidays tend to encourage bad habits. The meals are full of “special” foods we don’t get on a regular basis, so there can be a feeling that you NEED to overindulge because you’re not going to see it again for another year. Plus, there’s just SO MANY good foods to sample — you don’t want to insult the chefs by not filling your plate, right? And sometimes, a day spent in close quarters with your family can be a little stressful.
Still, a holiday meal can often leave people feeling bad about it the next day. If you want to avoid overeating at your next special occasion, here are five tips that might help:
1. Be sure to eat breakfast and/or lunch. Don’t starve yourself until mealtime and then gorge like there’s no tomorrow! If you’re worried about ruining your appetite, keep the meals small — but taking the edge off your hungry can help encourage you to take smaller portions when the showcase meal arrives.
2. Try the soup. A hot bowl of soup tends to make people slow down when they are eating — so you don’t gobble the course and go back for more quite as quickly. It gives your brain time to signal your belly that it’s getting full.
3. Stick to your favorites. If you know you don’t like a certain part of the meal as much as others, skip it. You don’t HAVE to eat it to be polite — there will be somebody else at the table who loves it and will appreciate it more.
4. Try setting rules for your plate. For example: veggies need to fill one half of the plate’s real estate. (Divided plates are helpful for this — put the veggies in the big spot and meat and potatoes in the smaller ones.)
5. Take a break between plates. Okay, you’ve had your first sampler plate to try a little bit of everything. Now give yourself at least ten minutes to chat with family and friends before you go back for a second plate. The extra time will give you a chance to decide if you’re still hungry, or if you’re satisfied with what you had.
6. Make an eating plate and a take-home plate at the same time. If you KNOW you’ll have a second chance to enjoy your holiday favorites — right at the start of the meal — it may help quiet the urge to stuff yourself silly because you’ll only get the special things once.
7. Start serving your holiday favorites year-round. Sure, some items are only available during a particular season, but you can make a reasonable imitation of a fancy Thanksgiving dinner any time of year. Having your holiday favorite foods around more often might help curb the urge to go overboard when the holiday itself comes around!