Thanksgiving Survival Tips

Happy Tuesday everyone! I know you all are going to love today’s guest poster as much as I do, if not more.  She is truly the definition of success and she is here to share some of her Thanksgiving Survival Tips with you all.

Meet Jennifer of It Sux To Be Fat!

Jennifer is 35, a teacher, and a blogger.  She has successfully lost over 100 pounds on Weight Watchers and continues to follow the program in hopes of reaching lifetime status.  Jennifer is the author at It Sux To Be Fat. She blogs about her ups and downs, recipes, reviews, and weekly weigh ins.  You can follow her journey on Twitter or Facebook.

I personally think she was just as beautiful in her before as she is in her after. I love her smile!

BEFORE

AFTER ~ Did I mention that she is amazing?!?!

Can you believe Thanksgiving is Thursday!?!  Where has the year gone?  Pretty soon we will be ringing in the New Year and welcoming 2013. 

How do YOU want to feel that night…December 31, 2012?  As we know, with Thanksgiving comes TONS of food.  Then, it seems as if the food doesn’t stop coming the whole month of December.  We have holiday parties, work parties, friend parties, cookie swaps, and the list goes on and on and on. 

Maybe if we can have a successful Thanksgiving, we can set ourselves up for success for the whole month!

In thinking of having a successful Thanksgiving, I have put together a list of survival tips.  How can we survive Turkey Day (and still enjoy ourselves!)

Survival Tip #1 – Create healthy alternatives to your fatty favorites.

Yes, we all love pie and stuffing for Thanksgiving.  But..what if we altered the recipe just a tiny bit to cut some of the fat and calories?  What if we scoured the internet to find healthy alternatives to our fatty favorites?  I bet they would taste pretty good with much fewer Weight Watchers points plus.  Do you think your family would even know the difference?  I came up with a list last year that you might find helpful.  You can read that list HERE.

Survival Tip #2 – Get Moving

Every year on Thanksgiving morning, my husband and I participate in the local Gobble Jog run. We started out walking the 5k.  Then, last year, for the first time, we walked/ran the 10k.  This year, we plan to jog the 10k again.  There is something about starting your day off with activity that helps get you in the right frame of mind to NOT gorge yourself the rest of the day.  It also lets you earn some much needed activity points to help with your intake of food!  To find a local race on Thanksgiving Day in your area, you can go to Active and search.  If you live in the Atlanta area, I would encourage you to sign up for the Gobble Jog in Marietta.  The proceeds go to a great cause!

Survival Tip #3 – Plan an afternoon activity!

You mean do something OTHER than watch football on the couch?!?  Come on people, you know most people sitting on the couch are NOT watching football, they are snoozing!  Darn Turkey Tryptophan!  Why not go outside for a walk?  How about a family game of football, soccer, baseball, or basketball?  How about a bicycle ride?  There are LOTS of activities you can do with your family so you are still spending the holiday together!

Now, if you MUST watch football, try some activities while you are watching the game.  See who can do the most jumping jacks during a commercial break.  Every time the other team scores, do one minute of wall sits.  When YOUR team scores, you get to pick someone else to do 5 push ups.  This will not only make everyone stay awake but will burn lots of calories in a short amount of time!

Survival Tip #4 – Have a Plan

I cannot stress this tip enough!  Go in with a plan.  You already know what food will be served. Look up the points plus values and PLAN AHEAD.  That piece of pecan pie might not taste so good if you go in knowing it is 15 points plus!  On the other hand, that piece of pumpkin pie that is 11 points plus will taste divine if you have planned for it!  You know you can have it and you will eat it guilt free!  How does that sound?!?  Plan, plan, plan so you can eat and feel good about what you are eating.

Survival Tip #5 – Only splurge on “special” things you can only have at Thanksgiving.

A big part of Thanksgiving is food.  However,no there are some foods that are special at Thanksgiving.  For me, it is my dad’s northern stuffing.  White bread and sage and butter all stuffed inside the turkey so it is moist and flavorful.  Yep…his stuffing is the bomb!  So, at Thanksgiving, I MUST eat the stuffing.  I mean I don’t HAVE to but it is the only time in the whole entire year that I have it.  Will I eat stuffing this year?  You better believe it!

Now, there are many foods that are NOT special to the holiday.  Mashed potatoes and gravy, green bean casserole, deviled eggs, rolls…the list goes on and on.  If you can have these any time of the year, don’t eat much of them on Thanksgiving.  Save your calories for the foods that are special to the holiday. 

These are just a few tips to help you get through the holidays and feel successful on the day after. Start small and just choose one to focus on this year.  You will feel good about your decision and who knows, maybe even lose a little bit of weight this year instead of gaining it.
Whatever you decide to do, take a minute and look around you at all the things you have to be thankful for.  It is an amazing holiday where we can be thankful for one another, life and health! 

Do you have any tips you follow to help you get through the holiday season?

Have a fantastic holiday everyone!