Healthy Turkey Day Tips

Thanksgiving is one of my most favorite holidays of the year!  But it's also one of the easiest holidays to indulge a little too much on Thursday and then the whole weekend with family time, leftovers, shopping and football games makes it even easier to get a little of track.  

I absolutely believe in having a few treats every now and then, and Thanksgiving is the perfect time to enjoy homemade treats (in moderation of course!) that we wouldn't normally get during the year.  

Before the big day, I like to think about a few things to help me decide how tackle the whole week.
I think about how I want to feel Friday morning and Sunday night.
I set my goals for this week.
I set your intentions for this week.
I think about how healthy and how much energy I want to have the entire week.

These are the things that I'm focusing on this week to ensure that I'm feeling my best and STILL enjoying a couple treats!

1. To eat as healthy as possible up until the big day with intentional healthy food choices. I plan my meals for Mon, Tues, Wed, Thur morning and Friday.  I will eat more fresh vegetables (at least 3 to 4 servings per day).  Salads are a great way to easily add more vegetables each day.  I will increase water intake.  I will watch portion sizes.

2. To schedule exercise each day (including Thursday)

3. To decide which treats you will have on Thursday and which healthy options you're going to be sure to have on your plate.

4. Don't feel guilty about a treat or two.

5. Get right back on track Friday morning with more water, more vegetables and more exercise.

Portion sizes are where many of us struggle.  It's so easy to add a little more casserole, stuffing  or gravy when we're making our plates.  During any holiday, I use a couple simple tips to help me eat healthier.  First, I fill the majority of my plate with vegetables.  Healthy vegetable side dishes and salads are perfect choices. This way there’s less room on your plate for the unhealthier foods! You’ll see this in the picture below.  Then I add my protein onto the plate.  Then after that I will add a little bit of stuffing or casserole once all of the healthy choices are on my plate.