The 3,000-calorie Thanksgiving dinner -- myth or reality?
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brcossette wrote: »I consider that a low bar mark on thanksgiving for me. Thats why my family does the Turkey Trot every thanksgiving morning.
That is an awesome tradition!0 -
I just logged my Thanksgiving dinner to see what it came out to be. It came out to1,483 calories and that's including a slice of pie. Oh my what do you guys eat? lol0
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Sounds legit. I'll have no regrets.0
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You left out the drinks. If you add in eggnog, wine, etc. it's so easy to go over 3000.0
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That's just the first helping, right?
Each year I typically eat:
2+ helpings of turkey, stuffing, and wine
1+ helpings of mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, macaroni and cheese and whatever vegetable is served
2+ helpings of dessert which can include cheesecake, pie, cupcakes, etc.
whipped cream and ice cream with dessert
1+ helpings of coffee with cream
gravy
cranberry sauce
and bread if it's available.
And when I say helpings it's way more than a suggested serving.0 -
I don't really drink any of that, I guess that's why.Still, I cant wait!0
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Every year about this time a diet industry group puts out a dire warning that we're all going to eat 3,000 calories (average, anyway) on Thanksgiving dinner alone (not counting snacks and other meals) and the media laps it up unquestioningly. Nowhere have I ever found how they tallied this.
For funsies, I put together what a 3,000-calorie dinner (2,965 per USDA Supertracker) might look like:
half pound turkey, dark and light meat, skin eaten
6 ounces ham
A full cup each mashed potatoes (made w/butter & cream cheese), dressing (with meat), corn, and green beans cooked with mushroom sauce
1/2 cup giblet gravy
A dinner roll with a full tablespoon of butter
Two cups of garden salad with avocado, topped with 3 tablespoons blue cheese dressing
A slice of cranberry sauce
A slice of pecan pie with 2 tablespoons heavy whipped cream
Granted, it IS easy to eat a lot more on Thanksgiving than intended, but I think saying the "average" holiday meal is 3,000 calories is exaggerating a bit. I'm a pretty healthy eater, and I'd be physically ill if I tried to eat that much in one sitting.
If anyone knows how the 3,000-calorie dinner was originally calculated, I'm all ears.
1 slice of pie? LOL
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I bet I consume more calories than that on Thanksgiving. It's the only dinner out of 365 dinners a year that I do that. No - I do NOT feel guilty. LOL.0
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Every year about this time a diet industry group puts out a dire warning that we're all going to eat 3,000 calories (average, anyway) on Thanksgiving dinner alone (not counting snacks and other meals) and the media laps it up unquestioningly. Nowhere have I ever found how they tallied this.
For funsies, I put together what a 3,000-calorie dinner (2,965 per USDA Supertracker) might look like:
half pound turkey, dark and light meat, skin eaten
6 ounces ham
A full cup each mashed potatoes (made w/butter & cream cheese), dressing (with meat), corn, and green beans cooked with mushroom sauce
1/2 cup giblet gravy
A dinner roll with a full tablespoon of butter
Two cups of garden salad with avocado, topped with 3 tablespoons blue cheese dressing
A slice of cranberry sauce
A slice of pecan pie with 2 tablespoons heavy whipped cream
Granted, it IS easy to eat a lot more on Thanksgiving than intended, but I think saying the "average" holiday meal is 3,000 calories is exaggerating a bit. I'm a pretty healthy eater, and I'd be physically ill if I tried to eat that much in one sitting.
If anyone knows how the 3,000-calorie dinner was originally calculated, I'm all ears.
1 slice of pie? LOL
RIGHT?? I have pie, pumpkin cheesecake, cookies, and wash it down with wine on Thanksgiving...
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Wow! We don't do thanksgiving in the UK, but we have a roast dinner on Xmas day. I logged my calories on Xmas day a couple of years ago, just out of interest. I think I had about 2500 calories for the entire day, and that was including a glass of cava!0
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I think 3000 calories on Thanksgiving is a solid average. Some eat much less, some eat much more. Besides - I've never known anyone who stops at one piece of pie. Usually one at dinner for dessert and one later in the evening. Plus you didn't add any wine, cocktails, coffee with creamer.
There are only three days out of the year that I plan on not logging. Thanksgiving is one of them...I just don't want the reality of how many calories I consumed.
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Challenge accepted! I had a 2,100+ day for Fourth of July (my logging sucked back then, probably really 2,500+), and "normal" eating rest of week--lost almost 2 pounds the week after. Go figure.
My Thanksgiving goal--3,000+. No regrets, either. It's very wonderful to gather with our family and celebrate our blessings. And that means beautiful food is eaten. Oh, beautiful, calorific foods
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I have a mini pecan pie recipe that makes a pie about the size of your palm that is about 900 calories. It's called corn syrup and Crisco.
Wine, 3 glasses (150 cals/6 oz glass) = 450 calories
Pepperidge farm stuffing 1 cup: 225 calories
2 crescent rolls: 200 calories
Mashed potato (1/2 cup): 105 calories (my recipe)
Butter for mashed potatoes & rolls: (100 cals/1 tbsp of Kerrygold salted butter) 300 calories
So I got bored, but that's 1,080 calories. I usually also eat some cranberry sauce, Tofurkey or gardein turkey cutlets with gravy (breaded), apple crisp (pure syrup in it, plus tons of butter). Desert alone is well over 1000 calories with the pecan pie, pumpkin pie, bread pudding, caramel rum sauce, ice cream, and whipped cream. Also, our appetizer is celery with full fat cream cheese.
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Last year I had 2274 logged, and that's only because my sister in law dropped the damn cheesecake. This year I'm expecting closer to 3500-40000
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I don't really have much family left (only my mother and my husband), so we don't really cook a whole lot anymore. We do a seafood buffet at a VERY expensive restaurant that we normally can't afford during the year - I've found that doing this actually has cut WAY down on the amount of calories I usually eat on T-Day. Seafood (especially tilapia) tends to be pretty low in the carb/calorie count, but very high on protein, which is just what I need.
It works out in the end - I don't OD on carby things (I'm diabetic and can't really afford to), I keep within my limits, and there's little to no leftovers (though I will roast a turkey breast because, well, I just love turkey breast) to consume later. My mom and my husband can and do have the traditional fixings, as much as they like. And we all get to enjoy the day together, which is what it's really all about.0 -
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You're below 3000 calories, but I'm above it. I would say that 3000 on average isn't far off.0
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Take away the salad, add at least two more rolls, fried chicken strips, some macaroni and cheese, a brownie, maybe a couple of cookies...
Yep, I suspect 3K is about average.0 -
Well, I'm not worried about the calories for one day. I am going to be good this year though, and attempt to stay away from refined sugars and grains. So my meal this year will be:
turkey
garlic mash potato (can't not have this one... ) and with lots of butter...
Butternut squash w/butter
green beans
and perhaps a paleo banana bread muffin (since I'm thinking to bake this and bring to dinner) - with butter...
And... if I find a good recipe for a pumpkin mousse _ some of that too.
and - then there's going to be 3 or 4 gluten free Angry Orchard Hard ciders... 1000 calories and worth it for a one day affair/holiday.
No regrets because Friday will be back to my regular routine, and no more drinking for a while...
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Ooh, and don't forget soda and/or sweet tea.0
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3,000 on Thanksgiving?
Child's play, darlings.0 -
The funny thing is - almost everything on that day's menu is actually good for you. It's the way it's prepared that's the killer. Yams with lots of brown sugar and marshmallows. Turkey with the skin left on and lots of gravy. Not just green beans - but green bean casserole with the FF onions. Can't wait...
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CAWFEE_TAWK wrote: »I don't think it's exaggerated at all. Between food and wine, I'll be amazed if I don't go over 4,000. And I don't really care if I do. It's a day.
Absolutely!!0 -
The funny thing is - almost everything on that day's menu is actually good for you. It's the way it's prepared that's the killer. Yams with lots of brown sugar and marshmallows. Turkey with the skin left on and lots of gravy. Not just green beans - but green bean casserole with the FF onions. Can't wait...
Yeah, I always joke that the key to a fitting Thanksgiving side is taking something healthy and adding lots of extra calories.
Not the turkey, really (I don't like gravy). But potatoes with lots of butter and sometimes cream, sweet potatoes with whatever people do to them, green bean casserole, Brussels sprouts with bacon, creamed spinach, my mother always does a broccoli and cauliflower casserole with lots of cheese and bread crumbs, even the pumpkin and apple pie could be included in this.
As a result it would be pretty easy to make it much lower calorie (but for the desserts) if one wanted to and was in control of the menu. I'm not the main cook this year, so I'm just going to bring a couple of lower calorie sides (and maybe a dessert) and then relax about it and enjoy myself. I usually don't go that nuts anyway, although I'm sure the calories add up. There will be no realistic way to log.0 -
GiveMeCoffee wrote: »Last year I had 2274 logged, and that's only because my sister in law dropped the damn cheesecake. This year I'm expecting closer to 3500-4000
LOL!!!
Ohhh it was easy to do 3000 calories for Thanksgiving, then when desserts time came well I surpassed that 3000 calories probably 2-3 times that amount!!!
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Just for the record, the claim I've seen is not 3,000 for the day, which is more than doable. It's 3,000 for the single meal alone, plus 1,500 in snacks and drinks, plus two other meals, so more like 5,000 - 6,000 for the day.
And also for the record, I fully intend to enjoy my Thanksgiving dinner without worrying about calories. It is indeed only once a year.
But I'm also going to stop... pretty naturally and without regrets... WELL before 3,000 on that one meal. That much food for me would become simply unpleasant and the point is to enjoy it!
Interesting to see everyone's perspective.0 -
Just for fun, I tried to do this exercise for the "average" Passover seder meal.
4 glasses of wine
1 piece matzo
1 hard-boiled egg
2 tbsp charoset
1 oz parsley dipped in saltwater
1 piece maror
1 cup matzo ball soup (with matzo ball)
2 pieces gefilte fish
1 tbsp horseradish
100g green salad with dressing
1 slice roast beef
4 oz roast chicken breast
3 oz roast beef
3 oz meatballs and sauce
2 pieces potato kugel
2 pieces apple kugel
100g mixed roasted vegetables
1 slice sponge cake
1 slice flourless chocolate cake
5 macaroons
3 meringue cookies
Bite of the afikoman
...Already well over 4000 calories, and counting. And I'm sure I forgot some stuff.0 -
Easily done. Especially when you consider that our big family Thanksgivings start with coffee (with cream) and mimosas, and then everyone is in and out of the kitchen all day "testing" everything. And of course, a slice of pumpkin pie and a slice of the pecan.0
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Just for the record, the claim I've seen is not 3,000 for the day, which is more than doable. It's 3,000 for the single meal alone, plus 1,500 in snacks and drinks, plus two other meals, so more like 5,000 - 6,000 for the day.
Do most people eat two other meals on Thanksgiving? I might have a very light breakfast; but after that, it is one long, leisurely snack / appetizer / meal / dessert lasting from early afternoon until late afternoon / early evening. I would admittedly be hard-pressed to get 5k - 6k for the day without seriously hitting the booze hard.
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