Thanksgiving calories!

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mjaquay21
mjaquay21 Posts: 15 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Thanksgiving is all about relaxing with the people you love and I get that but the calories scare me and I don't know what to do or the calories of my family's meal because it's my dad's family. Any ideas on how to save calories? I'd love a 600 calorie meal... I like sweet potato wedges and turkey and bread
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  • GottaBurnEmAll
    GottaBurnEmAll Posts: 7,722 Member
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    Are you the meal preparer, or are you eating what someone else prepares?

    I'm the cook, so I can control the meal. That helps.

    The first year I was dieting, I cared about calories because I wanted to stick to deficit.

    The second year, I cared, but not as much because I wanted to eat to maintenance.

    This year? I don't care. I've shown myself that I know how to eat reasonably and I know it's just one day. I will also be running that morning and lifting the day before and after.
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    It's one day...it's irrelevant to the whole of what you are doing.

    Personally (and I've basically always done this) I don't usually have much for breakfast...so the feast tends to be my only real meal of the day, starting with the appetizers a few hours before the meal. My guess is that when it's all said and done I'm probably right around where I would be on a normal maintenance day with three meals and a few snacks.

    My wife and I also do a Turkey Trot 5K on Thanksgiving morning...we started that tradition several years ago.

    Also, turkey is lean and low calorie...sweet potatoes are healthy, good eats...I eat bread pretty much every day.

    At any rate, it's just one day...one day is pretty meaningless...just enjoy it and get back to being sensible the following day.
  • Spliner1969
    Spliner1969 Posts: 3,233 Member
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    I also expect about 4k in calories. It's not that big of deal for one day. I try to send a lot of leftovers (especially the high calorie sides) home with the kids/family and I keep leftover turkey (high protein low calorie) for sandwiches. Most people are sitting at around 1lb or more a week as a deficit. That's 3500 calories a week, so one day might mean you don't lose any that week if you don't do any extra exercise to thwart the extra calories but it's not a big deal in the grand scheme of things to come. If you see an up-tick in weight it's temporary and is probably due to sodium intake and water retention along with a little extra waste. All that will equalize in a few days after you get back to your routine.
  • krazy1sbk
    krazy1sbk Posts: 128 Member
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    If you snack on appetizers beforehand, try to stick to healthy stuff like carrots or salad. That will help you stay away from eating too much of everything else. I'm planning on walking that morning/evening so I won't worry too much about what I actually eat during the main meal - like others have said, it's just one day out of the year!
  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
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    I don't celebrate Thanksgiving, but on days that are centered around feasts, I usually track and try to stay at maintenance. Occasionally I will be a bit lenient and allow myself a few extra calories for something special, but it has to be worth it.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    You'd love a 600 cal dinner? How much are your normal dinners? What's your calorie goal?

    I agree with others that it's one day (two in my case as we celebrate with both families) so eating at maintenance levels for the day, or even above maintenance levels since you would likely still be in a weekly deficit would not do any significant damage to your progress.

    As far as ways to offset a high calorie day, you can eat a little less on the days leading up to Thanksgiving, do some exercise the morning of the celebration, etc. these are things I utilize regularly, not just at thanksgiving.

    Looking back at my last couple years of tracking on Thanksgiving my meal usually tops out between 1800-2500. That's my maintenance range anyway and since I don't eat much else that day, there's usually no impact other than water weight which is temporary.

    This year I think I will see if I can hit 3000 cals at at least one of the celebrations.
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    Dessert alone is 600 calories or more, lol. Honestly though I could do without the meal and just eat dessert. And I'm not wasting calories on green beans.
  • hgycta
    hgycta Posts: 3,013 Member
    edited November 2016
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    Francl27 wrote: »
    Dessert alone is 600 calories or more, lol. Honestly though I could do without the meal and just eat dessert. And I'm not wasting calories on green beans.

    Exactly this.
    600 Calories (on any normal day) may sound like a good amount for dinner, but Thanksgiving is a completely different ballgame. A small serving of sweet potato casserole that fills 1/4 of a small plate can easily be 400 calories, and it just gets worse as you consider stuffing, buttered rolls, and all that other good stuff. Just try to enjoy a modest amount of lean turkey, as many (fresh, if possible) vegetables as you can, and enjoy the sweets but take it easy. Pecan pie is one of the most caloric desserts out there unfortunately, but really all pies are high in calories so try to keep a serving very small if possible and savor a few bites and focus more on the time you get to enjoy with family than the time you get to enjoy eating all the food they brought! Remember, if you don't eat everything that just means you'll get more leftovers later ;) Eat slowly, and stop when you're full just like any other day. Don't feel pressured to eat more just because it's a special day, it's special because of the people not necessarily the treats surrounding you, stay strong and if you eat more than you had hoped (let's face it, we all probably will), brush off your feet and get back on track the next day!
  • Francl27
    Francl27 Posts: 26,371 Member
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    hgycta wrote: »
    Francl27 wrote: »
    Dessert alone is 600 calories or more, lol. Honestly though I could do without the meal and just eat dessert. And I'm not wasting calories on green beans.

    Exactly this.
    600 Calories (on any normal day) may sound like a good amount for dinner, but Thanksgiving is a completely different ballgame. A small serving of sweet potato casserole that fills 1/4 of a small plate can easily be 400 calories, and it just gets worse as you consider stuffing, buttered rolls, and all that other good stuff. Just try to enjoy a modest amount of lean turkey, as many (fresh, if possible) vegetables as you can, and enjoy the sweets but take it easy. Pecan pie is one of the most caloric desserts out there unfortunately, but really all pies are high in calories so try to keep a serving very small if possible and savor a few bites and focus more on the time you get to enjoy with family than the time you get to enjoy eating all the food they brought! Remember, if you don't eat everything that just means you'll get more leftovers later ;) Eat slowly, and stop when you're full just like any other day. Don't feel pressured to eat more just because it's a special day, it's special because of the people not necessarily the treats surrounding you, stay strong and if you eat more than you had hoped (let's face it, we all probably will), brush off your feet and get back on track the next day!

    Leftovers are the worse for me. It's not 'just one day' when you have pie in your fridge for 3 days after :(
  • mommarnurse
    mommarnurse Posts: 515 Member
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    I'm running a 10k that morning, no worries
  • rosebarnalice
    rosebarnalice Posts: 3,488 Member
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    A summary of strategies I use (most of which are mentioned above) include:
    * walking that morning to build a bit of a calorie buffer
    * "banking" calories earlier in the weel to "spend" that day
    * Bringing something to the family pitch-in table that I know I can eat in quantity without guilt (my butternut/acorn/pumpkin squash casserole WITHOUT added sugar or butter is a hit with the family as are my chilled haricot-vert green beans with spicy hummus)
    * tiny servings of the really ridiculous carbs that it just wouldn't be thanksgiving without--like oyster dressing and mashed potatoes with entirely too much butter
    * drinking a crazy amount of water to keep my hands and mouth occupied and to feel full before eating
    * filling up my first plate with all veggies-- salad, green beans, squash casserole--and then waiting 20 minutes to feel full before diving in for the turkey and dressing
    * avoiding the dinner rolls and bread completely--'cause I don't really like them anyway, and I'd much rather spend my carb calories on oyster dressing
    * "tiny bite" dessert (if I get that far!). That last three years by the time the pies came out I was not even tempted. I just wanted some cinnamon tea and company
    * if the party is at my house, I stock up on inexpensive to-go containers and load up "parting packages" of leftovers for all the guests ] (it's kind of a joke now that I won't let people out of my house without being loaded down with leftovers!) It keeps me from staring at that atuff in my own fridge for the next week
    * letting go and enjoying the day with friends and family with the knowledge that it's just one day, and that in the long run, I'll be fine.
  • rainbowbow
    rainbowbow Posts: 7,490 Member
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    I don't know if it's just my family... but... we eat our Thanksgiving meal around 2PM and we fast that whole day until it's time to eat.

    Then there may be some drinking and pie eating and leftover picking in the evening.

    I would prefer to do it this way just so that you can minimize the amount of damage on that particular day.
  • jmt08c
    jmt08c Posts: 343 Member
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    Doesn't Thanksgiving fall during bulking season? Bring on the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, casseroles and green beans then drown in gravy. End meal with 1/4 pumpkin pie beneath a mountain of fresh whipped cream and you've got yourself a meal. Disclaimer: I will also be doing a 1.5 hour swimming workout the morning of.
  • WinoGelato
    WinoGelato Posts: 13,454 Member
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    I just realized today is our free Thanksgiving meal in the cafeteria at work! That brings me up to three separate Thanksgiving meals to consume in 10 days time... Although if memory serves, and the menu/food is the same as in years past - this one is pretty easy to moderate. Bit of turkey or roast pork, small serving of mashed potatoes, some green beans and then the best part, pecan pie. It's not that different than what I would eat for a Sunday dinner...
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    rainbowbow wrote: »
    I don't know if it's just my family... but... we eat our Thanksgiving meal around 2PM and we fast that whole day until it's time to eat.

    Then there may be some drinking and pie eating and leftover picking in the evening.

    I would prefer to do it this way just so that you can minimize the amount of damage on that particular day.

    This is pretty much what we do...
  • littlechiaseed
    littlechiaseed Posts: 489 Member
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    Srsly it's just one day so enjoy it. :)
  • cwolfman13
    cwolfman13 Posts: 41,874 Member
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    If people did as much hand wringing over the rest of the year as they do a handful of legit occasions, everyone would be lean as all hell....

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