DEALING WITH THE POST-THANKSGIVING FOOD-HANGOVER

This is your friendly reminder that just because you engorged yourself for Thanksgiving, doesn’t mean you’ve blown it and can’t get back on track.

The turkey. The stuffing. The mashed potatoes and gravy. The rolls. SO MANY ROLLS. The pies.

If you’re anything like our family, you probably stuffed yourself sick and woke up Friday morning regretting life (thanksgiving) choices.

But fear not.

This is not the end of your healthy eating journey. The key is to RECOGNIZE that you went overboard (and it’s completely reasonable and understandable that you DID – no shame or blame in it), and to regroup in a healthy, non-dramatic way. Don’t say, “Forget it,” and eat ALL the leftover pie the next day. You’re just asking for trouble.

But on the flip-side of that, don’t go crazy with cleansing, detoxing, or fasting either (again, unless you just want to).

It was food, it was a holiday, and it’s fine to celebrate for a day – or two.

I think we put too much pressure on ourselves to either eat it ALL; or sink into a shame spiral if we take more than a sliver of pumpkin pie.

So, here are some tips if you overate on Thanksgiving and want to get back on track in a healthy, non-judgmental kind of way.

Drink some water. It doesn’t have to be a gallon, although if you can pull that off then go for it. It’s basically a shower for your insides and will help get your body rehydrated, helps with digestion, and helps remove excess salt, among other benefits. Bonus points if you spend the day alternating between glasses of water and Green Tea!

Move a little bit. If you’re not feeling a full workout the day (or a couple of days) after stuffing yourself silly, just move a little. Take a short walk. Do some stretching. Play with the dog. Dance in the living room with your kids. Scrub down your countertops or fold a load of laundry. Anything that gets your body moving and helps your metabolism keep functioning as opposed to throwing all those extra calories into your fat cells for long-term storage. Making an effort to move in smaller increments throughout the entire day will help your body feel better as it works on digesting all the extra food.

Honestly.

You don’t have to “punish” yourself with a grueling workout to “make up” for eating too much. The movement is genuinely meant to make your body feel better, ease the discomfort, and aid with digestion until you feel like yourself again.

Do something productive. I know this one sounds a little odd, but hear me out. If you’ve overeaten for one or a few days and you’re feeling a certain way about it, doing something productive can help you get back on track. It helps take your mind off all the things you feel like you did “wrong” (the extra helping of mashed potatoes and gravy, the additional 3 rolls, the heaping scoop of ice cream on that piece of apple pie), and allows you to focus on a “WIN” for yourself – cleaning out the car, finally sorting that basket of socks that’s been sitting there for a month, decluttering your junk drawer. ANYTHING that gives you the sense of satisfaction that you got something DONE. This allows your brain to reset, and you can start focusing on that next good thing to do for yourself – eating a healthy meal or getting your steps in for the day.

And speaking of that healthy meal….

Find a way to use a few of those leftovers in a couple of healthy recipes. There are THOUSANDS of healthy recipe ideas for using up your leftover turkey, or ways to use some of those sides in a healthier way. I took leftover turkey, green bean casserole (with an extra bag of frozen green beans), a TINY bit of leftover gravy, skim milk, and a bag of tator tots and made a really delicious and HEALTHIER version of Tator Tot Casserole. Also managed to use leftover corn and leftover broccoli and rice casserole (which was MUCH more cheese and rice than broccoli) and made a very decent Taco Soup. I’ve also seen some cool ways to use leftover stuffing in a veggie and chicken casserole – minimal stuffing, heavy on the veggies and chicken.

Last tip for feeling better after you’ve over-indulged on Thanksgiving. Whatever leftovers you can’t give away, or have been sent with you to get them out of someone else’s house, if you don’t have any healthy recipe ideas yet or have a bunch of sweets that were sent your way, THROW THEM IN THE FREEZER!

Like, immediately.

Why?

Once they are frozen, it’s a lot harder (literally) to eat them right away. You have to give them time to defrost, reheat, etc. Plus – out of sight, out of mind. You might not FORGET they are in there (although I definitely have forgotten), but the treats also aren’t sitting out on your counter or in your fridge just tempting you to have a bite, or five. In fact, I highly recommend if you have a deep freeze or an extra freezer in your garage or laundry room or wherever, to put them out there. The one you use the LEAST is where they should go.

Again, overindulging on Thanksgiving isn't the end of your health and nutrition journey. I would call it a bump in the road, if anything. Over the next week, just be KIND to yourself. Eat nourishing foods, drink plenty of water, and gentle movement will have you feeling better and back to your wellness goals in no time!

And check out my FREE Guide Booklet: 21 Healthy Meal Hacks for Busy Moms.