Damage Control on Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is a few days away and I am starting to foam at the mouth over thoughts of slow cooked turkey, sweet potato puff, and pecan pie. It is a day spent with family, a day of great NFL football games (hopefully the Redskins destroy the Cowboys), and a caloric bomb that is going to take me WAY over my calorie goal for the day. My mindset… Bring it on!! Holidays are meant to be enjoyed and my muscles are going to be supercharged for the upper body workout I will attack the day after. Unfortunately, there are a good amount of people who panic over the upcoming feast day. Their minds filled with fear over gaining an ounce of fat, these people will torture themselves all day and abstain from the wonderful food that their family offers them. Some might go as far as to bring Tupperware containers to their family gatherings. Now by no means am I saying that people should gorge themselves in to a food coma, but they should eat anything and everything they want in moderation. The benefits far outweigh the harm.

Workout Fuel and Plateau Buster

The amount of calories consumed will overload muscles with nutrients and make for a great workout in the days to come. Glycogen stores will be maximized from the overload of carbohydrates, testosterone will be elevated from the large amount of saturated fat, and extra protein will go towards repairing previously damaged muscles cells. Endorphins in the brain will go wild and motivation will skyrocket. Each of these factors is capable of launching an individual towards new growth.

 Shock the System

The human body resists change like a child resists vegetables and is extremely adaptable. The metabolism slows down on a calorie restricted diet in order to survive on the low amount of food it is being given, and hormone levels begin to fall. Shocking the metabolism with a large influx of calories will drive hormone levels up, one being leptin which is a major fat burning hormone, and create a temporary increase in metabolism that will lead to more fat loss in the future. Essentially, a person is taking one step back and two forward.

 Stay off The Scale

One pound of fat is 3500 calories. In order to gain one pound, a person would need to eat 3500 calories OVER their maintenance calories (calories to maintain current weight) for the day. Most people consume anywhere from 3500-4000 calories on Thanksgiving. A 200 pound male with a maintenance of 2500 calories would need to eat 6000 calories to gain one pound. Now most of the food cooked on Thanksgiving is loaded with sodium. Sodium causes water retention and makes the scale jump multiple pounds. It is only water weight and will be gone in a day or two. The chance that a person actually gained a pound of fat is highly unlikely.

Damage Control Tips

– Workout on Thanksgiving morning to create a larger caloric expenditure for the day.

-Eat less food leading up to the meal

-Eat a little bit of everything the first plate, and then go up for seconds on one or two favorites.

-Eat SLOWLY

-Stick to more meat and veggies that will fill you up

-ENJOY YOURSELF!!!