How to Stay Healthy & Lean Over Thanksgiving

10 tips for staying lean over the long gluttonous holiday weekend that might also help over the course of the full winter.

Thanksgiving marks the beginning of weight gain season for adults in the US.

Here’s an image from NEJM that I shared last year in a post called The Seasonality of Weight Gain that tells the tale. It even has the vertical line delineating US Thanksgiving.

So here are 10 tips for staying lean over the long gluttonous holiday weekend that might also help over the course of the full winter. Mix and match the ones that feel right or collect them all!

🚶‍♂️🚶‍♀️ Get Outside & Move Your Body - Grab some family members, take a walk, and catch up. Get some layers going. Buy a scarf. Find a park & take your dog too. It’s a great way to spend time with people you havent seen in a while and you’ll feel great doing it!

(If you’re crazy, maybe do a Turkey Trot!)

🦶Right Foot Rule - Make the first thing you eat clean animal protein. Eat that turkey first. Have a steak. Hog the deviled eggs if they got ‘em. Have more! Get off on the right foot. Then…

🥫 Lay low on gravies and sauces - They’re filled with starches and sugar. That cranberry sauce that comes in a can has 22g of sugar in ONE SLICE. It’s gross. You can stun a rhino with less.

In fact, lay low on carbs in general as much as humanly possible - Breads, stuffing, pie. Soft drinks etc.

⏰ Start Eating Late - Start eating as late as possible. So, if you know on TDay you're going to go a little crazy, skip breakfast before the festivities begin.

⏰⏰ Stop Eating Early - The earlier you stop eating for the day, the less weight you will gain. So Strong avoid the 10 PM cold pumpkin pie refrigerator run during half time of the late game.

🛌 Go to bed early - The earlier you go to sleep, the less weight you will gain cause if you’re sleeping, you’re not eating. This is important for the whole holiday because Americans tend not to get enough sleep anyway, so using a long weekend to catch up is a great idea and has follow through potential.

😎 JOMO > FOMO - Flip that script people. Instead of getting caught by the Fear of Missing Out, embrace the Joy of Missing Out. Let your nephews hit the bars without you. You’re crimping them no matter what they tell you.

🚱 Drink Less - Sorry, I realize this is a hard one for some people who will use any excuse to drink, but if you are not one of those people, set a limit beforehand and stop earlier.

And if you are one of those people who use any excuse to drink, take steps in 2024 to address that because the health costs compound the older you get. Start by finding some people who have made the shift from kindaholic to not such a drinker anymore.

🙊 Fast Monday Night to Wednesday - A bunch of us fast every other week from Monday early evening to Wednesday in the morning or afternoon. Join us for this budding tradition on 11/27.

It’s a great way to detox after the storm.

I will post more about it Monday morning on my Twitter.

Have a great holiday everybody!

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I am running a Workshop Series called Crushing 2024 & Beyond that begins in December. If you have made false starts or yoyo’d in your health journey but you want to crack the code this time around, this is for you.

Check Out the Details HERE!