Transcript: Thanksgiving Workout Strategy: How to Enjoy Holiday Food Without Gaining Weight

Hey guys, famous Ashley Grant here. Welcome to

More Movement Please, the podcast about inspiring

you to move your body more. So tomorrow is Thanksgiving

and I wanted to talk really quickly about something

that's been on my mind and probably yours too.

With the holidays here, it doesn't have to mean

that you destroy your weight loss goals. And

I know what you're thinking, but it's Thanksgiving

or it's Christmas. I'm surrounded by family and

there's pie everywhere and my gym routine is

completely thrown off. I hear you. But here's

the thing. You can enjoy, absolutely, you can

enjoy the holidays and stay committed to your

fitness journey. They're not. I repeat, they're

not mutually exclusive. So let's talk about tomorrow,

right? Thanksgiving dinner is going to be amazing.

And you should enjoy it. But here's what science

actually tells us about not overindulging while

still having a great time. First, I want you

to eat breakfast. I know far too many people

who will not eat breakfast the day of Thanksgiving.

In fact, it used to be a thing that my husband

was really adamant about. He's like, well, I

don't want to do breakfast and I don't want to

do lunch because we're going to have Thanksgiving

dinner and I want to be really, really hungry

for it. And it's tempting. It really is tempting

to save all those calories for the big meal.

But research shows that arriving whenever you're

starving leads to overeating. What you should

do instead is have a really good breakfast to

keep your blood sugar stable and then stay hydrated.

That's number two, right? In fact, you should

be doing that all day. Stay hydrated. Because

what's funny is we often mistake thirst for hunger.

So drink water all day, especially right before

the big meal. And third, and this is a big one,

I want you to use the plate method. Fill half

of your plate with vegetables first, and then

a quarter protein, hello turkey, and a quarter

with those delicious carbs and sides. Notice

I didn't say don't have the carbs and sides.

I want you to have it. I want you to have that

stuffing and the mashed potatoes and all the

delicious things, but you just have to be mindful

about your portions. And the biggest thing while

you're eating is eat slowly. If you're mindless

about your eating, before you know it, you're

shoveling in a crap ton of food and you may already

have been full, but you kept going. If you keep

going, even after you're full, you're just going

to overstuff yourself and make yourself sick,

right? So I know it's going to be hard, but I

want you to like put down your fork between bites.

It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to register

that you're full. Savor the flavors. Give your

body time to tell you when it's satisfied. And

not stuffed. So, it's going to be difficult,

right? It's going to be hard. I get it. I totally

get it. Because you start talking to Aunt Sharon

and before you know it, you have just shoveled

in a whole bunch of mashed potatoes and stuffing

and all the good things. And your brain hasn't

quite caught up to the fact that, hey, you might

already be full. Now, let me tell you what I

plan on doing. Tomorrow morning, before the chaos

begins, I intend to get my workout in. I am so

used to every single Thursday, I do Tabata and

I do stretch. And there's amazing classes online

that you can take. And so that's what I intend

to do. My goal is even if I only work out 30

to 45 minutes, I plan on doing some Tabata rounds

and I plan on doing some stretching. And here's

why. Not only does it set the tone for the day,

it reminds me that I'm someone who prioritizes

movement and health even on the holidays. And

on Black Friday, while everyone else is going

to be trying to get to the stores at dawn or

maybe going back to work or whatever, I'm going

to the gym. I definitely will be going to the

gym. I'll have my Friday routine just like I

do every single Friday of Zumba and low -impact

cardio because, honestly, that's going to feel

more amazing to me than trying to get some amazing

deal. And let's face it, so many of the deals

these days are on the computer anyway. You don't

have to go and be one of those doorbusters. And

do we really need $25 off a TV? Absolutely not.

What I need is 25 pounds off my waistline. So

that's what I intend to do. And I encourage you

to consider doing that for yourself as well,

because there's something so satisfying about

knowing that you had a good meal and you still

kept your fitness goals and your commitment to

yourself to get in shape as your top priority.

So when you enjoy your Thanksgiving meal, And

you continue to keep working out maybe the day

of, or at least at the very least, the day after.

You're energized. You've got extra fuel in your

system. And you're proving to yourself that one

day of celebration doesn't have to derail everything

you're working for. And listen, Thanksgiving

is just the beginning. I know. We're heading