Thanksgiving is a holiday of plenty: plenty of food, plenty of family and plenty of cursing at the bathroom scale on Friday morning. It is easy to be victimized by holiday weight gain, but portion control and exercise are key to maintaining weight over this year's Thanksgiving holiday.
The biggest problem for people when it comes to holidays like Thanksgiving is portion size, said Bob Karch, chairman of AU's Department of Health and Fitness.
"We tend to overeat," he said. "That is not unique to the holidays. We do it all the time, just more so during the holidays."
Melissa Hale and Stacey Zeno of the Jacobs Fitness Center note that it is important for everyone to take small portions of each item and listen to his or her body.
"If you are full, then do not consume more," they said.
Overconsumption is often hard to avoid because of the large number of dishes that make it to the Thanksgiving table.
"It's great to have a variety of food on the table," Karch said. "However, in reality, once you chew the food up it becomes a fuel source. If we take in excess fuel, the body has to process it and store it, usually in the form of fat."
SIS graduate student Beth Scudder avoids this by taking small servings of everything she wants to eat.
"I enjoy all that I've taken, and if I'm still hungry, I'll go back for seconds on something," she said.
In the event that Scudder does gain a few pounds, she said she knows that she will increase her regular exercise routine and make changes to her diet.
For those who do not regularly exercise, Hale and Zeno note that walking is a great and safe way to exercise.
"Make an effort to take walks with family and friends every day that you are together," they said.
Hale and Zeno advise against starting exercise routines that are too intense because the negative experiences may keep someone from taking on a physically active lifestyle.
"With strength training, you increase your risk of injury if you attempt to lift weights that are too heavy or you try and complete too many reps," they said. "Similarly, if you begin a cardio routine or group exercise class that is too advanced, you may easily become exhausted or frustrated and quit after one or two workouts."
In addition to exercise, Karch noted that reducing food consumption in the weeks following Thanksgiving will help people lose the weight they may have gained.
"Calories in, calories out," he said.
But this may prove difficult due to the inevitable leftovers that end up in fridges all across America.
"On holiday seasons, we have excess food in the fridge," Karch said. "The problem is that every time we open the refrigerator door we pick at the food."
He noted that people want to eat all the leftovers as soon as possible so they don't spoil. The trick is to prepare foods that will have longer shelf lives, he said.
"Plan foods that have some shelf life afterwards, cook them in quantity, and when you retrieve them, they are healthy and you can enjoy them," he said.
The threat of Thanksgiving weight gain is not a huge concern among some AU students. Some say that worrying gets in the way of the holiday spirits.
"I'm not concerned about gaining weight," said sophomore David Ellis. "Thanksgiving is about being with loved ones and being thankful for everything you have."
Freshman Hillary Blank is not concerned either.
"There is a moment when you reach for that one more piece of pie and you are like, I can open my belt tonight," she said. "I don't think I'd ever want worrying about food to put a damper on my holiday spirits"
