Five Ways to Avoid Overeating This Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! If you are American or have an American friend who counts you among their Beijing nearest and dearest, chances are you've got a big turkey feast on the horizon. Here, we have listed a few tricks, courtesy of Beijing United Family Hospital's (BJU's) new Clinical Dietitian, Lynn Zhang, that can help you curb your enthusiasm – and tendency to overeat – this Thanksgiving.

1. Control your portion sizes

While it’s alright to have the occasional feast, eating until you burst is something that should be avoided if at all possible. “Holidays only come around once in a while, so it’s okay if people eat a bit more during these periods,” Lynn says. The body will tolerate a certain degree of occasional overeating, but it’s still best not to stuff yourself. “It’s all about moderation,” says Lynn. She explains that a good rule of thumb is to try and keep your food intake to within 130% of what you would usually eat. Eating much more than that will cause you to gain weight. When deciding how much food to put on your plate (and how many times to go back for seconds), keep this in mind.

2. Have a plan of action

It can also help to come up with a strategy before the meal for how you’ll go about eating it. “Know the sequence of what you will eat,” is Lynn’s advice on the matter. “Have vegetables first, then meat, and then carbs. That way, you can fill up with the stuff you actually need before getting to the high-calorie foods.” 

Aim to fill half of your plate with colorful veggies, a quarter with lean meat, and the final quarter with whole grains, if possible. “Different colored vegetables give you different anti-oxidants and vitamins,” Lynn explains. “By having a colorful plate, you’re getting a variety of foods and a wider range of nutrients,” she says. She also advises trimming the skin and extra fat off of your turkey before tucking in. When it comes to choosing between light and dark meat, she says that while dark meat has more calories, it also has more iron, so, on balance, both are fine.

Lynn also recommends looking up exactly what is in each of the different offerings before choosing what you eat, as this can help put things into perspective. “You can make smarter choices if you have an understanding of just what is in the foods you’re eating,” she says. If you’re not the one cooking, you can look up different foods in MyFitnessPal, or any other calorie-tracking app. "When you see how many calories are in something, it’s easier to control yourself when it comes to choosing what to eat,” says Lynn.

3. Eat mindfully 

It’s easy to get distracted while you eat. When was the last time you ate a meal without once looking at a screen? The danger in this is that, if you aren’t paying attention to what you eat, you can end up eating far more than you should. Start practicing mindful eating at your next meal – chew slowly and think about your food as you eat. Try not to check your phone or talk to anyone, and focus solely on the tastes and textures of the food in your mouth.

By eating more mindfully, you may be able to slow down your food consumption and, hopefully, end up eating less overall. “Slow eating helps you sense your natural hunger signals,” explains Lynn. “You usually need to chew one bite of food 16-20 times. When you swallow it, your brain will get signals about how much food you’ve swallowed. Slow eating will give enough time for these signals go back and forth, so you can assess how much food is already in your stomach, and make a decision about whether you need more or less.”

She also recommends standing up from time to time to evaluate how full you are. “When we sit, our stomachs are all squashed in, so we can’t always feel how much we’ve eaten. But, when we stand up, our stomachs will get stretched, and we can feel our hunger levels more clearly,” she says. Before reaching for seconds, make an excuse to get up (go and wash your hands, for instance) and take the time to listen to your body. “By the time you start to feel full, you have already overeaten by about 20%, so it’s better to eat until you are 80% full and then take a break and assess how full you are before continuing,” says Lynn.

4. Take your mind off of food

When faced with a tableful of tasty dishes, it can be hard to think about anything other than how awesome eating is. But, it’s also important to keep in mind the real reason you're sitting around the table. “Try to remember that the purpose of these festivals is to be with family and friends; to share stories and be together,” says Lynn. “It’s not just about food!” Consider carving out a portion of time to dedicate to eating mindfully, and make an active decision to use the rest of the day spending quality time with your loved ones.

In the periods before and after eating, you can make a conscious effort to steer clear of snacks and seconds (or thirds) by engaging friends and family in other activities that don’t involve eating. Try bringing a photo album to share with people, or playing a game of cards after you finish your meal. You can also consider going out for a post-meal walk to help digestion and bond with family. It’s much harder to keep eating while your hands are occupied and you’re busy moving around and interacting with people. 

5. Drink water to fill up your stomach

If you really think you lack the self-control to keep from stuffing yourself this Thanksgiving, do yourself a favor and start the festivities with a big glass of water. “Water fills the stomach and keeps you from feeling hungry,” says Lynn, “so that’s good too!” Have a glass before each round of eating, and you’ll thank yourself later on when you're not suffering from bloating and meat sweats.

Lynn Zhang is our new American-trained Clinical Dietitian. She speaks English and Mandarin. To make an appointment with her, please call the BJU Service Center at 4008-919191.

• Not sure you can control yourself this Thanksgiving? Read BJU's other Clinical Dietitian Jackie Gao's simple tips for improving your diet in general.

• Love eating but have had tummy issues lately? We feel your pain. Let BJU's Naturopathic Doctor, Dr. Melissa Rodriguez, teach you about how to keep your gut healthy in Beijing.

• Worried about your eating habits and how they affect your risk of developing diabetes? Check out BJU Family Medicine Physician Dr. Jean-Pierre Dhenin's tips for avoiding the disease.