Healthy. What a loaded word it is. What does a “heart-healthy” Thanksgiving look like? You might be surprised at my answer.
Although I’m a dietitian, when I think about healthy living at Thanksgiving (and every day), I zoom out and consider all that affects your health, cardiovascular system and beyond, from physical activity to stress, as well as nutrition.
So these are my top ten swaps for you, not one of which involves low-fat gravy.
1. Swap the “perfect Thanksgiving” vision for a lower-stress get-together.
Choose which dishes matter most and give yourself permission to buy, delegate, or eliminate the rest.
Tidy up if you’re hosting, don’t get down on your knees with a toothbrush. It’s easy to lose perspective.
The purpose of Thanksgiving is to gather with loved ones and express gratitude for the harvest and all we have. You can do that with a store-bought pumpkin pie!
Heart health link: Stress increases hormones like adrenaline, which raises blood pressure, and cortisol, which can increase blood sugar, cholesterol, and triglycerides, in addition to blood pressure. Over time, those things can damage your heart.
2. Avoid the exhausting last-minute sprint – start early instead.
Doing the menu a week in advance and starting food prep at least the day before can make cooking a big meal less taxing. Or so I’ve heard.
Seriously, I know people who do that, and they seem almost calm when guests arrive. Let’s both try to be like them.
And if possible, take a few breaks during the big day — even 10 minutes to sit or walk outside.
Heart health link: Short periods of rest between work tasks have been linked to small boosts in stamina and decreases in fatigue.
3. Instead of skipping meals before the big dinner, have at least a nourishing snack.
Even if you don’t purposely skip lunch, it’s easy to get busy and all of a sudden it’s 3 o’clock and you’re famished.
You might even set an alarm to remind you to eat. Silly, but it works! A quick snack can be one of your rest breaks. Sit for long enough to take a deep breath and eat a handful (or two) of almonds and an apple. You’ve got this!
Heart health link: Skimping on breakfast and lunch can set you up for an energy crash, a hangry outburst, or overeating by dinnertime.
4. Swap diet stress for flexible, intuitive eating.
If you’ve had a heart event, you might be nervous about typical Thanksgiving fare, like gravy, stuffing, and apple pie. Skip them if you like, but really, one meal won’t make or break heart health. You’ll probably eat over 1000 meals this year! It’s your everyday pattern of eating that matters most.
Intuitive eating means considering enjoyment, satisfaction, how a food makes you feel, as well as health considerations. You trust your wisdom when making food decisions, including listening to your hunger and fullness cues to guide you regarding how much to eat.
Heart health link: Surprisingly, intuitive eating has been linked to lower cardiovascular risk, total and LDL (bad) cholesterol, triglycerides, and blood pressure, as well as higher life satisfaction, and other measures of psychological wellness.
So eat what you love and skip what you don’t. You don’t owe anyone an explanation. If necessary, ban “diet talk” at the table. (It’s almost as prickly as politics.) Ahhh. Now you can relax and enjoy your dinner.
5. Instead of eating on autopilot, savour your food mindfully.
Mindful eating is pausing to really notice the food, without judgement. Take in the aroma wafting from the kitchen, the beautiful table, and the way it melts in your mouth. Notice how pleasantly satisfied you start to feel as you sample the various dishes. Think about the many people who made it possible.
If your inside voice says, “OMG so much fat”, drop that thought like a hot turkey right out of the oven.
Heart health link: Mindfulness programs show potential for improving blood sugar control (hemoglobin A1c) and reducing stress, depression, and anxiety.
So focus on the food, one wonderful bite at a time.
6. And take time to express gratitude.
It feels corny to say, “Let’s go around the table and say what we’re thankful for.” (Groan.)
Instead, The Table Underground suggests a number of more engaging approaches, from asking “guests to share a story about a struggle they overcame or an experience that gave them hope this year” to distributing this list of questions and statements to prompt conversation.
The more you get people telling stories, the more the conversation will flow, weaving in thankfulness authentically.
Heart health link: Studies of gratitude interventions consistently show wonderful improvements in psychological outcomes (including wellbeing and depressive symptoms) as well as small beneficial effects on health behaviours and cardiovascular outcomes.
What better time to do it than Thanksgiving?
7. Ditch the all-at-once buffet for a light first course.
Isn’t it amazing how fast we can gobble up a meal that took hours and hours to prepare? Stretch out your dinner like you’re in Italy or France.
If it’s already cold where you live, a savoury roasted butternut squash soup will feel cozy and nourishing. Serve it while the turkey is resting.
Or would a colourful salad fit your mood? This Beet Salad With Orange, Arugula, And Feta from Mediterranean Dish is one of our special favourites.
Heart health link: Breaking your meal into more courses can give your body a chance to start feeling satiated early, and stretch out the opportunities for conversation and laughter at the table.
8. Swap the bottle of wine for a glass.
Does the tension or celebration of a holiday cause you to drink more than usual? You wouldn’t be alone!
Heart health link: But drinking more than a glass (women) or two (men) a day has more risks than benefits. The guidance in Canada is even more conservative now, suggesting that more than two drinks a week raises your risk for certain cancers, with more than seven boosting the risk of heart problems, from high blood pressure to heart failure.
If you want something special, get a good bottle of flavoured (not sweetened) sparkling water or make your own by adding cranberries and orange slices to a large bottle of water (sparkling or not) the day before your dinner.
9. When something (inevitably) goes wrong, instead of a meltdown, try laughing instead.
Years ago someone (not naming names) accidentally left an oven mitt in the oven with our turkey, causing a (small) fire and an inedible bird.
They say that comedy is tragedy plus time. How long would it take you to go from melting down to laughing about that?
So if you spill the wine or burn the yams, try to shift to problem-solving and humour as soon as you can. The bigger the disaster, the better story it will make!
Heart health link: Flexibility and humour are underrated heart protectors. Laughing reduces the stress hormone cortisol and can lower blood pressure and heart-rate variability. (That’s a good thing!)
10. Take a pass on “burning off” dinner in favour of gentle movement.
Focus on how physical activity makes you feel, not how many calories you burn. It’s about getting fresh air into your lungs, blood pumping through your muscles, and a good sleep at night, not compensating for a big meal.
Heart health link: A brief walk shortly after a meal has been shown to reduce post-meal blood sugar spikes, and there’s emerging evidence that regular walking helps lift mood and reduce anxiety.
Wishing you a happy (and healthy) Thanksgiving
You might have expected tips like “swap your mother’s gravy for this low-fat recipe,” but that’s not likely to be as good for you as relaxing and enjoying your favourite Thanksgiving traditions with your loved ones.
We can talk about ways to get healthier fats and other cardioprotective foods in your life, but on this day (and always), enjoy food in your sweet spot – healthy (big picture “healthy”, not just diet), delicious, and right for you.
What swaps would you add? Chime in on the Sweet Spot Nutrition Facebook group.
