Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes: Holiday Recipe Ideas to Help Avoid The Fitness Train-wreck

Recently I was watching Biggest Loser and was very intrigued by one of the guests they had on “The Ranch”. They had a scientist who has done brain research on why obese people over eat and why thin people, generally, do not. 

What he said he discovered in his research was a difference in the brain’s “pleasure center”. For obese folks, the pleasure center is actually much smaller in comparison to their thin counterpart. This suggests that while both obese and thin folks have cravings, it takes much MORE for the obese person to satisfy the craving. 

The good news is that this pleasure program can be re-written in the brain. It takes 4-5 weeks of healthy and moderation eating to train your brain. The bad news is, it can be overwritten with the old habit with just 4-5 days of over-indulgence. That means 1 week of unhealthy eating can completely undo all the hard work you have done to enjoy eating healthy. 

So, what is a health-conscious person to do during the holidays! We are bombarded by all types of unhealthy foods and sedentary living for an extended period.  

My solution is to deck your halls with boughs of healthy this Thanksgiving and find healthy recipes to keep your Holiday Train from getting de-railed.  

While I am no recipe expert, I love to eat and I know where to look. I found a site with a full menu of healthy Thanksgiving recipes that will provide good options for just about any traditional Thanksgiving craving. These include: 

Healthy Thanksgiving Menu

Cornbread Stuffing

Fresh Cranberry Sauce

Hearty Mashed Potatoes (without butter and milk!)

Sweet Peas with Braised Lettuce

Carmelized Onion Gravy

A Healthy Turkey

And Pumpkin Pie in a Glass 

Using your brain to train your brain is the key to long term weight loss. Find these recipes and more healthy options at www.coxhealth.webhealthyrecipes.com

Please do me a favor and  post your own healthy recipe ideas and websites below in the comments section to help other readers!
Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Holiday Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipe Ideas Fitness Diet Thanksgiving Healthy Recipes Holiday Recipe Ideas Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipe Options Holiday Fitness Delicious Healthy Thanksgiving Recipe Options Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Holiday Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipe Ideas Fitness Diet Thanksgiving Healthy Recipes Holiday Recipe Ideas Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipe Options Holiday Fitness Delicious Healthy Thanksgiving Recipe Options Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Healthy Thanksgiving Recipes Workout rest week ideas healthy workout vacation biggest lbiggest loser biggest loser biggest loser biggest loser biggest loser biggest loser biggest loser biggest loser

Insanity Week 4- The Struggle To Maintain Focus

We finally made it to rest week. I must say, I probably feel a little bit softer than I did at the beginning of Insanity. I think the reason for this is that I have not been as disciplined with the nutrition side of the program as I should be.

 

Since nutrition is 70% of a weight loss/ fitness program, it is not fair to expect to see results from an exercise program without focusing in on this crucial component. It is too easy to get into the mindset that it is ok to eat extra because “well, I got my workout in.”

 

However, just think about that fact that it takes about 30 seconds to eat a cookie with 300 calories, but it is going to take 30 minutes of exercising to burn that same amount. That is why it is so much easier to get fat than to lose it!

Another factor may be timing. With the change of summer into fall, my extraneous activities have definitely gotten more sedentary. The extra evening walks, swims with the kids, and afternoon jogs have been reduced to almost zero.

 

So, now that our family birthday season is done, Susan and I are going to renew our resolve to avoid the extra snacks, stop eating the kids crumbs, and avoid the leftover sweets. Just like everyone else, we struggle to stay on track over the winter months.

 

So, next week is “rest week” which means we have a light exercise regimen. That means we are going to have to be extra careful to eat right, avoid grazing like cattle and try to get some extra movement in.

 

Hang tight with your program! Remember, the hard workouts are not an excuse to indulge the sweet tooth. Those holiday treats are just going to end up hanging over your belt in January!

 

In the comment section below, help us with ways you plan to avoid the extra weight gain over the holidays.