Thanksgiving Thursday: Pie, mashed potatoes,  stuffing, green bean casserole, macaroni and cheese, rolls, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce…then a few hours later, maybe another piece of pie…

Fat Friday: A day of feeling bloated, tired and regret over eating off the rails.
Not to fret – health experts encourage us to remember that Thanksgiving is a holiday not  a holiweek. There’s time to do damage control before the holiday celebrations ahead.

Fat Friday Tips

Here are some ways to recover from a Thanksgiving eating extravaganza.

1. Don’t worry about the scale right after Thanksgiving. Weight goes up a few pounds because the meal was full of extra carbs. Carbs take a lot of water to process so the body hangs onto water. Also, all those casseroles and sauces likely had excess sodium, which causes water retention. Get back to healthy eating and weight “gain” will probably disappear in a couple of days.

2. Drink lots of water. It doesn’t seem to make sense, but drinking more water will help the body get rid of water weight.

3. Focus on healthy leftovers, i.e. leftover turkey and leftover unsauced veggies. Protein and vegetables are blood sugar friendly; most of the rest of the leftovers may not be.

4. Beware of major blood sugar offenders. Leftover canned cranberry sauce is basically red sugar. That delicious pecan pie is overflowing with sugar. For pie lovers, pumpkin pie is the healthiest leftover dessert, particularly when eaten as a sliver, not a wedge. Extra credit for skipping some of the soggy crust.

5. A brisk walk, bike ride or other exercise will help lower blood sugar.

6.  Fretting and worrying about overeating will help nothing and is in fact detrimental, as  excess stress increases blood glucose levels.

7. Drink some water. Have another glass, sit back and enjoy the holiday memories.