Thanksgiving is the perfect time to express gratitude towards your friends and family.  In between the gratitude there is a whole lot of eating that occurs. In fact, the whole day seems to morph into one extended meal. A food coma or overeating can sometimes be the unfortunate result. Overeating can make you feel sluggish, tired, and set your health goals way back.  Fear not, we are here to help by providing three simple tips to prevent eating more than your jeans can handle this holiday season!

1)  Make Grape Nectar Mocktails in Place of Drinking Alcoholic Beverages

There is nothing wrong with enjoying an alcoholic beverage with dinner, however Thanksgiving may not be the best day for over indulging. Drinking alcohol can activate the hunger switch in your brain (otherwise known as the dreaded “drunchies”), which makes it much more difficult to resist overeating. To avoid the feeling of hunger brought on by drinking alcohol this upcoming holiday, we suggest serving festive Grape Nectar mocktails!  Our mocktail recipes taste amazing, have no refined sugar, and give the illusion of drinking a delicious cocktail. Get inspired to make the perfect mocktail with our natural sweeteners here!  

2) Eat Before the Main Course:

A common mistake made on Thanksgiving Day is skipping meals leading up to the main dinner.  The misconception is that by skipping meals you are “saving room” to eat more later on. The issue is that by ignoring your hunger all day, you are more likely to miss the cues that you are full, which leads to overeating.

We suggest the following: 

• Start Your Day with a Protein Dense Meal: Protein keeps you feeling fuller all day long. We suggest something quick and easy, Greek yogurt topped with fruit and a natural sweetener, such as Grape Nectar, is an excellent option!

• Serve Healthy Appetizers: Appetizers with empty calories, such as chips and crackers, will have little effect on taming your hunger and serving foods that are high in fiber and nutrients will. Salads and vegetables are a great appetizer option, and you can easily impress your friends and family by drizzling some Grape Nectar on top.    

3) Make a Healthy Dessert: 

Desserts are the highlight to every Thanksgiving meal, and they do not need to be unhealthy to be considered delicious.  After eating a large meal the last thing your body needs is a dessert that is high in sugar. Using Grape Nectar in your favorite Thanksgiving dessert is a simple way to make it healthier.  Grape Nectar is a natural sweetener, which means it has only natural sugars, plus it has a low glycemic index. Adjusting your favorite dessert recipes with Grape Nectar is sure to reduce the guilt of eating something sweet this Thanksgiving Day. To get inspired check out some of our favorite Grape Nectar desserts here! 

With these three simple tips it is easy to avoid overeating this Thanksgiving!  That’s just one more thing to be grateful for this holiday… or should we say Grape-ful.

Get your Grape Nectar now!