A Healthier Thanksgiving Feast

Thanksgiving is my husband's favorite holiday. He talks about it for months, the traditions and the food. He just loves it all. And me.... well you should know by now my stance on food, specifically SPECIAL day kinda food! YUM!!! But how do you navigate Thanksgiving when you want to keep an eye on your health & fitness goals? Well FIRST you build a "healthified" menu, then you EAT it without guilt. We'll talk portions in a minute, but right now. Let's talk the GOOD stuff. The actual food.

Appetizer Who doesn't love a shrimp cocktail? This Cranberry Shrimp Cocktail is SIMPLE (which you know is my jam!) healthier than the cheese dip. Main Course Keep your plate Veggies Most and you'll be all set! Whole Grain Stuffed Turkey Breast Carrot-Swirled Parsnip-Potato Mash

Shaved Brussels Sprout Salad w/ EPIC lemon dressing *** to replace the traditional green bean casserole you can always make my FAVORITE green beans from The Food Network Kitchen.

Cocktail Caramel Apple Cocktail AND Mocktail (for the kiddos)

Dessert Pecan Pie Skillet

I want to give you my top 5 tips on how to maintain your health during Thanksgiving and really the whole holiday season.

TOP 5 HEALTHY HOLIDAY HABITS

5. Water Most. Between each cocktail. ALL.DAY.LONG. And I mean it. 1/2 of your body weight in ounces AT MINIMUM. 4. Bring a healthy dish with you when you go to a pot luck. You'll KNOW for sure that there is at least 1 healthy item there and likely others there have their goals in mind and will be appreciative of your thoughtfulness.

3. Save your calories for things you don't get often. Don't splurge on crap you can get any time of year. If you can get it at Kroger on any random Tuesday in April, don't waste your plate space. Save that space for your grandma's homemade chocolate cake. You know the one you get once a year. Save it and Enjoy the heck out of it!

2. Veggies Most. Fill at minimum 1/2 of your plate with veggies most. and p.s. veggies most DOES NOT mean potatoes lol. Let's look for leafy greens, bright colors.

1. Don't skip meals. One of the worst things you can do for yourself is to skip meals "waiting" for the "BIG" meal. Having a great nutrient dense breakfast can really reshape binge eating habits, over indulging, making silly choices because you're hungry. Try my FAVORITE superfood smoothie! It's PERFECTLY balanced, tastes great and keeps me from mindlessly munching. PLUS!!! You get a free YEARS worth of workouts to go along with it! Let's stay healthy this Holiday Season friends <3

#Thanksgiving