Enjoy Shavuot, and Stay Fit and Healthy Too

Packing on the pounds does not have to be a side effect of the upcoming Shavuot weekend. You can still enjoy festive parties and great food without consequences. It just requires some planning. Think about it this way. Let’s say you are organizing a trip on a budget. You can find ways to save money by taking public transportation over taxi’s, going to just one nice restaurant daily, and perhaps limiting your shopping to a few select items on sale. Overall you can still end up having an amazing time despite a few cut backs.

The same principles of budgeting can be applied to planning your Shavuot diet. You have to balance out your eating itinerary and skimp in calories where you can. Since you can anticipate meals with friends to be heavy, be extra conscious of your portions. With a little preparation, you can enjoy this dairy holiday without the guilt. Below I’ve listed some eating tips to help you feel satisfied while keeping off the weight.

– Follow the 80/20 Vegetable Rule.  Make your plate 80% vegetables and 20% of the main course. If you wait all year for those delicious cheese blintzes – go for it. Just have one…Fill the rest of your plate with salad, a little fish, and as many colorful vegetables as you can to have some variety.

– Avoid sugary drinks with hidden calories. It’s easy to get a lot of extra calories at Shavuot meals with wine, soda, and fruit juices. Stick to water, sparkling water, and herbal tea.

– Don’t save it up for your next meal.  It’s inevitable you may be faced with a situation where you don’t have the healthiest food options. Expect this to happen and EAT SOMETHING BEFOREHAND. Have a light snack (so you can just nibble during your lunch or dinner) instead of finishing a meal that could potentially be a few thousand calories. The best thing to have before eating with friends is a high quality protein shake, low fat Greek yogurt, a protein bar, or a hard boiled egg.

– Make plans far from home that you can walk to! During the holidays I don’t get to the gym, so instead try to make plans that are a 30-40 minute walk away. I live on the East Side and most of my plans are usually across town on the West Side. Unless the weather is bad, this is a perfect excuse to get in some exercise. Even if you end up eating too much, you can undo the damage by burning off the extra calories.

And remember- although the tradition is to eat dairy, there is no halachic requirement to eat loads of cheesecake and ice cream this holiday.

Enjoy!!

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