Here's What To Eat Today If You Ate Literally Everything Yesterday

    Just say no to juice cleanses.

    Casey Gueren
    by Casey Gueren

    BuzzFeed Staff

    If you're currently feeling bloated, swollen, and extra gassy, then congratulations. You probably had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

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    But swearing off solid foods won't actually help you feel better faster. Really.

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    Despite what that food-baby in your stomach has you believing, you don't need to fast or detox the day after a calorie-fest in order to get back to normal. In fact, that can backfire.

    Instead, BuzzFeed Life spoke with two nutritionists to find out what you should actually be eating today if you still feel like your body is 85% mashed potatoes. Here's what they had to say:

    First of all, you probably won't actually gain weight from a single day of stuffing your face.

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    "It's pretty unlikely that your huge indulgence will result in perceptible fat gain," Abby Langer, Toronto-based registered dietitian, tells BuzzFeed Life. "More likely the scale will register a heavier weight due to the amount of food and fluids in your body." AKA you're bloated and you haven't pooped yet.

    Sure, if you literally doubled or tripled your calories yesterday, it's possible that you could gain a pound. But for most people, it's just the result of water retention and slowed digestion, says Langer.

    Whatever you do, don't skip breakfast.

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    "But I'm still so full from yesterday, I can't eat anything!" Well, that's just not true. What you mean is that you can still feel that good AF pecan pie in your stomach, so you're not really amped about brunch. But it's probably been at least eight hours since you ate anything, so your body is definitely looking for fuel right now, no matter how much you ate yesterday.

    Skipping a meal will cause your blood sugar to drop, leaving you irritable, hungry, and more likely to overeat later in the day, Shannon Fazzolari, registered dietitian at NYU Langone Weight Management Program, tells BuzzFeed Life.

    Instead, eat a light, protein-rich breakfast within two hours of waking up.

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    This will help regulate your blood sugar and your appetite so you can get back to your normal eating habits, says Fazzolari. So eat something like eggs and fruit, low-fat Greek yogurt, tofu scramble, whatever. Here are some high-protein breakfast ideas, some low-carb breakfast options, and some eggless alternatives.

    Obviously you're going to eat leftovers for lunch. Just stick with turkey and veggies to get things, um, moving.

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    Skip the bread and go with white meat turkey (which is leaner than the dark meat) and roasted vegetables. High-fiber veggies like broccoli, peas, and artichokes will help get your digestive system moving so you can rid your bowels of the food-baby. And avoid anything greasy or fatty — that will just slow things down even more, says Langer.

    Now is not the time for ~cleanses~ or ~detoxing~.

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    Sure, doing a juice cleanse might help you feel lighter in the short-term, because it basically acts as a diuretic. But most juices are also high in sugar and low in necessary nutrients like fiber and protein. "You'll lose mostly water weight, and when you go off the cleanse, you'll just gain it back," says Fazzolari.

    Plus, it's not a sustainable way to tweak your eating habits — especially when you have more food-heavy holidays coming up. "What ends up happening is people tend to go too far in the other direction," says Langer. "It can start a downward spiral in terms of their eating habits. They start eating too little, then get hungry, then eat to compensate that, and it keeps going." You're better off just drinking a ton of water and cutting back a little on carbs, sugar, and fat.

    Seriously, drink so much water.

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    That bloated, swollen puffer-fish feeling is a byproduct of all the sodium you had yesterday. Plus all those carbs (like four crescent rolls tbh) can make you hold onto a little more fluid, says Fazzolari.

    When your body is retaining water, drinking more of it will actually help you de-bloat. You can make it fancy with a little fruit or carbonation, but the key is to drink an actual buttload of water.

    Maybe swear off booze today and tomorrow.

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    Even if you drank too much last night, a little hair of the dog will only prolong the inevitable hangover, says Langer. Plus, you're trying to rehydrate to feel better, remember?

    And don't just say fuck it until January.

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    Again, you probably won't gain weight after one huge holiday meal. But you probably will gain weight if you decide to just eat whatever you want between now and New Years because wtf 'tis the season. "Two months of poor eating is a hell of a lot harder to fix than a couple of days," says Langer.

    So don't adopt an all-or-nothing attitude. Instead, just try to stick with mostly whole, unprocessed, good-for-you foods the majority of the time, and then don't worry about eating the biggest piece of cheesecake and half that plate of brie at the holiday party.

    "It's just a matter of eating what you like and getting over it, staying active, and knowing that the next day you have to go back to your regular eating habits," says Langer.

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