Food: 3 ways to eat healthy on game day
Published Wednesday, June 26, 2024 at 12:00 AM
Metro Creative Connection Game day can quickly throw a spanner in the works if fans aren’t careful about what they eat. But staying on a diet on game day is easier than sports fans might think.
Metro Creative Connection
The sports landscape changed dramatically in 2020. Professional sports leagues were forced to suspend or postpone their seasons, and many amateur athletes, including college and professional school players, were told there would be no 2020 seasons.
Despite all these postponements and cancellations, many athletes are still competing this fall and winter, meaning fans will likely be able to come out to cheer on their favorite teams.
Game-day get-togethers are a great way to make sports more fun. But the food at traditional tailgate parties isn’t always healthy, and it can undermine people’s efforts to eat right. Thankfully, there are ways to eat healthy on game day without sacrificing the fun.
1. Know your calorie count.
If you’re trying to stick to your diet on game day, knowledge may be your best ally. According to the United States Department of Agriculture, game-day favorites like beer and chicken wings are high in calories. While the amount of beer you drink will vary, a 12-ounce bottle of light beer has about 100 calories. The USDA also notes that six chicken wings typically have just under 700 calories, but that calories can increase if you drench them in blue cheese or ranch dressing or slather them in barbecue sauce. The high calorie content of these staples may encourage you to choose healthier, lighter foods like vegetables and water.
2. Watch how much you eat.
According to a 2014 study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, Internal Medicine, the amount of food you eat while watching something can be influenced by the show you’re watching. The study, conducted by researchers at Cornell University, found that people eat significantly more while watching action-packed entertainment than they do while watching more sedate shows like talk shows. The researchers concluded that action-packed shows distract people from the amount of food they’re eating. If you want to limit how much you eat while watching a big game, be mindful to track your consumption and pack a small snack bag before the game starts, then eat only that once the game starts.
3. Make your own food.
Cooking your own food on game day gives you control over what you put into your body, and homemade snacks that are low in calories and sugar can help you stick to your diet more effectively than brownies, chips, or nachos.
