A Perfect Pesach Plan by Aliza Beer, MS RD

A Perfect Pesach Plan

by Aliza beer MS, rD, cDN

Pesach is a food-focused holiday that can come with stress for people who seek to maintain their weight. With eight days of constant eating, late mealtimes, and a lack of physical activity, it’s easy to lose sight of healthy eating goals. With the right guidance, you can take part in all the festivities and still feel you best – both during and after the holiday. Whether you are home this year or traveling, following these tips can help you conquer this challenge. 1. Matzah. Matzah is a Pesach staple. During the Sedarim, it is necessary to consume a specific amount of matzah. It is ideal to purchase whole-wheat or spelt matzah so you have a higher fiber and less refined alternative. Being that matzah is a requirement during these two meals, aim to keep the rest of the Seder meal low-carb. Outside of the two Sedarim, my advice is to wash, have a small piece of matzah, and continue with your meal. Over chol hamoed, ditch the matzah and give your digestive system a break. It is important to recognize that half of one round matzah is considered one serving of carbs. 2. Grape Juice and Wine. At the Sedarim, we need to drink four cups of wine or grape juice. Wine would be preferable because it has less sugar than grape juice. If you aren’t a wine drinker, choosing a light grape juice will save you calories and unnecessary sugar. At the rest of the meals, pass over the grape juice and wine and stick to water or seltzer.

3. Don’t come to the Sedarim

very hungry. A great tip when the Sedarim are only to begin past 8 pm is to have a meal earlier. This could be a vegetable-filled chicken soup, a salad, or some protein and vegetables. This will ensure that by the time you eat, which can be extremely late, you aren’t very hungry. If you are starving when it’s time to eat, you are more likely to overeat or make poor choices.

Once it’s time to eat, stick to something small. This tip applies to all latenight meals. If you are serving your children an early dinner, make sure there’s something for you to eat then as well. 4. Go in with a plan. Formulating a meal plan before the holiday will ensure you are well-prepared and make the proper choices. The first step would be preparing a menu; this will remind you to cook healthy options for yourself (and hopefully your entire family). Whether you are home or away, eating a nutritious breakfast with protein and a whole-grain carb, a lunch with lean protein and vegetables, a filling snack, and a light dinner will ensure you feel your best over the holidays and will make it easier after they’re over. Think of your meal plan as armor that properly prepares you for the most challenging of food circumstances. 5. Limiting dessert. The Pesach cakes and cookies have gotten increasingly better over the years and can leave you feeling very tempted. However, they are often filled with potato starch, cottonseed oil, and matzah meal – all of which are extremely inflammatory and unhealthy for you. It is not realistic to avoid treating yourself for the whole yom tov. Therefore, consider making healthier portion-controlled cookies or muffins using almond flour or purchasing cleaner cookies to have on-hand. Although they may not be low-calorie, almond flour pastries are lower carb and overall a better alternative than the baked goods in the tea room that are calling your name. Otherwise, stick to compotes, fresh fruit, or chocolate-dipped berries if you want something sweet.

When you write up a plan, schedule when you will be having dessert so you can look forward to it and not overindulge. The best time to indulge is in the morning so your body can digest it throughout the day. 6. Stay hydrated. Matzah is known to make people extremely constipated and can cause stomach discomfort. To avoid this, make sure to drink at least 8 cups of water daily and limit alcohol and caffeine, which can dehydrate you. If it’s difficult for you to drink plain water, consider making fruity iced teas with lemon slices to keep you hydrated. Staying hydrated, along with increasing your intake of fruits and vegetables, will help keep you regular. 7. Have lighter meals. Instead of making a heavy meat appetizer, choose a soup or a salad. Typically, we serve multiple courses on yom tov. However, on a regular day, you don’t eat a threecourse meal. This can be a shock to the digestive system and may leave you feeling uncomfortable. Keep breakfast the same size as your regular breakfast, keep lunch as similar to your regular lunches as possible, and keep dinners light. This can mean eggs or unsweetened Greek yogurt with berries for breakfast and fish and salad for lunch. Chicken and grilled vegetables are a good way to keep dinner light. Limiting red meat can help lighten up meals and can help lower caloric intake. One rib steak is approximately 850 calories and is filled with saturated fat. Aim to choose one or two meals with red meat and keep the rest of them fish and poultry. 8. Eat portion-controlled meals. It can be tempting to pile up your plate with all the foods you want to try. Instead, keep protein portions the size of a fist and choose to fill up your plate with salad or non-starchy vegetables. Regulating portions can have a very large impact on your weight and progress throughout yom tov. Make each of your meals a oneplate meal. Going back for seconds or thirds can often leave us with no clue of how much we ate. 9. Snacking. Planned-out, mindful snacking can make dieting much more attainable for people. Especially over the holidays, it can be difficult to stay away from snacking in between meals. Stick to fresh fruits, compote, cut up vegetables, hard-boiled eggs, or a small number of unsweetened almonds or pistachios. You can also purchase kosher for Passover

snacks like Matt’s Munchies, Weightless Cookies, Seaweed Snacks, and dark chocolate. If you are looking for a treat, have some cassava chips or a healthy pastry. 10. Pass over processed foods. Pesach is about going back to the basics and enjoying wholesome proteins and produce. This is a great opportunity to ditch processed foods and focus on eating simple and clean foods. Aside from the matzah we eat, the rest of the foods we consume shouldn’t come from a box. Pesach products are filled with additives and are highly processed. Choosing lean proteins, fresh fruits, and low-carb vegetables will help you achieve your goals. Zucchini noodles and cauliflower rice are good alternatives to packaged Passover noodles. 11. Oils. Because canola oil cannot be used on Pesach, many people tend to replace it with cottonseed oil. Cottonseed oil is high in saturated fat and high in omega-6 fatty acids, which make it a highly inflammatory oil. It is usually found in Passover-approved potato chips, cookies and crackers, and mayonnaise. Instead of using cottonseed oil, use extra virgin olive oil, avocado oil, or coconut oil in your cooking.

12. Stay active. Exercising before the holiday will help motivate you to make smart choices and not derail your progress. On yom tov, try to go for walks after meals to help speed up your digestion. Pesach can come along with constipation from matzah and heavier meals than usual. Even a 10-20 minute brisk walk can do wonders for digestion.

13. Pesach programs. Pesach programs these days serve a tremendous amount of food. This can be both to our benefit and our detriment. On the one hand, more food means more options to make good choices from; on the other hand, more food means more food temptation. The way to navigate a Pesach program is to try and maintain your regular eating schedule and choices. Just because breakfast features an omelet station, muffin station, ice cream station, cereal station, and pancake station doesn’t mean you need to try all of them. This is the same for lunch and dinner, which may offer appetizers, main courses, and desserts.

Pesach programs tend to serve food

This is a great opportunity to ditch processed foods and focus on eating simple and clean foods.

all day. Don’t feel tempted to eat by midday barbeques and when they serve midnight snacks. If you are overwhelmed by the choices the program offers, try following your normal daily diet. There are almost always healthy options that you can choose from. The cleanest-looking foods typically have the least number of calories and sugar. It is best to avoid saucy dishes and anything breaded and fried. Keep your meals clean and simple so you know exactly what you’re eating.

Although maintaining your weight over Pesach can be a challenge, with the right planning, it is possible. Challenges always come with hard work, and in the end, can be very rewarding. Having a game plan, making sure there are healthy choices, staying active, and drinking a lot of water are a few ways to set yourself up for success. Eating light meals, snacking smartly, and watching your portions will help you feel great throughout the holiday.

And if you end up gaining a few pounds, know that it is temporary, and you will get back on track.

Wishing you all a chag kasher v’sameach!

Aliza Beer is a registered dietitian with a master’s degree in nutrition. She has a private practice in Cedarhurst, NY. Patients’ success has been featured on the Dr. Oz show. Aliza can be reached at alizabeer@gmail. com, and you can follow her on Instagram at @alizabeer.