Thanksgiving is a food-based holiday and feasting is a great way to pack on the pounds, yet students have plans for burning the extra calories.

The average American will consume more than 4,500 calories and 229 grams of fat on Thanksgiving Day alone, according to the Caloric Control Council, and most of it comes from snacking all day.

Andrew Tucker, a senior in political science, said he kept from gaining the weight by following his diet plan and taking a nap.

“If you think about it, there are 3,500 calories in a pound and, unless you’re consuming over 3,500 on top of your daily consumption, you’ll gain a pound.  If you ate more than 7,000 calories then you should probably get counseling,” he said. “To keep my weight regular I only ate white meat, no cheese, had some corn, green beans – stayed away from anything that was processed or had heavy fats and no dessert.”

Turkey contains a natural sedative called Tryptophan but the chemical does not have a potent effect because it’s mixed with all of the other food eaten. The “food coma” experienced is the result of your body working overtime to digest everything.

Stephen Saunders, a junior in marketing, said he too napped off his meal.

“I had a very, very large Thanksgiving meal.  I had two meals, so I was busy the entire holiday doing Thanksgiving things.  Afterwards, I napped – it only took one day for me to recover,” he said.

Carmicheal Complex did not see the influx of students it was expecting.

Brian Cox, a manager at Carmichael, said Monday didn’t show any change in the amount of people that came to work out.

“For the Monday after Thanksgiving, the number of people that came to work out was fairly normal.  A few people said they ate too much, but the majority working out were regulars,” Cox said.

According to Cox, the biggest increase in gym attendance is seen after the winter break.

“We normally see an increase in people at the gym after New Years,” Cox said.

Tylar Brannon, sophomore in interpersonal and public communication, said she made going the gym a priority after the holiday.

“For Thanksgiving I ate more than usual, especially sweets.  Afterwards, I went running then I went to the gym. I was non-stop moving all break,” Brannon said.

David Prescott, sophomore in aerospace engineering, said he ate a lot, but was too busy to make it to the gym.

“I had a hefty meal for Thanksgiving, and napped it off afterwards,” Prescott said.  “I was going to try to make it to the gym, but with exams coming up, there’s no time.”