Weight Loss & Diet Plans

Surviving the Super Bowl Spread

Damage Control continued...

"Give people choices," says Kava. "If all you're serving is corned beef sandwiches and hamburgers, that's what your guests will eat. But if you have some healthier choices as well, you'll give them some options."

While a submarine sandwich (with ham, salami, and cheese) has about 450 calories and 17 grams of fat, a typical low-fat hot dog on a reduced-calorie bun contains only 130 calories and 2.5 grams of fat. A slice of carrot cake with cream cheese icing has about 480 calories and 29 grams of fat, compared with a slice of angel food cake that will provide only about 70 calories and 0.2 grams of fat.

Kleiner is the nutritional consultant for the Seattle Supersonics and has created dietary plans for the Cleveland Browns and the Cleveland Cavaliers. For the Browns, she says, because football players burn so many calories, they typically consume from 3,000 to 7,000 calories a day. "Some of the smallest and leanest players, like the running backs, eat the most," she says. "They may weigh only 180 pounds, but most of it is muscle. Their metabolic rates are very high, and it's not unusual for them to eat 5,000 to 6,000 calories a day."

Of course, for the average couch potato, that kind of caloric intake would leave you bursting at the seams. Even so, if you do overindulge on Super Bowl Sunday, don't panic.

"If you fall off the wagon," says Kava, "the wagon will still be there in the morning. Just climb back on."