Turkey Time

In 1621, Puritan Pilgrims and American Indians celebrated a bountiful harvest with a thanks-giving feast. Today, Thanksgiving traditionally means family, food and football. A look at the holiday’s trappings and traditions:

TALKING TURKEY: Department of Agriculture G-moms wait by the phone to assist the culinarily impaired, (800) 535-4555. Cooking tips and last-minute recipes are available online at Butterball University (https://www.butterball.com) and the National Turkey Federation (https://www.eatturkey.com).

BY THE NUMBERS: About 45 million turkeys will be consumed today in the United States--roughly a 2 1/2-pound serving per American.

CALORIE CONSCIOUS: Burn off the pounds before you put them on by running in the 5K/10K Turkey Trot starting at Dana Point Harbor. Registration begins at 6 a.m., race starts at 8. Information: https://www.turkeytrot.com.

WANT NOT, WAIST NOT: In case you were wondering, one cup of stuffing has about 360 calories, a cup of mashed potatoes contains 230 calories and a cup of gravy 160 calories. A 20-minute aerobic workout burns about 200 calories.

NAP TIME: Drowsiness sets in after the gorging as blood leaves your brain to digest the high-fat meal and the sleep-inducing L-tryptophan in the turkey kicks in.

FOOTBALL FRENZY: Traditional NFL doubleheader features a rematch of the original Thanksgiving Day matchup in 1934, pitting the Detroit Lions against the Chicago Bears at 9:30 a.m. (KTTV/11). In the second half of the twin bill, the Dallas Cowboys host the Miami Dolphins at 1:15 p.m. (KCBS/2). Also playing: NBA’s Detroit Pistons at Indiana Pacers at 5 p.m. (TNT), NHL’s Phoenix Coyotes host New Jersey Devils at 5:30 p.m. (ESPN2)

ON THE TUBE: “Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade” from New York City starts at 9 a.m. (KNBC/4), “All-American Thanksgiving Day Parade” at 9 a.m. (KCBS/2), “It’s a Wonderful Life” at noon (KNBC/4), “History of Thanksgiving” at 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. (History channel), “X-Files” marathon runs from noon to midnight (FX channel), “The Waltons” marathon begins at 9 a.m. (TNN)

AT THE MOVIES: Schwarzenegger (“End of Days”), DeNiro (“Flawless”) and Lightyear (“Toy Story 2”) join James Bond and Ichabod Crane in what promises to be a blockbuster box office weekend.

START YOUR ENGINES: Get a jump-start on the biggest shopping weekend of the year at the 24-hour Super Kmarts in Anaheim Hills, La Habra and Aliso Viejo, which remain open Thanksgiving Day.

GUILTY FEELING: Turkeys are on the guest list not the menu at Adopt-A-Turkey, a shelter for rescued birds. Information: https://www.farmsanctuary.org.

HISTORY LESSON: A look back at the Pilgrims, Plymouth and the first Thanksgiving at https://www.plimoth.org.

Graphics reporting by BRADY MacDONALD / Los Angeles Times