Bringing in over a million visitors year after year, it is no surprise that the Minnesota State Fair is also known as the “Great Minnesota Get Together”. Most of these visitors are here for one thing and one thing only: food.

They come here for those oh so delicious Sweet Martha’s Cookies, footlong hotdogs, anything wrapped in bacon, fried, and slathered in cheese–the “Great Minnesota Eat Together” is a more suitable title for the fair. With the aroma of artery-clogging fried delights bombarding you at every corner, it is difficult to leave the fair without having consumed a few thousand calories.

As a born and raised native Minnesotan, attending the state fair is a tradition of mine. As a health nut, going to the fair is simply a nightmare. Therefore, I am left with a paradox: How could I possibly enjoy the greasy, fattening foods I love so much yet maintain my daily caloric requirements? As I discovered, the answer was simple.

On the opening day of the fair this year (August 24th), I arrived at around 10 am with two friends. For two hours, we meandered about the grounds, marveling at 900lb pumpkins and enjoying the sight of some of the most adorable bunnies in existence. Having walked until around 12 pm with only a few short breaks, I calculated that each of us had burned around 150 calories, and logged it on my phone.

All of a sudden, a bright yellow stand screaming the words “Deep Fried Candy Bars” came into view, and so we acquired our first meal: a deep-fried Snickers Bar. We reasoned to split it three ways, which drastically reduced our calorie intake.

According to WebMD, a fried Snickers Bar contains 444 calories, which means that we each consumed about 148 calories–not too bad (keep in mind that I am not factoring in sugar, fat, or protein–only calories). Because there was a total of three people sharing calorie-packed foods, and because I spent multiple hours walking, I was able to get in my exercise, try plenty of foods, and stay within my daily recommended calorie limit.

Here is a complete list of what I ate at the fair:

1/3 Deep-fried Snickers bar (148 calories)

Two Loukamades/Greek honey puffs (140 calories)

One Deep-fried cookie-dough ball (407 calories)

One Bacon wrapped shrimp (95 calories)

1/3 Tater Twister (71 calories)

8 oz Root Beer (165 calories)

One large pickle (24 calories)

12 oz Lemonade (120 calories)

1 Alligator sausage (251 calories)

Factoring in the 350 calories I had burned from walking, I left the “Great Minnesota Eat Together” at 4 pm having eaten only 1,071 calories–just a little over half of the daily 2,000 calories recommended intake. Because all I had eaten that day was nutrition-less filth, for dinner I consumed 4oz of cooked tilapia (145 calories), an avocado (250 calories), and 1 cup of boiled lentils (230 calories). Combining my state fair calories with dinner, and I had finished the day with a grand total of 1,696 calories.

Whether you happen to be a true health nut like myself, or just a curious Minnesota State Fair enthusiast reading this for fun, I hope that my experience at the fair proves that it is entirely possible to attend the “Great Minnesota Eat Together” and stay well within the bounds of a daily recommended 2,000 calorie intake.