Thanksgiving 2010

So the holiday season is about to begin and much to my surprise patients are not anticipating Thanksgiving being a challenge. I am pleasantly surprised by this information but suspect this is due to the fact that most of my patients are quite dedicated to their dieting and change process in comparison to the average person on the street. The holidays, Thanksgiving in particular, often are focused on family, fun, football and FOOD. And while I am in favor of the first three “F’s” it is the focus on food that I think makes holidays such a challenge for most people. How can we take the focus off “Food?”

In order to shift the focus away from food, you really have to identify another focus…so perhaps it means volunteering or a day trip or some other activity that still allows for a family meal but then shifts toward the “New Family Tradition.” As far as volunteering is concerned there are a lot of options available: perhaps you are a family of shoppers and fulfilling a wish of someone less fortunate is something you all can do together. Maybe you are more active and want to volunteer some time at the Food Bank or at a Shelter? Your church or synagogue may have other suggestions or projects as well.

In another vein to shift the focus, there are frequently Fun Runs on Thanksgiving that can pull your attention and satisfy a physical activity need. A quick search on the internet (www.arizonaroadracers.com) revealed 5 races all over town including Peoria, Mesa, Queen Creek, Anthem, and Prescott. Not a runner? Consider a family bicycle ride along the canal or a pickup game of touch football instead of running or challenge Aunt Susie to a bowling game on the Wii Fit!

If the focus is still on the food, what about changing the menu? I have had discussions with patients in the past about modifying recipes (I dedicated a whole blog to this in November 2008—see the archives). To be honest this generally meets with some resistance. I will tell you that my family is the same way…there are some recipes that you can “adjust” and others you don’t. In our family you just don’t mess with the dressing and so I don’t. Instead I make a crustless pumpkin pie with Splenda instead of sugar thus saving calories and carbs. It is all about picking your battles. In a discussion with a patient recently about tamales, we discussed changing the proportion of masa to meat thus not messing with the basic recipe but still decreasing the carbs. She quickly pointed out to me that the reason many cooks (especially those who sell their tamales) make their tamales with so much masa is that it is cheap in comparison to the pork or beef. This makes a lot of sense to me and is seen in many other styles of cooking as well: Italian (large portions of pasta) and Asian (large bowls of rice) are just two that come to mind.

The last idea here is that Thanksgiving only happens once a year. Celebrate! It is a holiday for giving thanks for all of the blessings you have: family, friends, and fellowship. Enjoy the day and get right back into continuing to work on Changing Your Weighs.