New Website & Resource for Healthy Eating

If you're procrastinating with your Monday to do list, let me help you continue. Carolyn and I have been working away at our Foodtrainers.com  NEW WEBSITE. It has been some time and we needed something fresh. One of my favorite parts of the site is a Q andA we did on our bio page. Please check it out. Let us know what you think and if you haven't be sure you sign up for our Monthly Morsels newsletter.
What do you look for in a website? Do you look at sites on your phone or mostly on your computer? And while I have you favorite part of our new site?
A thank you to Scott at Bellina Creative for tweaking this until we got it right.

One Size Fits Nobody

Earlier this week (or last week? it's all starting to blur) I was trolling twitter for interesting links.  Jane Pratt (xojane.com) listed a few topics she wanted her staff to write about. Well I’m not on her staff (but like their content) and clicked through to a One SizeFits All Buzz Feed video on You Tube.

I gather that One Size Fits All Stores are popping up all over. In this video, women of various shapes and sizes try on a few different garments. The obvious conclusion, that doesn’t even require watching this video, is that one size does not fit all. That’s not all that interesting to me but a few things about this 4-minute segment were.

First, while there may not be a universal size, there is a universal feeling when something doesn’t fit us. Whether it’s because of our height or our weight (or just because) when something doesn’t fit it doesn’t feel good. I'm not sure why we don't blame the clothing more but that would be logical and balanced. This video captures that feeling that we usually experience alone and shares it. Forget about not fitting, I’ve had moments of being physically trapped in dresses and had to contort in weird ways to free myself. Tell me I'm not alone.

Second, these women were awesome. I focused so much more on their comments and the ridiculousness of trying to fit one skirt to all these different bodies than I did on their actual bodies. I found this proof that awesomeness and humor trump weight and size.

And finally, something I live by, “the hoodie is the MVP”. Of all the clothing, the hoodie made everyone feel good (and look good). Well not everyone, the tall, skinny girl felt her torso was too long for the hoodie. But if there’s someone I’m not going to feel badly for it’s the tall and thin girl. Isn’t that fair?

What do you think of one-size fits all? Any dressing room disasters you want to share?  Do you love a hoodie?

The Mother In-law Challenge

Last week, I was in my office for client sessions. Many clients had Rosh Hashanah on their minds. For any special event, I try to gather information in order to formulate a plan. “Where will you be for the holidays?” On this particular day three clients informed me that their mother in-law was hosting. Each of these clients shared this with evident apprehension.  Humor is my favorite antidote for anxiety so I dubbed it “the Mother In-law challenge” and we went from there.

When my sessions were over, my mind drifted back to mother in laws and all the accompanying stereotypes. This definition made me chuckle.

 A phrase appended to names of relationship, as father, mother, brother, sister, son, etc., to indicate that the relationship is not by nature

There are books written on the subject including one from psychologist Terri Apter entitled…What do you want from me? And it will come as no shock that the most complicated relationships are between mother in-laws and daughter in-laws.

The food dynamic stems directly from the family dynamic. First, these relationships are “not by nature” these are not your parents where the comfort level is greater. And second, all family gatherings evoke some level of tension. This tension you may carry is as big an obstacle as your MIL. I will go on record and say my beautiful, Swedish MIL is a healthy eater and always has a Foodtrainers-friendly spread for family meals. However, I’m more at ease with my family…of course we have our issues but I’m used to them.

You have to be comfortable with eating well and that may mean foregoing certain holiday foods; you don’t need your mother in law to be comfortable with it or eat like her. I'm assuming you don't dress like her or act like her, right? If your mother in law carries the food-pushing gene, you have two choices. My first rule is “accept but don’t ingest” which I’ve mentioned in LBT and on the blog before. People are often more concerned with what you take or put on your plate than what you actually consume. If your MIL actually assesses your intake, I would employ the best food pusher advice “push back”. It's best to push back with a compliment such as “this is so delicious but I think I’ve had enough”. As far as the tension, mentally prepare yourself for that too. Walk yourself through with "I may be on edge, there will be lots of people but I'm going to be sure to put all my food on a plate and eat slowly." 

For better or for worse, you will have many more in-law meals and the sooner you carve out what works best for you in terms of strategy the better.

If you’re “Rosh Hashanahing” I wish you a happy new year.

What is the hardest part of holiday meals for you? Why do mother in-laws get a bad rap? Or should they get a bad rap?