Digesting a large meal diverts blood from your brain to your stomach, and let’s be honest: Thanksgiving is a HUGE meal. I’ve written about ways to prevent Food Coma, and they also apply to Turkey Day. Combine that huge meal with alcohol and dessert, and you’ve got the true cause of holiday napping.

But what about all that tryptophan?

When taken on an empty stomach, a gram or two of of the amino acid tryptophan was shown to assist those with insomnia. If you have protein in your stomach at the same time, the tryptophan won’t act on the brain. And really, of all the meals you’re likely to have protein in your stomach, Thanksgiving is the top of the list.

Besides, the small amount of tryptophan in a serving or three of turkey is not enough to cause a nap. Similar amounts are present in a serving of milk, beef, and even beans. I DO find myself pretty sleepy after a large burrito, but that is from the huge meal effect, not the tryptophan in the beans and cheese.

Overeating is a Thanksgiving tradition.

Would your experience of the day change if you didn’t eat too much, drink too much, and take a nap? Do you choose your stretchiest clothes to wear? Do you eat less for breakfast and lunch, trying to ‘balance out’ the overindulgence at dinner?

My goal for Thanksgiving is to enjoy the meal, but not suffer for it. Try some of these tips and let me know if they helped:

• Use smaller plates to encourage smaller portions
• Fill up on veggies first, proteins and sauces second
• Avoid dinner rolls (unless you love them more than stuffing)
• Chew until everything is as soft as mashed potatoes
• Save dessert for a few hours after dinner to enjoy it more

Have a great holiday weekend everyone!

I’ve been slightly jealous of my friends who live in Oakland, because of their proximity to Trapeze Arts. One in particular has threatened to run away and join the circus (you know who you are), because the workouts are SO fun. Well, am I thrilled with my newest FUN way to work out.

Y’all know I’m a huge fan of Yoga, but often I resist teachers who are too dogmatic. Amber taught our class Monday night at The Yoga Studio in Campbell. She set the intention for our yoga practice to be playful, and right there, in the first 2 minutes of the class, I knew I was in the right place. Intentions were set, then it was time to climb in to the hammocks. The soft fabric that supported our suspended poses was breathable and a little stretchy.

The side bends with which we began our practice felt great. Warrior and Tree poses were challenging; finding a visual still point while you are slowly spinning is new for me. The flips and inversions are poses will require some more arm strength, but look like a ton of fun. I’m proudest of my handstand with legs wrapped in the silk fabric.

It takes a lot of arm strength and core strength to swing through the air with the greatest of ease, even though the class is not acrobatic. There are tiny little red “hickey” dots at the front of my arm pits where my arms were suspended in some of the flying poses, and I love them. Amber took great care to modify poses as needed for my needs, and assisted anyone who felt dizzy or turned around.

Right now I’m less jealous of my Oakland friends, thanks to Aerial Yoga. Although we lack a Flying Trapeze here in the South Bay, here are some additional fun ways to work out:

• Sky High Sports in Santa Clara
• Planet Granite in Sunnyvale
• Many Skating rinks in San Jose, ice and wooden

Any fun workout facilities I’ve missed? Please include them in the comments.

Some of my patients struggle with pain and tenderness in their muscles caused by poor hydration. Simple changes to drinking habits get nice results, fast. As a bonus, being hydrated make skin look better and digestion is improved! Yet, there are always some who resist drinking enough water.

8 cups of water every day?

You’ve heard that number, we all have. Do you ever wonder if that is too much or not enough? Here’s my formula for getting enough hydration:

• Take your body weight in pounds, divide that in half, and drink that amount in ounces of water.
• Ex: 150lbs / 2 = 75 ounces of water per day.
• If you’re drinking less than 4 cups of water right now, try adding one cup at a time over several weeks.
• Add more water for a very hot day, for exercise, or for medications that dehydrate you.

Water or herbal tea vs. coffee, black tea or alcohol.

You’ll want to add another 8oz for every caffeinated drink or unit of alcohol you consume. Check the ingredients list on any herbal teas you have for “natural flavorings” as this is usally MSG. A little is OK for most people, but too much in one day can give a wicked headache.

Still not convinced that water is for you?

Try leaving mint, cucumber, lemon, or lime in a pitcher of water overnight for a nice subtle flavor. Strawberries or raspberries will turn your water a light pink, and create a pleasant flavor almost right away. Another cure for the blegh taste of tap water is a Pur or Britta water filter. A faucet mounted one or a pitcher based one can make even the funkiest water taste pleasant.

Yes! Probably better than any other investment you’ll make. In order to evangelize this concept, I’m always on the lookout for fresh perspectives about time and money spent on health.

Lissa Rankin, MD from Owning Pink wrote an inspiring post about managed care. Like me, she doesn’t practice managed care medicine, but has great tips for patients who want to get the best care within that system. Her list is thoughtful, heartfelt, and spot on.

Getting the best results from your healthcare.

It starts with great communication with your doctor, and Dr. Rankin’s post is a lovely model for that. Saving time and money requires planning ahead, honesty, and taking responsibility.

Here are tips I loved most:

• Tell me the truth- always. I promise I won’t judge you, as long as you don’t lie to me or withhold the information I need to treat you the best way I can. If you’re gay, tell me. If you drink a bottle of tequila every night, I need to know. If you’re having an affair and not using condoms, let me know.
• Question me. If the treatment plan I suggest doesn’t resonate with the intuitive wisdom of your Inner Healer, please tell me, instead of ignoring what I suggest. I know many of you are programmed not to question your doctor, but we’re here to help and we can’t read your mind, so you need to communicate if you don’t agree with a plan we suggest. If you’re not going to get that mammogram, admit it to me. If you’re not going to take that antidepressant, tell me you won’t. If you’re willing to question my authority, we can marry my suggestions with your intuition and collectively agree on a plan you will actually follow.
• Comply. If you’ve questioned me and we’ve agreed to a treatment plan, please follow through and do what you’ve agreed to do. And if you don’t, please tell me so I don’t mistakenly assume the treatment failed. I won’t jump all over you. I just need to know.
• Accept personal responsibility. If you don’t comply, and something goes wrong, please don’t blame me. And if you sign up to incur a possible risk and you’ve been warned of this risk (pregnancy is a great example), don’t sue me if a known risk happens to you. Sometimes bad things happen to good people, and it’s not my fault.
• Bring any supplements you take in a bag with you. I may not know the name of what you’re taking, but if I can look at the ingredients, then I can determine whether your supplements might be causing issues or interactions.
• If you’re experiencing symptoms, keep a journal and a calendar before you come to see me. Write down when you experience the symptom, what makes it better, what makes it worse, how long you’ve had it, describe it in detail, explain whether you’ve had it before, and be as specific as you can so I can help you.
• Bring your records. If you have other medical records that will help me care for you, bring a physical copy with you. Faxes go haywire, and we can wind up wasting hours trying to track down records, so be an empowered patient and keep a complete copy of your medical records so you can bring them with you.

Have any tips of your own? Share them in the comments.

Pain leads to Less Exercise, which leads to Weaker Knees, resulting in More Knee Pain. Even with no injury, knees get stiff and achey over time.

Fortunately, hope is not lost.

We may never regain the perfect knees we had as children, but it is possible to have less pain, more flexibility, and better strength. What are you missing because of knee pain?

In less time than you might think, improvements to knee pain pay huge dividends towards better quality of life.

Chiropractic care isn’t just for treating the spine. Knees can be adjusted too!

Becky Williamson of LifeSport Bootcamp has a great video about how to strengthen your knees, hips, and thighs. All 4 of these exercises are straightforward, and don’t require a gym membership. The equipment she uses is very affordable.

I encourage my patients with weak or painful knees to pick their favorite exercise to try 3 times a week for 2 weeks, and then we re-evaluate.

• What would you do to get it?
• How much would you pay?
• How much time would you dedicate?

Few remember to use ice.

The magic formula for quicker healing, less pain, and saving money on chiropractic visits and massage is this simple:

Apply an ice pack for 15-20min an hour for 3 or more times in first few days after an injury.

That’s it!

What about heat?

Using a hot pack or taking a soak feels really soothing, in the moment. I understand why you want to use heat, I really do. BUT, If you’re inflamed, using heat will leave you feeling worse, and can make your healing take weeks longer than it should. Need to know how tell the difference between tight muscles and inflamed muscles? Check out this video:

“Should I use heat or ice?”

The luxury of having organic, locally grown fruits & veggies delivered directly to my office never gets old. Throwing out rotten produce because I didn’t get around to cooking it: that gets old. It really does.

Sure, most of the veggies in the delivery star in the same great recipes week after week. However, there are outliers. If I don’t have a dish in mind, that veggie inevitably goes to the back of the fridge and becomes an orphan by the end of the week.

Yes, I have cookbooks galore, but most recipes are pretty fancy. That’s why we buy most of them: fancy recipes and pretty pictures, right? Some random weeknight is not going to get the special occasion, all-star chef production. What about a recipe with a few spices and only one or two main ingredients including my orphaned produce? Google to the rescue.

It has been super hot in San Jose this week, so cooking outdoors is appealing. Entering the search terms “bok choy” and “grill” into the Google led me to this wonderful recipe. Full warning, you may spend an hour reading this delightful blog. Baby bok choy on a grill!

I made substitutions as follows: cider vinegar, chili powder, and used 1/2 sesame oil 1/2 olive oil. Was in too much of a hurry to chill the marinaded bok choy; just coated and grilled it right away. Also, I didn’t have baby bok choy, I had a Big Daddy Bok Choy that was 6in x 18in. I sliced it lengthwise into thirds, and it grilled up just fine.

The texture was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. None of the slick quality of steamed bok choy, but all of the bright crunch of having it raw. Similar overall to stir-fried, but the lingering smoke of the grill and the tart marinade make this my new favorite way to have bok choy.

For awesome produce delivery in the Bay Area, check out Freshness Farms. They deliver to my office on Wednesdays as well as many other locations. Fresh bread and free range eggs too!