If you are in a place where you feel out of balance with your body, the first thing we do is put ourselves on a diet or increase exercising. Both things are seemly the most logical way to bring back balance in our bodies. We go into panic mode and want to stop the bleeding immediately, but don’t consider that dieting or extreme workouts are never meant to maintain long-term. They are just a temporary solution that will eventually send us back into our old ways. It may seem silly to consider, but our mind is the most powerful tool in weight loss. All thoughts lead to actions in our lifestyle choices. Using our mind and thought as your starting point will lead small adjustments that quickly gain momentum to reaching your weight goal.
All you need is love!
It sounds crazy, but come on think of all the other crazy things you have tried… no carbs, shakes, pills. Out of all of those things, which seems the most crazy. How do you love yourself? First, make a list of every part of your unique self and how wonderful it is. Your eye, cheeks, dimples, …whatever it is. Next, I want you to tell your body that you are going to start loving it and trying some new ways of life. You body at first is going to be suspect because you have tortured it so much in the past. If your body thinks at that it is going to be harmed, it will defend itself. That is why diets don’t work or you gain the weight back. The body adjusts because it thinks it is under attack. You are not going to trick it this time; you are going to learn to listen to it. Once you start listening to it, it may tell you what it really needs. It might say to you, “I would really like a salad”, instead of you becoming an emotionally-charge maniac with a need for chocolate with a vengeance because you feel bad about your thighs one day. The reason you are filling yourself with food when you are not hungry may be that you are hungry for a nice warm serving of love.
Make eating a sensorial experience.
Eating feels good because we need it for our survival. Take time to enjoy your food and the experience of eating. Smell it, look at it, and dress it up like you would yourself for a hot date by taking the time to put it on a beautiful plate. You should not eat your food with plastic utensils, unless you absolutely have to. Take every bite with intention and know that it is going to be part of your body very soon. Chew it slowly and taste each subtlety in flavor and texture, as your savor it. Increasing your awareness of your eating will create a deeper sense of knowing your body’s needs. You may also find yourself snacking less because your “food dates” with yourself are so enjoyable you won’t want to spoil them.
Hit the pause button.
Whether it is an emotional response to a situation or eating. When we feel an emotion that we judge to be uncomfortable we may feel the need to eat, but what if we took a step back and asks ourselves “what is it that I really need or what is causing my feelings?” If a baby is crying, we don’t immediately assume they are hungry, we check their diaper or we look at the clock to see if they need a nap. Take that extra moment to go through your own checklist and see what you really need. Is there a simple solution? Look for eating alternatives like taking a short walk, breathing, having a glass of water, watching a short funny video, send a inspiring or loving note to a friend, create a Pinterest board of something that is fun to you such as travel or crafts.
It’s all connected.
Stop compartmentalizing your diets. Everything that you do, think, and feel will leak into other areas of your life. When you think of what areas of your life could be effecting your balanced eating, you have to look at the whole picture. For instance, binge eaters tend to also be binge spenders and binge drinkers. Maybe you are hungry because you are not inspired and you are eating to bring pleasure or stimulation, because it is lacking in your life.
Change the way you think about working out
Do you remember when you were in the best shape of your life? Most likely when you were a child. There is a stigma around working out that it has to be painful, repetitive, or not interesting. Do fun things. Jump on a trampoline, jump rope, or rollerblade. Take a sexy burlesque or belly dancing class. Turn on your favorite music and dance like crazy.
Breathe
The act of breathing not only calms your mind and detoxifies the body; it burns calories. Just by increasing your depth and frequency of breathing, you can increase your metabolism. According to this article on livestrong.com you can use this formula calculate how many calories you burn from breathing.
One kilogram equals 2.2 lbs. of body weight. So if you weigh 150 pounds, multiply 0.02 times 68 kg. The result is approximately 1.4. Multiply 1.4 times 15. You burned 21 calories breathing for 15 minutes.
Read more: http://www.livestrong.com/article/320103-how-many-calories-does-it-take-to-breathe/#ixzz25PYWwoUx
I set my calendar on my phone to remind me throughout the day to breathe. You can also do yogic exercises called Pranayama to increase the amount of oxygen in your system.
Detox
There is so many toxins that we take in from the food we eat to the air we breathe. Our liver has the daunting task of filtering all that stuff out, yet at the same time it is also burning fat. If it is too busy working on the toxins, it has less time to spend on fat. To make matters worse, these toxins then get dumped into our intestines to be excreted but, if our digestive system is gummed up with processed foods then those icky toxins just sit there to be later directed to our fat cells where they are stored. What this means is that when you take in toxins, they slow down fat burning and later they get stored if you are not “going” regularly. First step in getting the bad stuff out is colon hydrotherapy. It sounds not fun and gross, but in the end getting all that stuff that is slowing down your metabolism as well as making you tired, cranky, and having cravings is the best thing you can do for your body. I have learned great deal useful detox info is from the therapists at the Tummy Temple, an excellent place to go and try one yourself. You can also try taking a supplement containing Zeolite, a toxin absorbing clay, will further the detox process.
You eat what you are
Once you are all clean, you have to focus on putting the good stuff back in. That means good organic vegetables. The bonus is all that good fiber will help you “go” and keep those toxins from getting stored in the fat cells. Did you know you should be “going” at least 1 to 3 times per day? Also you need lots of clean water. I recommend getting a filter water bottle that you can take around with you and fill up. It ensures that you always have clean water and it is better for the environment than bottled water.
Think yourself thin
Everything we feel and think manifests into actions that we take in our lives. It all starts with the mind. Once we change our mind, new neural pathways start to form. That means when you create these new healthy habits, you are rewiring your brain. The more you reinforce them, the more your body will turn back to its healthy state of thinness.
Guilt-free is the way to be
Remember to be forgiving and most of all enjoy food. Love food! It is not an enemy out to separate us from our skinny jeans. Never ever feel guilty after eating anything. If you start to feel guilty, immediately think about how awesome the food was and how much you enjoyed it. Feeling remorse for eating that morsel will only lead to more of that same behavior. Get over it and move on!
I set the intent of success in reaching your goal to anyone who was drawn to read this! I love your comments and feedback. Thank you!
Tricia Travels Blog 