FEEL LIKE EATING?

Your feelings can alter from one experience to the next. There are going to be times in our life when things happen that we may not be too happy about—but recognize that emotions are fleeting. And when they go you will still be here. Ready to experience the next one. Emotions are momentary and should not dictate what we are going to eat, or how we feel about ourselves, health etc.

Eating a bag of chips or cookies will not make the "feeling" go away. It may change your focus for ten minutes, but you can change your focus by engaging in any activity. The truth is covering your feelings by eating something unhealthy will only make you feel worse. You are causing yourself to be trapped in a cycle. Whatever is troubling you WILL change. But the consequences of what you choose to do about it may linger for much longer. You are intelligent enough to recognize food is not the answer. Food is not a solution. It is energy for your body. But it doesn't solve a problem (unless the problem is nutrition or hunger)

And of course you never know what adventures await you. Just because an event may seem like “things aren’t going your way”—well, that may not be true. It could be the event that leads you to something new. Like getting in control of your health.

YOUR PERSONAL RELATIONSHIP

Good relationships start with good communication, but relatively few of us communicate effectively. Psychology teaches us that effective communication starts with the ability to create rapport.

Rapport is the state of ease and trust, where communication flows without resistance. You are naturally in rapport with 25% of the people you come in contact with. It doesn't happen consciously. When someone says "I feel like I've known you all my life" or "It's so easy to be with you," this is unconscious rapport.

Good communicators establish and maintain rapport unconsciously. You can create the same results through conscious awareness. This is important not just with relationships outside ourselves,nut the relationship we have with ourselves.

Most of us go about our day without communicating with our physical bodies. Without rapport, no meaningful exchange is possible. From a health point of view, you are more likely to make better choices when you bring the needs of your physical body to your conscious awareness.

Develop a more effective relationship with your physical body.

MIND YOUR OWN FOOD BUSINESS

My clients who have decided to fine tune their eating habits are sometimes  met with resistance from their friends or families. Often it is with "innocent/caring" statements  such as "Let's just have fun. You can worry about it tomorrow." "Nobody wants to go out to eat with you anymore." or  "You are making me feel bad about my food."

Criticism that isn't supportive undermines our progress. And personally I think when people feel a need to comment on my food choices it's just plain rude. However, i remind myself that typically the comments others make tends to highlight their insecurities.  If you are the one making the comments ask yourself why you think the other person isn't "fun"?  Is food so central to your having fun. Or do you feel guilty about the choices you are not making?

Full of Thanksgiving

For most people Thanksgiving is not just a time for turkey and stuffing but an opportunity to stuff themselves. In fact many will act as if it is a necessary part of the celebration. I am not suggesting that one bypasses the celebration, but I think one can commemorate the day without making the food the guest of honor.

It is certainly possible to give thanks without overeating. It makes more sense to be full of thanks than to be full of extra calories.

LEVEL THE PLAYING FIELD

You are a complex human beings who experience life on several levels- physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. These are the four planes/levels that real fitness/health take place. All change work occurs on all levels. And the results and benefits occur on all four levels

Emotionally,you can experience a new heightened self image, achieving fitness goals leads to self confidence, improved body image and discipline.

Mentally, being fit and healthy effect over all immune system, meaning a better work and school performance, and fewer missed days at work and school. Also the there is an increase in oxygen which flows throughout the body especially the brain.

Spiritually, you can ask a professional athlete if training is a spiritual experience and they will always answer "yes." Now many people roll their eyes when you start talking about a professional athletics. As if they cannot relate to them. But we can learn a lot from a professional. About their thoughts, their attitude etc. And the respect they have for their temples. Ask any great spiritual teacher and they will tell you the importance of bringing the spiritual connection to the physical.

And of course physically,there are so many changes that occur. Here are just a few;reduces the risk of injury, strengths the heart, lowers blood pressure, assists in anti-aging, digestion, skin, hair etc. Everything depends on circulation and the only way to get things circulating is by moving.

Make your changes count on all levels.

COUNT SHEEP NOT JUST CALORIES

There are so many reasons that sleep is so important. Physically it helps the body repair itself. getting the right amount of sleep helps our body reduce stress and increase HGH.

Did you know that sleep can help you with weight control? Research has shown that people who sleep less than 7 hours are more likely to over eat high calorie foods. Sleep helps regulate the hormones that control our appetite.

The quality of your life can greatly improve by getting a good nights sleep every night. So don't just count calories. Count sleep hours.

BUILD YOUR MENTAL MUSCLE

Discipline is not something you are born with. It is a mental muscle that needs constant training. Like any other muscle, if you don’t use it, it will weaken. It takes more than just wanting to be disciplined. It is an ability that must be developed and tended to. If it appears easy for some, it is because those people have cultivated it for a very long time.

BEING OVERWEIGHT IS NOT THE CAUSE OF YOUR HEALTH PROBLEMS

One weekend I went to visit an old friend who is now suffering from many physical ailments. He is overweight. Over the years his doctors have advised him to drop the pounds. Apparently he had continued his bad eating habits and lack of physical exercise.

My concern led me to discuss his behavior with a friend and colleague. What we found to be interesting was that being heavy is often portrayed as the cause of being unhealthy. Yet he and I both concluded that there are many athletes who are husky who do not suffer from physical ailments. Being overweight is a symptom of being inactive. It might be more accurate to say that being inactive is what causes many physical ailments.

Regular physical activity is what we were designed to do. And consistency is key. If you are inactive and decided to play football with guys one Saturday morning, you might be asking for injuries. However, with regular consistent activity one can help prevent injuries and many illnesses.

THE MOST IMPORTANT RELATIONSHIP

Good relationships start with good communication, but relatively few of us communicate effectively. Psychology teaches us that effective communication starts with the ability to create rapport.

Rapport is the state of ease and trust, where communication flows without resistance. You are naturally in rapport with 25% of the people you come in contact with. It doesn't happen consciously. When someone says "I feel like I've known you all my life" or "It's so easy to be with you," this is unconscious rapport.

Good communicators establish and maintain rapport unconsciously. You can create the same results through conscious awareness. This is important not just with relationships outside ourselves,nut the relationship we have with ourselves.

Most of us go about our day without communicating with our physical bodies. Without rapport, no meaningful exchange is possible. From a health point of view, you are more likely to make better choices when you bring the needs of your physical body to your conscious awareness.

Develop a more effective relationship with your physical body.

SUCK IT UP DON'T SUCK IT OUT

An old friend ("Kelly") had lost a significant amount of weight. I commented on how great she looked as another woman ( "Lori" ) listened in. Kelly told me that she had liposuction. But after the operation had a loose skin. She decided to take up running. "After I started running I realized I should have just started doing that in the first place." And I agreed with her.

Now Lori, who is overweight, was only concerned with how much the friend had paid and if she would be able to save up enough money. Kelly kept telling her "You are not listening to me. Just start running."

After five minutes of Kelly trying to convince Lori that exercising and eating right were better alternatives than surgery, I realized that Lori was not interested in what she could do to achieve the physical body she wanted. She was only interested in an "easy" fix.

I am not against plastic surgery. I am not against surgery. I am just confused. If there is a healthy alternative---something we can freely do---which is healthier, less expensive and certain to achieve the results we want---why would someone chose anything else?

It may seem like an easier option. In the long run it really isn't. Even with liposuction yo must alter your lifestyle and habits. Fat cells will grow back. They are cells.

When you allow your body to use up the fat you simply get better results.