Weight Loss Begins in the Mind

Losing weight is more about how the dieter thinks about food than food itself. Lasting weight loss success involves planning and the right mindset.

Terminating a life long pattern of turning to food for feelings other than hunger is vital for any weight loss plan (lifestyle change) to work. Filling emotional needs with emotional solutions and using food for physical nourishment only, is key to any effective weight loss plan. Seeking comfort, security, love or solace in appropriate ways allows the dieter to manage their food intake intelligently and effectively.

Tips for Successful Weight Loss
The successful dieter plans for success well before starting a weight loss plan. Just as a star student prepares for finals, the dieter who prepares for success before beginning will reap a higher level of achievement. A mind that has been prepared for change is better able to work with that change. Choose a weight loss start date of less than 30 days (not to be confused with procrastination) to begin both physical and mental preparation.

• Eliminate all foods from the household cupboards that are not on the healthy eating list. (A local homeless shelter will make good use of them.) Begin stocking only foods compatible with healthy eating.
• Learn to read food labels and consider purchasing whole, unprocessed foods instead (found mostly on the outside isles of the grocery store.)
• Since water is a staple for every effective weight loss program, plan for a way to have it nearby at all times. You will need to use this water as a replacement if you are a pop drinker.
• Monitor thoughts for negativity or victim mentality. Such thoughts will sabotage success. Take note of the urges to "make yourself feel better by eating" and acknowledge what emotions you are feeling at that time.
• Begin thinking of nurturing things that are not food related that you can do to "make yourself feel better." Some examples may be, walking, riding your bike, talking with a friend, reading, listening to music, etc. Make a list of these things and start implementing these alternatives.
• Pamper the body, mind and spirit with personally meaningful non-food activities or things. Don't forget meditation or prayer. Affirmations also can help you to "change your mind."

You will undoubtedly experience discomfort during this process. Just remember that these steps you are taking will eventually become new habits and the discomfort will subside with practice and time. Just like the cigarette smoker who stops smoking. Eventually, the pain and discomfort subsides as life goes on, only leaner and healthier. 

What Are We to Do?

For most of our evolutionary history we have not had access to unlimited calories. We belonged to hunter-gatherer societies and burned a lot of energy in everyday tasks. Our ancestral human diet varied for different groups of our forebears who lived in different habitats. It was a diet that was mostly vegetarian, with very little fat (probably about 10% of total calories) and very little sugar. Sweet flavors were rarely encountered – they typically occurred in ripe fruit or wild honey – and meat was a rare luxury and was usually quite lean when it could be obtained. For inland peoples, salty flavors were almost unknown. In many locations intermittent famines were regular occurrences, so when energy-dense foods containing fat and sugar were available, it made sense to gorge on them to establish a body fat reserve for anticipated hard times.




Now that we have test kitchens, restaurant chains, commercial bakeries, and other food production corporations, the average weight of an adult in the United States has increased by about twenty-six pounds between 1960 and the present.



Believe it or not, our brains wiring in the pleasure center is contributing to the problem as well. The substance leptin and dopamine receptors or lack thereof can all play a role in the obesity battle.



So, what are we to do?



• Be informed! Know as much as you can about your body & brain.

• Decide what it is going to take to transform into the body of health and fitness.

• Read labels, shop mainly on the outskirts of the grocery store.

• Cook from scratch, select and eat lots of vegetables and fruits, as close to the original state as possible. Cooking is still necessary of course, but eat raw when you can.

• Decide which habits and activities need to change, and then, ‘Just Do It.’

• Repeating a behavior about 22 times starts a new habit.