You Have Been Programmed to be Overweight

by Editor | Jun 9, 2011 | Overweight

You Have Been Programmed to be Overweight.

Throughout the day you are having many conversations with yourself. I’m talking about the internal self talk that in most people never stops. Some of this talk is harmless such as “I need to get some milk today” Some of this internal chatter is positive, such as “I’m going to do great today.” But much of your internal dialog is filled with self-criticism. We say things like; “You look fat in that shirt”, “Why can’t I lose weight”. You might not be aware of it but the self-talk and degree of emotion behind the self-talk concerning your weight and your body actually influences and creates your body….
 

I’m sure some of you have had the experience where you thought yourself sick or well. You might have been around someone who was sick and you might have said to yourself something like “I know I’m going to get sick now” Perhaps some of you have just the opposite experience. You might have felt something coming on and you might have said something like; “I’m not going to allow myself to get sick” only to shake off the illness.

How does this happen? All of our self-talk, every feeling we experience, every thought we have, is sending messages to our cells. Our cells are receiving all of it and the more we repeat a given thought or the more emotional the thought the more effect it has over our cells.

The more positive your attitude concerning your health, the less likely you are to become ill. This is the reason that if you are ill, a positive attitude plays a critical roll in your ability to get well.

“You may not think that you can talk to your DNA, but in fact you do continually. Thinking happens at the level of DNA, because without the brain sending out a neuron-peptide or other messengers, there can be no thought. Everything in life pours out of DNA, flesh, bones, blood, heart and nervous system; a babies first word and a toddlers first step; the maturing of reason in the babies cortex; the play of emotions, thoughts, and desires that flicker like summer lighting through every cell.” -Dr. Deepak Chopra

The thoughts and emotions you are constantly communicating to your cells. Your cells act on that communication. Your cells manifest what you are communicating to them. So what are some of the things you are communicating to your cells? Do any of these sound familiar? -“I am so fat” -“If I see food I gain 20 pounds” -“It doesn’t matter what I do, I can’t lose weight” -” I’ll never be thin”

Every thought you have, every emotion you feel creates string of chemical events within your body. There chemical events communicate to your cells how they are to respond. Your cells respond to your every thought without exception. I’m sure you know somebody who can eat whatever they want and never gain an ounce. This is explained away by saying that they have a fast metabolism. But have you ever wondered how they developed a fast metabolism and you didn’t? What do you think their internal belief system is? What do you think they say to themselves concerning their body and weight?

So what should you do about it? Begin by monitoring your thoughts. Recognize all the negative thoughts you have throughout the day and begin to turn them around by repeating an affirmation to replace the negative thought. For example if you say to yourself; -“I am fat” replace it with “I choose to feel lighter and healthier.” “If I see food I gain 20 pounds” replace it with “I choose to believe that I can be around food and lose weight at the same time.”

Your new self-talk must be stated positively. Don’t say things like “I don’t want to be fat anymore” or “I wish I could stop overeating.” These kinds of statements only reinforce the idea that you are fat and out of control. You should formulate your thoughts so that you are always expressing the most positive essence of what you’re striving for

It’s more then just saying the words or thinking the thoughts. The thoughts and words need to be accompanied by positive feelings. You need to believe the positive thoughts and feel positive when you are thinking or saying them. Sometimes this is difficult to do but with a little tweaking of the words you can create a thought that you can believe. For example you might have trouble believing a statement like; “I can lose all the weight I want.” But with a little tweaking you can create a statement that is believable such as; “I choose to believe that I can find a way to lose all the weight I desire. Your thoughts and emotions are the programs that create who you are and who you are going to become. By repeating negative thoughts over and over again you have been programming your cells to respond in such a way that created your current body. Practice positive programming and create the body you desire.

About the Author
Bill Schuchman

More Details about Program yourself to lose weight here.

Bill Schuchman is the founder of Personal Mastery Inc specializing in personal growth products. He is a Certified Advanced Clinical Hypnotherapist and he has earned the Emotional Freedom Techniques EFT-ADV CC. Bill is a Subconscious Motivational Therapist and a Law of Attraction coach..

A Message To Overweight Kids or Teens

by Editor | Jun 9, 2011 | Overweight

If you are overweight or obese, don’t be afraid to ask your parents for help. I know that you may think they are too busy, don’t think it is a problem, or will just tell you to “eat less and get up and move instead of sitting around all the time”. It isn’t quite that simple.

Please let your parents know how you feel. They love you and want what is best for you. They want you to be happy. They may not have any idea how your weight is affecting your life. I’m sure if you are open and honest with them, they will want to help you…

DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT put yourself on a diet. A restrictive diet is not the answer, because even if you lose a lot of weight, you will probably gain it back, plus some, when the diet is over. If you want to lose weight to have more confidence, attract a boyfriend/girlfriend, get the other kids to stop teasing and bullying you, etc., you must change your lifestyle. That may mean doing some things you don’t do today.

Good nutrition is the first key to healthy weight loss. If you don’t like vegetables, eat them anyway. As you become used to them, you will learn to like most of them (I promise!). Fruits and vegetables not only contain vitamins and minerals to make you look and feel better, but they contain fiber, which will make you feel fuller. Just take a few bites of everything, and go easy on the white bread and anything made with sugar. I know you love pizza, but it is high in calories, so order it with thin crust, veggies, and NO extra cheese. Limit your pizza to once or twice a week, and eat a salad first.

Skip the sodas and drink water or low-fat milk instead. You really need the calcium in milk and dairy products, so try for 3 servings a day of low-fat milk, cottage cheese, cheese or yogurt. Just ONE regular size soda a day can make you gain 10 pounds in a year. I don’t even want to think about how many pounds the extra-large sodas might cause you to gain!

Skip the French fries, and have a salad instead. French fries really shouldn’t count as a vegetable since they are almost all starch. Have a baked potato instead, and go easy on the butter and sour cream.

Turn off the TV and computer, and go to bed earlier! Studies have proven that there is a direct connection between obesity and not getting enough sleep. As a preteen or teenager, you need 9 or more hours of sleep each night.

Do something each day for exercise. Get a pedometer so that you can record the number of steps you take each day, and try to reach 10,000 a day. Offer to run errands for your parents, run the vacuum, walk the dog, or whatever chores will involve movement. Ride your bike, work out to an exercise video, or join the YMCA or Boys’ & Girls’ club so you can swim, shoot hoops, or work out on the exercise equipment.

Ask your mom or dad for a few minutes of their time to have a private talk with you, and then share your feelings and goals concerning your weight. Ask for their help. If they are overweight also, ask if the whole family can lose weight and get healthier together. Your talk may be all they need to get started. Do it today!!

About the Author
Bev Grey

Bev Grey is the founder of Grandma’s Healthy Kids Club, a program to help children and adults improve their eating and exercise habits through age-appropriate membership packages based on the USDA Food Pyramids. She is also the author of “The Project”, a fictional story for children and educators or medical professionals who work with children.

Positive Imaging for Weight Loss

by Editor | Jun 9, 2011 | Overweight

Visualization can play an important part in losing weight and maintaining a healthy lifestyle that keeps it off. Losing weight can be difficult for many people who use fad diets and pills to achieve their weight loss goals without letting their minds help in the process…

Visualization is a powerful technique that can help you make lasting lifestyle changes. Just by “daydreaming”, you can significantly improve your chances of achieving your goals.

Visualization is a great weight loss tool and it’s as simple as visualizing your body as you want your body to look like. This mental image of yourself is then transferred to your subconscious mind, which in turn starts to work on your body, shaping it in accordance with your mental image thus reducing your weight.

This means that if you program your subconscious with a mental image of yourself as a slimmer person, through persistence your mind will accept this and aid your body to conform to this mental image.

Once your mind is programmed with the proper mental images, it will start to work in assisting you to lose weight. I can’t stress enough how important it is for you to believe in your visualization goals. You have to let go of past dieting failures and refuse to entertain any negative images that come into your mind.

If you can visualize your body at its perfect weight and proportions, the subconscious mind will work to make it become a reality. It will then begin to positively reinforce your body into aiding the metabolism and eating habits. Programming your mind into believing that you can lose weight, and visualize yourself at your ideal weight is of the greatest importance.

Try to think of a different image of yourself, then let your subconscious do the work for you. If you think of your own body fat and being out of shape all the time, then the subconscious mind will find ways to make it so.

The subconscious looks after all of your vital functions, it is the cause of all your good and bad habits and also regulates muscle (the muscles are controlled by the subconscious) and body-fat composition the body, and the latter is the one we are most interested in.

So please try to visualize your body as lean as you would like, and your mind will work on that image. The mind can be a great partner in losing weight.

Getting Rid of Bad Nutritional Habits

A bad habit is like second nature and is acquired over a long period of time. Bad habits are programmed into the subconscious and “willpower” alone will not get rid of it. Many try using all sorts of different ways to break it but without success.

Obesity is the result of bad nutritional habits and some of the causes are boredom, stress, tension, and different complexes. Food becomes the substitution for these causes and before too long, obesity sets in. Most people become concerned that they’re obese, eat more, and a vicious cycle is established.

The only way to lasting permanent weight loss is to break these bad habits and replace them with positive new ones, and the only way to do this is with visualization. Visualization puts you in charge of your subconscious where all these bad programs are stored.

All the willpower in the world is not going to break these bad habits unless one has the help of their subconscious.

Relaxation

Relaxation is the best way to reach the subconscious and will slow down the mind, and turn off the exterior world so as to tune in to one’s inner self. The best times for these sessions are in the morning and late at night right, just before going to sleep.

Try performing two sessions, one in the afternoon (primary) and the other before going to sleep (secondary) but once a day is quite sufficient. Sessions usually last 20 minutes, which isn’t time-consuming especially when taking in the benefits received.

It has been stated that one of these sessions is equivalent to 2 hours of deep sleep and upon waking you will feel revitalized and full of energy. Believe me instead of worrying about time constraints; you will be looking forward to the next session.

When you begin your relaxation sessions, make sure you won’t be disturbed – lock the door, take the phone off the hook, and loosen all clothing. Now find a comfortable position, whether it is lying down or sitting in a comfortable chair.

Sitting may be preferable as you may fall asleep if you become too comfortable. You want to be conscious and not asleep in order to tap into your subconscious mind.

Try to exhale all the air from your lungs completely and then breathe in through the nose. Take ten seconds to fill the lungs with air (not to capacity, but comfortable) hold for ten seconds, and then exhale slowly through the nose for another ten seconds.

Each one of these breathing cycles should last for 30 seconds, complete five cycles and after each cycle, you will be feeling more and more relaxed.

If you are sitting, open your eyes and look straight ahead. If you are lying down, open your eyes and stare at the ceiling. After a few minutes, slowly close your eyes.

Having reached this calm relaxed state start your visualizations. Put together images that power your emotions. Make them alive and colorful. Make the scenes as real as possible and imagine yourself as slim and toned the way you will look after successful weight loss.

Picture yourself ten weeks from now on the beach, walking briskly and confidently to your favorite spot, your breathing is normal and relaxed. You smile to yourself; you could keep walking like this for miles without feeling fatigued.

You lay your towel out and begin to take your clothes off revealing a firm, toned, well-conditioned body. You have just bought a brand new swimming suit which just weeks before would have been lying in your closet waiting to be used.

Glancing around you notice the beach is busy, you catch the eye of someone of the opposite sex, they smile at you and you smile back. You walk confidently to the water and swim a couple of hundred yards with no problem or fatigue.

Or try this:

Visualize your family and friends complimenting you about how good your body looks and how slim you look. Try to view the scene as it is happening this instant – in the present, not in the future.

Using these visualizations you can construct in your mind any scene that desire. See yourself exercising, socializing, and in the company of friends. Try and hear people complimenting you about your slim new body, and watch their admiring glances. Make the mental image as real as possible.

• Remember set a goal for your ideal weight · You must want to lose weight
• Visualize yourself at your ideal weight
• Use positive images at every opportunity

Practice these sessions on a daily basis and over a period of ten weeks you’ll be on your way to becoming more fulfilled, happier, and leaner.

Gary is the author of several e-books, including “Maximum Weight Loss in Ten Weeks” – the complete e-book and time-saving solution for burning away unwanted fat, and “Maximum Weight Gain in Ten Weeks” – easy-to-use and follow techniques that serve as a guide to muscle growth without having to “live in the gym”.

What prevents you from growing thin?

by Editor | Jun 9, 2011 | Overweight

Almost all women, who ever tried to grow thin, know the following situation: you choose carefully an appropriate diet for you, stick to it industriously and even lose a couple of kilograms… and that is all! You keep your weight, regardless of all your attempts and tortures, and often it even increases. Every morning you go on scales, and that treacherous indicator is like mocking you. You are losing courage every day, and, finally, hope to gain a good figure melts…

However, you should not despair and change tactics of growing thin at once. Let’s try to find hidden reasons, which may prevent you from losing weight.

Reason 1: Cold dusk days

As researches show, in winter and close to winter months (October and November, March and April), we consume 500-1500 calories more daily. This especially concerns those, who are disposed to seasonal depression, displaying breakdown, bad mood, extreme irritability, or tiredness.

Well, almost 20% of people suffer from such depression. This happens because cutting down on a light day leads to a decrease of such important substances, like serotonin and dopamine, in the brain, which is a reason for mood lowering, breakdown, and appearance of sugar hunger (hence – excessive consumption of sweets and other carbohydrates).

What should you do? Travel somewhere for the whole winter? There is a way out: try to “consume” as much sunshine as you can. Stay in fresh air for at least 15-30 minutes during the afternoon period till 2 pm, when the intensity of sunbeams is maximum. Solarium at least once a week will also help you. It is also important to understand that hunger has a psychological, not physical character, and you should observe how often you yield to it.

Sedative herbal extracts will also help to reduce depressive hunger a little. Try also to have enough fresh fruits and vegetables in your fridge even in winter, and also cereals.

Reason 2: Happy marriage

You were hardly ever going to suffer your figure for the sake of family happiness, and meanwhile, most often this happens. Two years after marriage women already start gaining 0,5-2 kg per year. The reason is that the food habits of married people become similar with time, and as a rule, it is a woman who tunes to a man.

When you are alone, most likely you will eat only a salad for supper or nothing at all. But when you are married, moreover, if your family is big, you just have to cook supper (and eat) several dishes.

Try to get your husband’s and children’s support in this difficult matter of growing thin. Cook a “light-weight” version of your favorite dishes several times a week, with a lower quantity of oil and fat. Don’t yield to persuasions to “drink tea” for the third time during the evening. Try also going in for sport together with your husband. Practice shows that in this case, a woman quits training less often.

Reason 3: Sofa and TV

Researches show that 93% of overweight people watch TV more than 2 hours per day. The reason is that when one watches TV, he is almost motionless. During watching TV programs, heartbeat, blood pressure, and metabolism become slower – even more, than if you were just sitting on a chair doing nothing! As a result – one burns 20-30 calories less per hour.

So, if you are watching TV for 5 hours per day – you gain almost 1 kg per month. Not to mention the fact that many people like chewing something while watching their favorite movie. There is a simple way out of this situation: don’t refuse from favorite programs, but do something while watching them. Knit something at least! And it is better to do a complex of simple physical exercises.

Reason 4: Lack of sleep

Not to mention that lack of sleep influences appearance negatively, it slows down metabolism very much, contributing to being overweight, and not burning fat. The reason for this is that lack of sleep leads to insulin resistance (state, when an organism does not consume sugar in blood the way it should, which also increases the risk of diabetes appearance), and also decreases leptin, a hormone that controls feeling of satiation.

These changes can lead to quick weight gain. Of course, chronic not getting enough sleep leads to this, not one-two sleepless night (for example, if your baby is ill). As a rule, such hormonal changes are observed in people, who sleep 2-3 hours less than they should 5 nights per week. Don’t sacrifice your sleep. The majority of women need to sleep 7-8 hours per night. It is not bad to take a nap in the afternoon, if you have a possibility, at least on the weekend.

Reason 5: Wrong diet

As a rule, weight loss stops quickly while fashionable diets, when one eats only rice or bananas for a long time. Usually, such diets work 203 days, when 2-3 kilograms are lost, and then they stop working. The further organism gets used and categorically refuses to get rid it of excess kilograms.

Separate nutrition also seldom gives a positive effect. It improves digestion and health but never reduces weight till the necessary limit. As a rule, those who don’t count calories eat this way.

Salt-free diets also give weight stop not always, as you lose weight only due to water squeezing of your organism’s tissues. You will have no further effect. Heightened fatiguability will appear, the organism will be lazy and use motions sparingly, and liquid will return in a while. You should restrict yourself to smoked and salted food. But there is no sense to quit eating them at all. It is better to keep a balanced diet.

Only slow complex programs of weight loss will give a stable result, while restriction of consumption of calories and fats.

Reason 6: Cyclic weight fluctuation

It will be easier for you to lose weight, if you keep to a diet and go in for sport during the last phase of your menstrual cycle, than at any other time. The heightened level of estrogen and progesterone content increases metabolism: the organism burns stocks of fat with their help.

As scientifically researched shows, women burn 30% calories more during periods from 2 weeks after ovulation till 2 days before menstruation. Moreover, premenstrual syndrome and the period itself very often cause edemas and accumulation of excess liquid. Regardless of the diet you keep to, 2 kg overweight is possible! Don’t torture yourself, wait till a natural solution to the situation and then drink diuretic tea for 2-3 days.

And finally, several interesting factors were found during recent research:

– It turns out that the intensity of home lightning can influence appetite. It was proved that, as a rule, overweight people consume more food while bright light. Bright lightning excites them, makes them eat quicker, with bigger appetites and, as a result, they consume more calories. At the same time, people, who keep to some diet, or people with lack of weight eat more while subdued lightning.

– Keep food further from you. The more food is available, the more gladly you eat it. According to American research, products from lower shelves of fridges “disappear” much quicker, than ones from upper. Also, if you prefer to eat in the kitchen, the probability of overeating increases. However, if you go, say, to a drawing-room, with a portion, then the probability that you will return for a second helping is rather small.

– According to research, which French scientists carried out, people consume more food while the presence of external irritants, for example, TV or music. In this case, people spend more time at the dining table and consume more calories, than they would while eating in silence. Other abstractive moments, for example, a lunch with an interesting interlocutor, have a similar effect.

About The Author

Yana Mikheeva

Do These Genes Make Me Look Fat?

by Editor | Jun 9, 2011 | Overweight

Don’t you just hate it when you go on a calorie-reduced weight loss plan and despite your best compliance everyone is losing weight except for you? It looks like scientists are getting closer and closer to finding an answer to this perplexing situation. Our genes may have something to do with it. Not our favorite pair of Lucky jeans, but our genetic makeup…

A recent study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism identified a variation of the gene known as perilipin. The variation of this gene appears to cause some people to become resistant to weight loss from low-calorie diets.

The study followed 48 obese men and women who all followed a low-calorie diet for a year. The participants who had the more common strain of perilipin lost an average of 20 pounds during the year and the participants who carried the variation of the gene did not experience significant weight changes despite excellent compliance. The researchers say that somehow the connection between calorie intake and body weight is interrupted leaving this population unable to lose weight with calorie restriction alone.

Interestingly enough, a previous study showed that this specific variation of perilipin was linked with a lower risk of obesity but in this study, it was associated with weight loss resistance. Researchers think this gene may actually protect against initial weight gain specifically with lean women but once you gain the weight it actually prevents weight loss. So in short the good news is if you have this gene you may have a difficult time gaining weight but the downside is if you already have gained the weight it might be more difficult to get it down.

Does this mean there’s no hope? Absolutely not- this is very early research and there is still so much more to find out about how our genetics tie into weight issues. These research studies still need to be reproduced in other populations before we know for certain what is happening. The other important thing to note is the fact that this study only looked at the relationship between low-calorie diets and weight loss which just shows us again that “one size fits all diets” do not work for everyone. Calories are just one piece of the puzzle. Make sure your weight loss program deals with all the issues around weight, with an individualized approach, and not just one piece.

(c) 2006, Meri Raffetto

About the Author-

Owner of Real Living Nutrition Services, Meri Raffetto is a Registered Dietitian and recognized professional in the area of nutrition and wellness. She specializes in weight management and offers online programs to help people reach their weight loss and health goals.