I am concluding the spring cleaning series. We explored the mind and body. Now for a moment, let us explore the soul. Weight gain and emotional eating are often signs of a imbalance. When we are out of balance the body becomes distressed. My weight loss journey has taught me to look deep within. I have had to address a number of uncomfortable beliefs. What I learned from my work is that most of our unhappiness, and stress is rooted in negativity. When you release the negativity in life, you become free to take care of you!

Why am I am referring to this as soul cleaning? I believe that all healing is a spiritual process. Releasing negativity is not done through will power. It requires accepting that you are not in control of people or their behavior. This insight allows you the wisdom to not try to control others, no matter how much you love them. In time you will appreciate the differences and trust that there is a grand plan. We cannot possibly know why things happen the way they do. I will ask you to trust that there is a grand plan, even when you can’t see it.

I can write a book just on this topic. For now, trust me when I tell you that all of my clients that have lost weight and kept it off have had to do some soul searching. It is healthy for your mind and body. In my humble opinion, forgiveness is the fastest way to cleanse the soul. It is not easy, but will release the root cause of what is negative in your life.

Your assignment is to make a decision to forgive. It is not for them, it is for you to release the negativity and allow the positive to replace it.

Detoxify your body as a way to let go of unhealthy eating habits. A simple detox consists of raw foods and juices. There are a lot of ways to cleanse the body. I like the raw food approach because it gives the digestive system a healthy break. Think of it as a spring cleaning of your body. If you really want to get rid of some baggage, journal throughout this process. We eat to avoid feelings. When you take away the diversion, all kinds of feelings bubble up. Don’t be afraid of your emotions. The only way to get through them is facing them.

1. Here are the steps to take to spring clean your body:
2. Pick a date to detox.
3. Plan your meals and snacks.
4. Go grocery shopping.
5. Clear the days on you calendar.
6. Communicate with your family.
7. Prep your meal plan so that is is effortless to follow.
8. Start your plan.

If stress is part of your daily life, perhaps it is time to change that. When I spoke of bowing out of the rat race. I didn’t mean quit your job, sell everything and move away. I meant find a way to remove yourself from the stressors that consume people. Stop playing that game. You can in fact create a life that based on you being true to you. No excuses, no apologies and no guilt about being who you are. After examining your life and what triggers stress you may decide to change how you react. This is extremely effective. You are in charge of how you react no one else. You can make a choice to not react and to let it go. This will become your new habit. This is what you practice and visualize when doing self-hypnosis. It is the topic of my upcoming seminar. How to not react but instead release what is causing you stress. It is liberating and freeing to take back control over your life, body and emotions.

Affirmations to take back control over your life, follow me on twitter: twitter.com/mindoverplatter

Identifying what is the trigger for your stress will raise your awareness. Admitting what you do to deal with it, it vulnerable. Deciding what you will do instead requires commitment. Doing it repeatedly until you change takes time. Repetition and conditioning is how the mind connects a feel to a behavior, aka, a habit.  Changing the habit is a process. There are short cuts in changing what stresses you and how you react to it. My favorites are Continue reading →

One of the biggest reasons people bow out of the rat race is because it is too stressful. Keeping up with the demands of work, family, a mate and what you want can be overwhelming. I say “Stress Less” and make 2013 your year to create the life you want. Do you want to lose weight? Be in a healthy relationship? Quit Smoking? Make more money? Find a different job? I bet stress has something to do with the reason why. Do you eat or smoke as a way to deal with stress? Do relationships, money or job elevate your stress? It is most likely a combination of all of them to create mega doses of stress. Short term stress is fine, but chronic stress is the anti wellness drug. It does far more harm than good.

There are many ways to deal with stress. It all begins in the mind. This is a critical part of Designing a Life You LOVE Living. Managing Stress by understanding the body / connection. Identify what your “stressors” are. What triggers you to feel stressed and how do you deal with it. For example most of my readers will eat when they feel stressed. This only causes them to gain weight causing them to restart the cycle.

You can break this cycle. Stress Less is a choice, it starts with a decision to do things differently. If you normally eat when stressed, you must decide what you will do instead. Identify the trigger that causes you to feel the stress, then make it easier to do the substitute instead of eat. You have to build this into you daily routine.

More to come in future articles. For now, identify your stressors, how you deal with them and what you can do instead.

Follow me on Twitter: www.twitter.com/mindoverplatter

Don’t gain weight from the Super Bowl Festivities. Here are my top three tips for making it a slimming Super Bowl:

Before:
Get a good workout in before the gatherings.
Plan ahead what you will eat.
Snack lightly throughout the day.

During:
Drink plenty of water.
Use a small plate.
Eat your veggies first.

After:
Toss out or give away any tempting leftovers.
Workout for 45 minutes within 24 hours to burn those calories.
Plan your meals for the remainder of the week.

Bonus Tip: make goodie bags filled with cut veggies, fruit, popcorn and protein to munch on when you get hungry.

Stress Less in 2013 Seminar!

http://www.facebook.com/l.php?u=http%3A%2F%2Fdesigningalife.eventbrite.com%2F%3Fref%3Decount&h=sAQGsMRZQ&s=1

Every year I pick a theme to live by. Something that will help me grow personally and spiritually. I think about my long term goals and where I am in relationship to where I aspire to be. As a Coach, I help people set goals and develop a game plan to achieve them. This can become a trap of being in perpetual pursuit of what the world values rather than what you value. Part of my job is to elicit their inner calling as oppose to the demands of home, work and society.

I call it the world’s calling, the rat race, running from A to B while thinking about C. It can become madness. The role of the coach is to assist you in bowing out of the rat race. To point your toes in the direction that you desire to go in and progress in a way that is balanced and mindful. Some people love the rat race! It motivates them to make money and accumulate a lot of nice things. I believe you can have both, money, nice things a harmonious life without the rat race!

This is very achievable. It requires a mind set that is certain and at peace. Nothing can disturb your flow when you keep your eyes on what is your path. The series that I started on Designing a Life that You LOVE Living has reminded me on how desperately people need to refocus. Bow out of the rat race and move through life at your own pace.

As the new year begins, ask yourself what your theme will be for the upcoming year. It will be your mantra for 2013? You will filter all distractions through this theme.

I would enjoy hearing what you theme is on facebook/mindoverplatter1

Follow me on twitter to bow out of the rat race: www.twitter.com/mindoverplatter

Naturally thin people coast through the holidays without weight gain because they have habits that support their ideal weight. They don’t avoid gatherings. They avoid getting out of control at gatherings. Here are three easy beliefs that – if you adapt them – will help you to think thin as well. I am writing them in the first person because I want you to say them to yourself.

Continue reading →

Ran my first 5k and am so proud. I never thought I could or would. With the encouragement of my friends, I began to wonder if I was up to the challenge. It was when two of my coworkers offered to run with me that I decided I would sign up. I doubted I could finish. That was the goal, finish. It was a stretch to publicly start something that I may not finish.

What I quickly discovered was Continue reading →

Holidays and long weekends can add up more calories than you anticipated. You don’t have to gain weight this holiday season. Here are my top five suggestions that won’t tip your scale.

1. Stay away from juices, sweetened drinks and cream based beverages.

2. Snack on veggies or sliced fresh fruit between meals.

3. Have a salad with lunch and dinner, dressing on the side.

4. Do not eat after dinner, at least 3 hours before going to bed.

5. Go for a quick walk first thing in the morning to speed up your metabolism.

This is the last in our series and the complete outline of how to design a life you that LOVE living. It takes time to create, but well worth the investment.

 Blue Print for Designing a Life You LOVE Living!

1. Take Inventory of where you are

• Take the assessment

2. Determine what your top values are

•   Ask yourself if your inventory and your values are in alignment

3. Clarify where you want to be based on your top values and inventory.

• Define success for each area

4. Redefine success so that you can feel successful on a daily basis

5. Create an plan of action to meet your needs and ignite your plan.

6. Claim Success – KISS It daily

• Know IT!
• Ignite IT!
• See IT!
• Speak IT!

Ignite your passion with a KISS. When we started this series, I told you that I would conclude with “igniting your goal”. I use the acronym KISS: Know it, Ignite It, See it and Speak it.

Continue reading →

Based on my book Mind Over Platter®: Train your brain to think thin.

As you may know, weight loss is my specialty. I rarely have time to meet with clients any more due to my busy schedule. Based on the suggestions I received, I thought I would incorporate weight loss into the Design a Life Series:

In this seminar you will: 

• Discover the habits of naturally thin people. These are people who gain weight when they overeat but maintain their ideal weight with little effort.
• Have an opportunity to experience the same proven hypnosis session that I conduct with my clients.   

This seminar will be on Tuesday, November 13th from 6:00-8:00PM, it is only $20.00, which is a fraction of what I charge my clients for an hour session. If you are curious about weight loss and the mind/body connection, you won’t want to miss this one. I don’t know when I will teach it again.

I hope you can join me. You have nothing to lose except a few pounds.

Click here for details on how to sign up.

So what determines what the RAS focuses on is driven by your values. I hope you have filled out your personal inventory and charted your results. Continue reading →

Getting your subconscious and conscious mind to align and move in the same direction is dependant on what you are programmed to look for. The Reticulating Activating System (RAS) is the part of your mind that continuously scans and screens information. It is determining what needs to be brought to your awareness

Continue reading →

As we proceed with this series, it is important to clarify how your mind works.
You have a Conscious Mind. It is judgmental, cross referencing what is occurring. It asks “what is happening what does it mean to me?” It filters information, questioning motives and is always on guard. Making a change on the conscious level requires will power and repetition. It is limited in what it can focus on. Continue reading →

Put the chart aside and take a look at the ten categories listed on the Personal Inventory. These are essentially values: Health, Personal Growth, Fun, Money, Framily (friends & family), Career, Spirituality, Romance, Physical Environment and Self-Fulfillment. Continue reading →

I am offering a seminar that I am super excited about! I rarely get to do this since my schedule is packed. When I do have the time and opportunity to teach, I pick topics that I am passionate about. Our blog series this summer has inspired me. In the spirit of honoring your truth I have created a seminar just for you. It is focused on you! It is time to make YOU a priority. Continue reading →

This is the sole reason I lost 30 pounds and kept it off for so long. You must believe you are in this for the long haul. The changes you are making are for your whole life, not just to reach one goal.

For your assignment, write down your outcome and go backwards from there. Which goals do you need to reach that will automatically obtain this outcome. When you feel discouraged ask yourself “where will I be a year from now if I keep up this progress at this pace?” It took me a year to lose 30 pounds, but that was 15 years ago. This belief will work! Integrate it into your mind today.

Plan your meals wisely. Listen to your body and eat only enough food to fuel your body. Pick foods that energize your body. Rate how hungry you are and only eat when you are hungry, stop as soon as the hunger goes away.

Don’t wait until you become so hungry that you lose control. Keep a food journal. In it, record your hunger ranking both when you begin to eat and when you are finished. Write down what you ate and how you felt after. This will help you subconscious mind alert your conscious mind in supporting your new beliefs until they become a habit.

The chronic dieter subconsciously believes it is not that hard to lose weight. They secretly believe they will not be able to keep it off. They worry about this while they are losing weight. If I had a dollar for every client that said “I just hope I can keep it off” – I would be wealthy.

Naturally thin people think it is harder to take off the weight. They are convinced that once they reach their goal, they will maintain their ideal weight. One reason is that they don’t let themselves forget how hard they worked to get this far.

This week’s belief is extremely important – you can keep the weight off! Look for evidence to support this belief. When you find it, record them on a vision board. You can use pintrest for this if you’d like. Create a Mind Over Platter board to reinforce all that you are learning.

Naturally thin and fit people know that the mind trumps the body. They don’t stop when the brain say’s “I don’t want to do this ( ie: exercise, eat salad, skip dessert, etc)”. They play mind games when themselves. Naturally thin / fit people talk back to that little voice. They say “I am not tired!”, “I love salads!”, “I am going to feel so good when this is over!”

They really say those things to themselves! They say with intensity and feeling to psych themselves up for what they don’t want to do.

Chronic dieters whine to themselves. They say “I worked hard, I deserve to (have dessert, skip the gym, sleep in, etc). They too infuse feeling but it is a negative one.

This week’s assignment is to believe it’s all a mind game. Notice the game you play and change it to an empowering one. I am available on Facebook/mindoverplatter1 to talk about it more if you’d like.