The world is drowning in information on health, nutrition and exercise. From liver cleansing to lentils, leotards to lycra, low cal to lavage and portion size to paleo, new weight loss trends are popping up faster than you can sauté kale. Yet 95 per cent of people who try to lose weight put it all back on, plus more, within 12 months of starting any sort of weight loss regime. Why?
Because the key factor in successful weight management has been overlooked: the brain.
The brain is our control centre. Every part of the body follows the signals and instructions sent out by the brain. The brain determines why, how and where body fat is stored. The brain drives our metabolism, hunger, food choices, motivation to exercise (or not) and hormone production. So put aside your meal plan and start with the following 7 step Mind Plan.
- Instead of focusing on what you should be eating, turn your attention to why you are eating. At least 30 per cent of our eating is non-hungry eating. We eat because we’re sad, angry, bored, lonely, stressed, depressed, procrastinating, celebrating, commiserating, deliberating, the list is endless. If you eat when you’re not hungry, your body doesn’t need the energy and will store it as excess body fat. Therefore before you reach for food, ask yourself ‘Am I really hungry or am I trying to change how I’m feeling?’ If you’re genuinely hungry, eat. If it’s an emotional reason, read step two.
This HEB recently appeared in my Body+Soul – read the full article here.
