Tag Lighten Up

So how exactly how do your reading habits influence your happy shape and size?

It’s a great question!

If you’re a voracious reader, and you eat while reading, there’s a very high chance you’re setting yourself up to fail when it comes to your weight.

Here’s why.

The simple fact is — if you eat while reading, you’re distracted.

And if you’ve been following me for a while now, you know the truth — distracted eaters overeat.

We eat without realising how much we’ve eaten.

We’re mesmerised…

What happens is we’re busy being mesmerised by the story.

We’re mesmerised by the characters in the book, and we’re transported off to another era, another time, another place.

And we forget ourselves and what we’re doing here and now.

For example, a client I worked with recently in the Lighten Up programme would frequently read a book while eating her favourite chocolate – Lindt balls.

She’d often get to the end of her chapter and wonder who’d eaten all her Lindt balls.

“Where did all the chocolate go?!”

Now, this lady lives alone, so it’s not as though she could accuse her husband or her children!

If you want to read, read.

If you want to eat the chocolate Lindt balls, eat the chocolate Lindt balls.

But stop multitasking.

No more eating while reading: whether it’s a novel, the newspaper, or social media.

Eating is about nourishing your body. Reading is about nourishing your imagination.

Just because you can do them simultaneously —doesn’t mean you should.

Or at least, not if you want to be your happy shape and size.

If you’re looking for long-term sustainable weight loss, the virtual gastric band hypnosis can help.

C’mon over to Lighten Up.

Recently, while on holiday in New Caledonia, I struck by some super interesting eating habits of the locals.

One habit, in particular, was the direct opposite of what we see here in New Zealand.

Here’s what I noticed:

Nobody eats on the run

Whether I was at the mall, the central business district, or at the beach – nobody ate on the run.

Nobody was eating a sandwich or munching on a sushi roll or tucking into a packet of crisps while walking down the pavement.

Eating on the run is something we see sooooo much of these days. It’s become our new normal.

We’re so busy rushing through our day, rushing through our to-do lists, rushing from meeting to meeting or rushing to pick up the children.

Eating has become just one more thing to tick-off our to-do list.

And something I’ve noticed about women who eat on the run, they very, very rarely ever feel satisfied with what they’ve eaten.

It’s an honouring ritual

In New Caledonia, the locals would take a lunch hour. It was a ritual they’d perform every single day – no matter how far behind they were on their to-do list! They all took a lunch hour.

There were many groups of people sitting together or individuals sitting by themselves. But the key thing is, they were all seated while they enjoyed their food.

When food becomes one more thing to tick-off our to-do list, we forget to take pleasure in it. Pleasure is soooooo important.

So take a seat – no more eating on the run – and enjoy your food. Enjoy the flavours, and enjoy nourishing your wonderful body.

If you’re looking for long-term sustainable weight loss, the virtual gastric band hypnosis can help.

C’mon over to Lighten Up.

But will I actually believe I’ve got a silicone band fitted in my stomach?

It’s a really common question.

Here’s your answer.

Interesting side effects

Now, some clients do report a feeling of tightness in their tummy.

Others report a split second of nausea. Many clients report no physical change in how they feel in their stomach at all.And there’s no wrong or right.

Operation of the mind

That’s because it’s not about convincing you that you have a silicone band in your tummy. …it’s an operation of the mind.

The virtual gastric band uses the power of hypnosis – and a whole bunch of other mindset techniques – to convince your unconscious mind that a silicone band has been fitted in your tummy.

Even though you know in your logical, intellectual, rational mind, there’s no band!!

Since the changes occur in your unconscious mind, the procedure rewires your relationship with food, and overeating, bingeing and cravings can cease.

And I know it sounds crazy!

Clients say things like: “I used to obsess about food all the time, but it doesn’t even cross my mind now unless I’m hungry!”

So it isn’t about convincing you that you have a band in your stomach.

It’s about your mind.

And when your mind is in the right place, it’s so so much easier for the number on the scale take care of itself.

I hope you found that useful!

If you’re looking for long-term sustainable weight loss, the virtual gastric band hypnosis can help.

C’mon over to Lighten Up.

What’s subscription telly got to do with me being my happy shape and size?

It’s a valid question.

Then…

Do you remember in the olden days, when we’d watch an episode of Dukes of Hazard or David Attenborough’s Our World and we’d wait an entire seven days to find out what happened next?

(I always secretly hoped the baby wildebeest would be rescued by the camera team from the crocodiles …but I digress).

Now…

Fast forwards to now,  thanks to Netflix, we no longer have to wait seven days for the next episode.

We just press continue.

And continue.

And continue.

And continue.

Heads-up to the power of language

Have you noticed how Netflix actively encourages this binge-watching behaviour by calling one of its categories ‘binge-worthy’ shows?

This isn’t about the technology itself. It’s about how we’re using — or misusing —the technology.

Now, who doesn’t love a good movie?

I love a good series.

But there’s a big difference between coming home from work, going for a walk, having some social interaction, eating a nourishing home-cooked meal and then enjoying an episode or two.

Nice right?! It’s nourishing and honouring way to live and be present.

Versus, coming home from work, skipping moving your body, ignoring the kids, eating takeout in from the telly.

If you’re using Netflix as a way of distracting and distancing yourself from your own life, you’ve got to ask yourself, how healthy and nourishing is that really?

So enjoy Netflix but always remain present to your own life as well.

If you’re looking for long-term sustainable weight loss, the virtual gastric band hypnosis can help.

C’mon over to Lighten Up.

This week’s tip is one of my favourites because it’s easy, it’s effective, and it appeals to my laaaaazy side.

And it’s brilliant at helping you achieve your weight loss goals.

What is it?

What I encourage you to do is take a photo of an item of clothing — that you REALLY want to be able to wear — that is one size smaller than you currently are.

It might be a t-shirt, a dress and pair of knickers.

What I encourage you to do is add this photo to the lock screen on your phone.

The lock screen on our smartphone is very valuable real estate because we look at our phones hundreds of times a day.

You might resist this because…

…you’ve got a picture of your children or grandchildren or your pet.

But swapping that photo of your pet, your children or grandchildren, with that item of clothing that is one size smaller than you currently are — and you really want to wear —what it does is keep your goal top of mind, which is a great place for your goal to be.

Now, this appeals to my lazy (or my efficient!) side because once you’ve set it up, the system is supporting you, every time you look at your phone.

You’re reaping the dividends, every time you pick up your phone and log in. How cool is that?

So go try it.

Go take a photo of an item of clothing that you want to wear that is one size smaller than you currently are.

Heads-up: Please don’t be tempted to go for an item of clothing several sizes smaller than you currently are.

Because that big leap can lead to perfectionist thinking (which is a self-sabotaging behaviour).

And if there’s a part of you resisting this because you’re thinking “this is way too small to make a difference!”, remember to support yourself and that small steps add up to radical change over time.

I hope you found that helpful.

If you’re looking for long-term sustainable weight loss, the virtual gastric band hypnosis can help.

C’mon over to Lighten Up.