Treats - does it have to be food?

We had a conversation on one of my telecourses this week around food being used as a 'treat'. And as I was 'googling' an image for this blog, using the search field 'treat' all that came up were images of cakes and chocolates. I find this really interesting.

Why is it that when we think of rewarding or treating ourselves for something well done, it involves food?

As with everything in our life, our habits develop from an early age and the more unconscious our habits are then the more likelihood that the habit is very old...
Can you remember back to your childhood, to when you did something well or behaved in a manner that was judged as good? how were you rewarded? was it with food?

I remember quite often hearing the phrase 'if you're a good girl and be quiet I'll buy you chocolate' 'if you eat up all your dinner then you can have a desert'. Basically I was learning that sweet yummy things like chocolate and cake were 'rewards' for being a 'good little girl' - so it only follows that in my subconscious mind I am going to make this association, it might come up when I feel I have achieved something or even if I feel a failure - as a way of 'cheering me up'.

If you find that you reach for food to deal with your emotions wither positive or negative you might want to explore the childhood habits and family beliefs around this.

When you become aware of using food as a reward or treat I would like to invite you to sit, think and listen to your body for a few minutes before reaching for this food. Give yourself time to think what it is that you would really like as a treat.

It it that some foods are bad for us or simply just not good for us?

I had an interesting conversation today with a cook. The cook wondered how we can know specific foods are bad for us, her thoughts being that unless we just eat or drink only one particular thing each day how can we know which of the things that have gone into our body are not good for us?

Interesting question.

How do you know what your body likes/dislikes?

By listening to it of course!

When you listen to your body you become aware of your body’s needs, likes & dislikes, you learn what is good for it and what is not.

The conversation continued to certain foods that are known to be less healthy for us for example white bread and pasta and here the conversation turned to the question - is it that this food is BAD for us or just NOT GOOD for us?
And what’s the difference?

It is certainly not good nutritionally as this kind of ‘food’ has been stripped of all the nutrients…and so does it follow therefore that this food is bad for us?
I think that it depends on each persons body and toleration level and whether you are getting the nutrition you need from else where or relying solely on this processed ‘food’ under the illusion that because it is edible it is food and therefore good for you.

What saddened me about this conversation, was her attitude to her own health in that she would look to change her diet, if and when she had to as a result of ill-health. I find this attitude most common with people in the west, that they will continue to put into their bodies what they like to eat judged by taste and look rather than by quality and contribution to the health of the body. In the western world, in the so called developed world, we seem to have lost the meaning of food, we have lost the primary reason why we eat – to sustain our life not to gratify our senses. This saddens me and encourages me to continue with working with people on conscious eating. For every person I can support, maybe they can support/encourage/influence at least one more.

Weight Loss Plateau - Is it emotional?

As some of might know I'm always looking for the underlying psychological causes to our health issues and I think a weight loss plateau might also come into this category.

If you are someone who has reached a plateau for a while then maybe there is an emotional block to moving forward.

When I did some work on this for myself some years ago, my explorations revealed that holding on to weight was a form of psychological 'protection' for me. Fat meant being safe, that 'I couldn't be 'got'.', and only by recognizing and acknowledging this was I able to let it go and move on.

So if you think this might apply to you then ask yourself the following questions...

• Why did I put the weight on in the first place?
• How did it serve me? (e.g. helped me cope with a breakup, de-stress etc.)
• If I was to reach my ideal weight, how would my life change?
• What or who might I have to let go of that maybe I'm not ready to?
• Who do I think I'll become when I lose the weight?

If you want to explore these more then e-mail me for your complimentary Conscious Eating coaching session.

5 Tips for moving past the Plateau

1. Persist - just hang on in there! If you're sticking to your regime then it is coming off, just maybe not enough for the scale to see right now.
2. Check for hidden calories, it is surprising how many calories can be hidden in a teaspoon of this or a pinch of that - be honest with yourself.
3. Increase muscle building exercises - Muscle burns fat!
4. Revisit your goals and motivation for losing weight in the first place and ask yourself if maybe you have reached a plateau because that is where you body feels most comfortable.
5. ACCEPT that you are where you are, ACCEPT that your body is resting from weight loss right now, ACCEPT that you are eating for health whether or not you are losing weight, ACCEPT YOURSELF FULLY. Refusal to accept the reality of where you are right now will build into stress and likely be the cause of 'why do I bother' binges.

How to move forward when you reach the Weight Loss Plateau

I've been thinking lately of plateau's - specifically when after a few weeks dieting you hit what appears to be a wall and no matter how much excercise you do or how many calories you cut down to, the weight just doesn't budge.

Everyone on a weight loss diet will at some stage reach a plateau - maybe for a week or two, maybe even longer. Rather than becoming despondent over this - that your 'hard work' seems to not be paying off anymore I would like to invite you to take this opportunity to review and revisit your plan.

Firstly, accept that for the moment your body is resting where it is. Getting annoyed will only increase resistance, make you unhappy and probably contribute to you giving up.
Secondly take a moment to acknowledge what you've achieved to date, not just the pounds lost but the way your clothes feel, the way your body feels - relish in your success to date!

When you've done that you will be in a far more positive place to then take a look at your plan.
So when you do ask yourself the following questions...

• Are your original goals still valid or do you now have different ones?
• Does your original strategy for achieving these goals need to be changed or varied?

Although our bodies work somewhat like machines, unlike machines we cannot guarantee the output and our bodies will work at the pace they want to work, maybe you need to vary your routine, maybe up the exercise, maybe leave off the exercise for a day or two.

If you are considering reducing your calories more, just remember that your bodies need a minimal amount of calories to function and cutting down too much is unhealthy and cause your body to hold on to fat if it thinks it is going to starve.

Too busy to eat healthy

Do you find yourself using this reason for not eating healthy? That you are too busy. That it's easier to grab a sandwich or burger than to sit down with a salad.

I too used to use this reason for many years, I was way too busy in my job and then too tired when i got home however what i can now see is that by eating unhealthy was contributing to my tiredness. And when tired, can we really perform at our best? I now know that this was just an excuse not a reason - I actually just couldn't be bothered to prepare a meal just for me.

And what does 'couldn't be bothered' mean. It means not putting myself or my health first, it means not caring enough about myself. it means considering my job more important than me.

When we look at what's on offer with 'fast foods' today, we really cannot use this as an excuse anymore, there are many prewashed and pre cut salads available, there are many healthier versions of prepared foods. Whilst I am not an advocate any more of such 'tv dinners' as they contain far too much salt, and other unnecessary unhealthy extras, If you really do not have time to prepare your own meal then maybe you could consider some of the alternatives to bread & buns.

It's not so much that YOU are too busy rather than your thoughts are too busy to consider the healthier options.

If you're ready to challenge your beliefs and thoughts around healthy eating so that you can move forward with a diet that reflects who you really are then contact me, the Conscious Eating Coach for a sample session and lets see how much change you can make in your eating simply by changing your thoughts about eating.