by OneMoreBite | Jan 24, 2004 | Weight Loss News
Poor Florida Oranges Farmers. It’s Never Their Fault
I’d venture that those who enjoy a cool, frosty glass of orange juice still drink it. I’m particularly fond of mixing it with champagne, which if you haven’t tried it, goes down a little too easily.
Did you know it’s against the law to talk bad about food? That’s right. They’ll haul you out in shackles. Oprah Winfrey was sued for talking about beef in a disparaging manner – actually she never did so and was finally acquitted, but still – what are they thinking? Her guest, Howard F. Lyman who wrote MAD COWBOY: Plain Truth from the Cattle Rancher Who Won’t Eat Meat, was also sued. I’ll bet Oprah never invited him back either. I’m reading Mad Cowboy for the third or fourth time – great book.
There was a recent case of a winery suing a newspaper for printing that their wine resembled merde. Oops, not nice. Free speech is all well and good, but don’t talk food smack or you’ll be sorry.
Remember way back when the Florida Citrus growers sued Anita Bryant and basically killed her career. I don’t remember the details, I think it had to do with her views of gay people, but it caused quite the stir.
by OneMoreBite | Jan 24, 2004 | Exercise
Today I came across Tanya Jessen’s story and how she eventually lost 95 pounds playing DDR. Awhile back I’d mentioned hearing about Dance Dance Revolution (DDR) after seeing a clip on TV about a girl who’d lost a lot of weight playing a video game.
Ever since, I’ve wanted to try DDR myself but my husband is being a bit of a prig about it. Seems he thinks I spend a wee bit too much money on every whim that comes my way. Where’s he get such ideas? Anyway my enthusiasm must have worn him down because he said he’d go rent it for me today.
If your kids already have a PlayStation, PlayStation 2 or XBox go down today to the video store, rent DDR and try it for yourself. What have you got to lose except some weight?
by OneMoreBite | Jan 23, 2004 | Cravings
I quit smoking and substituted M&Ms mixed in with salted mixed nuts. A lethal mix. No kidding, it should be against the law to eat that mix. Why the M&M’s company doesn’t sell their candies mixed with salted nuts, I’ll never know because once you try it, you’re hooked. (Trust me, just do not try it or you’ll be very sorry and hate me forever).
I gained 15 pounds eating a few pounds of this mix a week. It was much more difficult to kick the M&Ms and mixed nuts habit than the smoking. Much harder. I’m dead serious.
I still look adoringly at that alluring deep chocolate brown wrapper – it’s been over 20 years since I gave that mix up and I still want it. Luckily for me they’ve been screwing around with the color of the packaging and I simply do not find those pastel colors appealing in the least. It’s not what’s inside, it’s the color of the package that gets me.
I’m also strangely attracted to fire engine red. Don’t know why, but it’s true. I once couldn’t take my eyes off a passing truck to the point I feared for my own safety – like a young man ogling a tempting lass, I could not pry my eyes from that red truck. Weird.
I’d go get some nuts and mix it some M&M’s except for one thing: fear. I’m terrified I’ll never be able to stop. I advocate eating what you truly love but there are limits and there are some things over which you may have no control. Facing those facts is a good thing. Deciding you have no control over any food though is silly. You can’t love everything like I love fire engine red or deep chocolate plain M&M’s wrappers. It’s true love, not just lust.
by OneMoreBite | Jan 15, 2004 | Fears, Hunger
Yesterday I felt hungry all day. I decided it was because I felt trapped. I didn’t have a choice about what or where to eat – I couldn’t leave my house because there were a few inches of ice literally on everything outside , so I did what any normal, sane person would do. I ate. I might want to work on this issue since if I were ever truly in a situation where the food supply was limited I’d hate to think I’d wipe it out in one frenzied day of panic.
I didn’t eat junky stuff, but I did eat far more than usual. For instance I had a wheat bagel, sliced with raspberry honey. I never slice my bagels, and never put anything on them, so that was odd by itself. I have a very regular schedule of hunger, I eat generally around 7 AM, then again around 10 AM, again around 12 noonish, and maybe 4 or 5 PM is dinner. Thursday I had my usual breakfast, then snacks, then more snacks, then a big lunch, then more snacks, then a big dinner. I popped a few chocolates that day as well.
Basically healthy food but it still adds up. I had a mixture I hadn’t had for a long time where I get out a bowl and toss in granola cereal, raw almonds, raisins and carob chips. That sounds nice and healthy but those calories add up. I mentioned last week it was nearly 4,000 calories that day, of reasonably healthy foods, so I proved you can overeat on good food. I also ate two bananas, one on my cereal in the morning and another in the afternoon as a snack, so I wouldn’t faint from hunger, I guess.
I never used EFT that day. Thinking about it later it seems I had a fear of not having enough, of running out, of thinking I’m being controlled by outside forces, and of not having a choice. One thing I did not do that day was berate myself in any way shape or form. I do not say mean things to myself – I never have, except for the occasional, you idiot type of stuff but never in a serious way. I don’t do that, and if you do, stop now. Just stop. If you hear yourself saying something unkind to yourself just stop.
Since I Didn’t Pay Attention To My Hunger, I Ate Non-stop
Next Daily Bite look for my list of my favorite foods and a bit on tracking your hunger levels. I promise to post my hunger level worksheet so you can see that I’m not perfect either. I maintain a reasonable size and shape by eating like what I call a normal person. I don’t obsess about it, and I do overeat sometimes (witness last Thursday), but one overeating episode does not frame my whole day nor does it color my life. It’s not me, it’s just a behavior.
by OneMoreBite | Jan 6, 2004 | EFT Weight Loss
So, I’m cold – I’m usually cold, so this is nothing new, but it’s especially cold to me. I’ve got on layers, two pairs of socks, two pairs of pants, three shirts, and I’m still feeling brrrrr, shivering cold. I’d put the heater higher but my husband likes this arctic chill, so I’m compromising. Being chilled I suddenly thought about getting something to eat. Not because I’m hungry, but simply because I’m cold. Moving around would feel nice, eating would warm me too – that’s the thought that ran through my mind, and it makes sense. Eating stokes the metabolic fire, after all.
Discover Your Eating Triggers
So, there I’ve just discovered an eating trigger for me. Being cold makes me want to eat something – not a bowl of cereal, or a sandwich. I was thinking along the lines of chocolates, or nuts – something simple I could just pop in my mouth and commence chewing. Ah, but then I remember, today is the second day of my big plan to eat a “clean diet.” I’ve been talking about it for a month – letting people who know me in on the plan in an effort to help me do it. I eat a pretty healthy diet but I’ve let my weight creep up this winter, so I need to nip it in the bud right now.
Now nuts are okay on a clean diet, but the salted peanuts we have in the house are greasy and very high fat (raw almonds would be a better choice), and I know I’m not really hungry, so no amount of nuts is going to satisfy me. I just want to chew. It’s one of those, “eat until they are gone” type of hungers. So my new goal for this week is to wait for real hunger before eating. That’s all – just wait until I’m hungry first.
So I did a couple quick rounds of EFT: (Remember, if you need EFT instruction, here are no-cost materials to help.
“Even though I’m ultra cold, and I want to eat something, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
I always start on the P.R. point (side of the hand – karate chop point) and say the set-up three times. Then I do a series on the usual tapping points with the shortened words: “too cold.”
“Even though I don’t want to wait until I’m hungry, I deeply and completely accept myself and will wait anyway.”
“Don’t want to wait.”
Notice how you can add any words you like at the end of your statement? Go ahead and embellish the wording, speak to yourself in a kind manner, and the words will come to you.
While tapping I was thinking about my issue – how being cold is making me want to eat. Is that true, or was I just having a knee jerk reaction? I remember being offered hot chocolate as a child, with those little marshmallows on top, “Here, have some nice cocoa, it’ll make you feel better.” Smiling grandma fades out. So many memories intertwined with food.
There’s nothing wrong with having memories around food – food is an important part of our lives, and I’m not advocating stopping that practice – no way. I am interested in discovering my triggers though: those times I absentmindedly put something in my mouth because of a triggering event, such as the cold feeling in my body. Being cold is not the same as being hungry.
How to Wait for Hunger
Waiting for hunger isn’t so difficult but the hunger itself can be elusive and you may wish it would come sooner. The more nutritious food choices you make, the less often you’ll feel true hunger. Waiting for hunger isn’t so difficult, you just need to find something else to do when the urge to eat strikes without hunger. I’m busy working, so that’s no problem.
You’d be shocked if you waited for real hunger – assuming you eat nutritious food when you eat, that is. I ate breakfast at around 7 AM, nice big bowl of oatmeal and raisins with a sprinkling of brown sugar and non-fat milk. Around 10 AM I decided to eat an apple. Nice, sweet, juicy apple. Crunchy, excellent snack, IMO. So, now it’s likely I won’t be hungry again for another couple of hours.
Oops, I wandered off in the middle of writing this and ended up peeling and eating a Clementine while standing in the kitchen admiring the snow (a Clementine is a type of seedless tangerine, I think). Anyway, it was good. So I wasn’t hungry just then, that’s okay. I’m not a robot – it’s a plan, not a life sentence.
The nice thing about waiting for hunger is you can estimate it – so if I want to plan for lunch, I know sometime between noon and 1 PM will probably be when I’ll get hungry. Unless I’m busy doing something, in which case I might decide to wait. My husband just offered to make me some soup and a sandwich and I said, “No, thanks. I just ate an apple.” I could eat a sandwich, but today, I’m going to wait for hunger. Try it yourself, and see what happens. You may be surprised.
From now on I know that if I’m cold I may want to eat something, so I’m going to wait for hunger. Simple. It’s about being aware, that’s all. Notice what’s going on around you, and use EFT for the obstacles.
by OneMoreBite | Jan 5, 2004 | Diet Plans
If only you’d get up a half hour earlier, think of what could be done? A quick early morning workout perhaps, or time for a real breakfast? I eat breakfast every day, and have long credited that habit with being instrumental in getting me off the nighttime snacking habit and into the eating for health habit. If only I was consistent with my exercise – I was once in very fit shape and the secret? Regular, consistent exercise.
I saw a TV program yesterday about a girl who’d lost a lot of weight and she’d done it by playing a video game. Yup, a video game. The game is called DDR, Dance, Dance, Revolution and it involves a vinyl platform on the floor in front of you with squares, X’s and Triangles, and by following the game you move your feet and/or arms in the direction indicated, effectively causing you to dance. She danced away about 90 pounds before she even realized what was happening. Find something you enjoy and do it consistently, and it can work for you too.
If you’re like me, you start every January with the same hope and promise. This year it’s going to be different – this is going to be the year I (fill in the blank). This year my goal is to adopt a clean diet habit – the same eating style I used to create a healthy frame with 14% body fat many years ago. It wasn’t difficult but it took effort – effort to give up some of my less than healthy habits like eating junk food for instance.
I’d like to invite you on my journey. I’m starting a blog to keep a journal of my progress which will enable you to see my techniques using NLP and EFT in action. I will write my thoughts, my failures and successes as I go through the next few weeks, so you can see exactly how I overcome issues such as not wanting to get up earlier, not wanting to take the time to cook, not wanting to do what I say I want to do. I face these same issues as you, every day, but I have methods to overcome them, and I put my methods into action.
Do you take action? Do you have methods that would work, if only (fill in the blank).
If only is something to strike from your vocabulary this year. My resolution? To stop saying “if only” and to start saying, “now that I.”
Now that I get up earlier I can get more done.
Now that I eat a clean diet I feel so much better.
Now that I exercise every day…
Get the idea? Join me this year, in finding your way to effectively put into action all your plans. Let’s make 2004 a year to remember!
by OneMoreBite | Jan 2, 2004 | EFT Weight Loss
I notice a distinct difference in my eating patterns during the winter than the summer. I’ve worked with clients who specifically addressed this issue as they wanted to avoid the seasonal weight gain loss cycle from now on. Do you notice this phenomena, and what, if anything, can you do about it?
The first step is noticing what’s happening, and the second is deciding to do something about it. You may walk up your front steps every day, thinking about how you really should get out and clean of the leaves, but yet, you don’t. Why? It’s not that you wouldn’t like the job done but … It’s warmer inside, your routine is to walk straight in and relax and you want to relax, don’t you? You don’t want to go inside only to change your shoes and come right back out, so you don’t. Despite your wish that the job were complete, you don’t take the first step toward getting it done.
Frank Holleman
It’s the same with our eating habits. We just think about making a change. Day after day, there it is, that though. “Oh, I’d like to make a change, I’d really like to, but something just stops me.” That something is inertia, plain and simple. You do the same things in the same way because that’s how it’s always been. That can change, if you want it to. A simple decision is the first step.
Do you keep your word? When you say you are going to do something for someone else, do you follow-through? Can other people trust you to do as you say you will? If you answered yes, then what about yourself? Do you give yourself the same consideration and can you trust yourself to follow-through? That’s a more difficult question to answer because we all have let ourselves down at one point or another. We’re afraid to make a commitment and then not follow through. We’re afraid.
Two Steps to Take Today
1) Think of fear of failure. If it is something that might be a factor for you then do EFT on that today.
“Even though I’m afraid I’ll fail, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
“Even though I might not make it, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
“Even though I’m not sure I want to do this, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
2) Today choose one habit in which you’d like to make a change. It can be as simple as cutting back on the frequency of certain foods. For instance, a client had a Wednesday morning donut challenge in her office. She said she’d eat donuts whether she wanted them or not, and couldn’t seem to resist. We used EFT on that issue, and today she says, “I might have half a donut, or not, but I don’t grab one every time I pass the try like I used to.” Great success, right? Wrong. She’s not satisfied. She thinks she shouldn’t ever want a donut again, but that’s not necessarily correct. Success is that she no longer feels she MUST have a donut, but now is able to choose if she wants one. She might eat part of a donut – not many can do that.
Give Yourself Credit Every Step of the Way
The simple habit change of eating one donut instead of four, every week, eventually means a few pounds lost over time by that change alone. It’s the total effect of what we eat, not one single meal. Make changes you can live with – drastic dieting plans don’t last, but small changes do.
As time goes by, some people may eventually stop eating many things they used to, but it is generally done in a progressive fashion. Telling yourself you can never have another donut is not likely to help you learn to eat less donuts, but knowing you can have some if you want, and choosing when you want them, does help you to eat far less.
Choose one thing this week that you usually eat or drink to excess and decide now to make a change. Certain days of the week, certain hours of the day, quantity, whatever will work in your situation, but choose now to make a healthier choice and work on it all week.
Do EFT daily, three times a day on the issue. By this time next week, that may have become a non-issue and you might be ready for another small change.
by OneMoreBite | Dec 24, 2003 | Holidays
Surviving the Holidays Without Gaining Weight
Holidays are here! Great joy. Days of anticipation and foods bought and left waiting are soon to be consumed. I’m giddy with delight and I hope you are as well. Holidays are not an excuse to go crazy, but they are also not a time to cause yourself distress.
My holiday Rules For Eating, Enjoying and Not Gaining Weight
- Enjoy yourself. This is critical.
- Eat what looks wonderful, pass on the ordinary. In other words, choose homemade (if you have a choice).
- Take the time to enjoy the food. Try to determine what, if anything, is especially good to you? You might gain some insight into why particular foods call to you.
- Use EFT all day – quietly tap the karate point when you feel stress, and say to yourself, “Even though I’m getting annoyed with Uncle Charlie, I deeply and completely accept myself.” It will quietly calm you.
- Smile all day like you know a secret. People will go crazy trying to figure out what’s “different” about you.
Use EFT before you eat for any worries and concerns, and after you eat for any guilt or bad feelings. There is no need to feel guilty for eating and enjoying yourself.
EFT for the Holidays
If you have “issues” surrounding holidays, then tap like crazy on that. “Even though I hate the holidays, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
“Even though everyone has somewhere to go but me, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
“Even though I couldn’t afford to buy nice presents, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
This is the time to reflect on the year gone by and look toward the new.
by OneMoreBite | Dec 22, 2003 | EFT Weight Loss
Cooking in Advance, Buying Candy in Advance, All Fraught with Peril
Trying to “plan ahead” so you can avoid some of the rush is nearly impossible, unless you’re smarter than I. Thinking I’d make about three major dishes for Christmas Eve dinner it finally dawned on me last night that Christmas Eve this year is Wednesday. I’m going to have to bake on Tuesday, stick it in the refrigerator and avoid it until Wednesday evening. This is not my favorite thing to do, no not at all.
I’ve always had a difficult time in making a cake a day ahead. (Whenever you catch yourself saying the word “always” that’s a hint something to use EFT on is coming to mind). I want to eat the cake as soon as it’s finished, so if it must wait for a day, it’s torture. I also like to make those huge three and four layer cakes so it takes up the entire refrigerator causing me to see it and nothing else every time I open the door.
If I bake a lovely cake and see it in the refrigerator, it beckons to me. Knowing I cannot take a slice without ruining the presentation doesn’t seem to help me avoid the siren call. I could be sitting, minding my own business, when I suddenly snap my head upright, as if I’ve heard a ghost, “Come and get a piece of cake,” it calls to me. “I’m waiting,” it cries. Stupid cake.
Rather than trying to analyze why I have this strange desire for cake, or why I have such a difficult time in this situation, I’m going to tackle it head-on with some EFT. I may also use the Swish Technique (taught in the Ending Emotional Eating workshop, Session 4).
If you’ve struggled with similar issues, try these suggested EFT phrases, or devise some for your situation.
EFT for Patience
While continuously tapping the P.R. (Psychological Reversal) point* say, “Even though I want to eat the cake, except I’m not supposed to, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
Repeat three times, tapping the entire time, and say it like you mean it. Then tap the rest of the points, using a reminder statement, such as “eat cake.”
“Even though I can’t stand waiting, I choose to give myself permission to wait.”
Reminder: “Can’t wait.”
“Even though I hate doing what I’m supposed to, I deeply and completely accept myself anyway.”
Reminder: “Hate being told what to do.”
“Even though I can’t seem to deny myself what I want, I deeply and completely love and accept myself and give myself permission to wait.”
Reminder: “Can’t deny.”
Practice this on some food or beverage that seems to call to you, and see whether it helps ease that pull. If you are reluctant because you are afraid you’ll lose the desire completely (and this is a favorite thing, after all), be aware that’s unlikely to happen. Most discover they still would enjoy the food, but they no longer feel compelled to have it, and that is what is being addressed. The desire, or compulsion to have something that seems beyond a rational desire.
Smile today at every person you see, and practice patience. Think of an inside joke, remember a happy moment, or a funny movie you saw. Put a happy memory in your head and carry it around with you, then whenever you see someone just smile to yourself. Even in the crowded stores, people will treat you better when you put a happy bubble around yourself, and you’ll lift their spirits as well.
* Psychological Reversal Point (PR)
by OneMoreBite | Dec 19, 2003 | EFT Weight Loss
You Are Born With Only Two Fears, You Learn the Rest
Behavioral research has established that babies have only two inborn fears: the fear of certain noises and the fear of falling. All other fears are learned through experience or our own thought processes.
When a baby learns to walk he isn’t afraid of the process; he’s cheered on with clapping and laughter as rewards for each successful step. When children start school suddenly they are compared to a classroom of other kids. Some learn faster than others, and some have different skills, yet most kids slowly learn not to take chances; they begin to fear being made fun of, or laughed at. The messages they begin to chant to themselves are: don’t risk, don’t try, and above all else don’t fail.
After enough painful experiences, we slowly learn to fear many things and we develop a storehouse of information about our fears. Some are very real, some are just bad memories. Some come and go, and some cause a lot of grief and trouble for us as adults because we can’t seem to move past them.
Change Can Terrify
Making attempts at personal change, especially changing your external appearance (such as when taking off weight) can be worse than mildly scary – it can be terrifying. If you succeed, people notice, for a little while, then their delight disappears and everything goes back to normal for them. They accept the “new you” as the real you, but what happens to you when you start to return to the “old you?” You may think people are noticing, or worry that you are failing, again. You may be afraid that people you know and your family will make fun of you, or laugh behind your back. You may revert to grade school and all those old familiar feelings rush right back in. “It costs too much to fail, maybe it’s best if I just don’t try.”
You can move past these issues whether it is an outright fear of failure at trying again, or a vague uneasy feeling that you can’t quite put your finger on. All fears, and anxiety or uneasiness feelings are real in the moment you are experiencing them whether or not they are based on false or misleading information.
EFT to Address Fear Itself
If you are afraid of failing, or having one more failed attempt, if you’ve tried countless other programs, diets, and plans to lose some weight but none have worked, then attack the fear of failure itself with EFT. Address your fear first, and you have a much greater chance at success over the long-term.
EFT for Fear of Dieting Failure
While continuously tapping the Psychological Reveral Point (PR) located on the side of one hand in the karate chop area) say:
“Even though I’m afraid of having one more failure, and I’ve tried so many times before, none the less, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
Repeat three times, with emphasis. Then tap the rest of the points, using a reminder statement, such as “one more failure.”
“Even though I can’t stand the though of failing one more time, I choose to give myself permission to try.”
Reminder: “Can’t fail.”
“Even though I’m not sure of this EFT will work, I deeply and completely accept myself, and I’m willing to take the chance.”
Reminder: “Not sure.”
EFT for Shame and Embarrassment
During the process you may become more aware of a different aspect, such as shame. In that instance you could change your statement. Tapping the P.R. point you would say,
“Even though I’m ashamed to say I’m going to lose the weight and then I don’t, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
Repeat three times, with emphasis. Then tap the rest of the points using the reminder, “This shame.”
“Even though I’m embarrassed to try and fail again, I deeply and completely accept myself.”
Reminder: “This embarrassment.”
Pay attention to any new thought that races through your mind as you are doing the process, acknowledge the thought, turn it into a statement, and tap on the new statement. Doing this can help uncover many aspects which may lay beneath your conscious awareness and you’ll accomplish much more than simply addressing the original issue.
Alternatively, keep a note pad handy and jot down notes about your fleeting thoughts as ideas for future EFT sessions. You’ll uncover many aspects by listening within.
Be More Specific for Best Results
EFT is most effective when it addresses specifics, rather than generalizations, so narrow down your thoughts from “I’m afraid of failing,” to a specific incident you recall where you tried and failed. What did you say to yourself at that time, what did others say to you when that happened? If you can narrow the field to one specific incident, then the EFT can quickly address the precise pathway that hundreds of other “afraid of failing” thoughts use. Interrupting that path may then affect other issues ability to continue to use that path. Think of it as putting of a roadblock on a roadway. Suddenly many travelers much find an alternate route or decide to not travel at all.
This is how EFT is able to knock down big issues by tapping on the smaller aspects first. It’s the David and Goliath approach. If you try to attack it all with full force, you cannot even cause a dent. Your Goliath of problems will just kick your army away. But if you simply sling a few pebbles straight at a specific target, like David did to Goliath, you can fell your giant.
Sometimes our loved ones do get tired of hearing us talk about what we’re “going to do,” especially if we rarely follow-through. If you fear what they will say when you tell them you are trying something new, then tap on that issue.
“Even though the last time I said I wanted to take off weight my family laughed and said ______________, I choose to give myself permission to follow through anyway.”
“Even though my husband will roll his eyes when I tell him I’m going to lose some weight, I deeply and completely love and appreciate myself, and forgive him anyway.”
Notice how I altered the phrasing in the last two examples? Add things that are true for you into your phrasing. Make the EFT process your process. The precise statements given as examples are for you to learn how to use the EFT protocol. The words themselves are not set in stone – you can be as flexible and creative as you like. The more you practice, the better and easier it becomes to use EFT for any issue that comes up through the day.
When doing EFT becomes a regular part of your daily routine, all the issues that have kept you stuck will slowly fall away until the true you is able to shine.
