Changing Lives
1. Understanding your root cause
When we understand our root cause we can identify how to challenge and change it.
Problems cause emotional turmoil and one of the most common ways we manage these feelings is with food. Addressing the root cause so that it no longer causes negative emotions will alleviate the craving and therefore the need to eat will subside.
Often we struggle to pin-point the true root cause without proper help. With help and analysis, identifying the real cause to any pain and suffering allows you to take action to make changes to address that true cause. For many of us some common underlying root causes are in relation to the following:
• How we feel about ourselves - being overly critical, lacking in self-belief and self-love, having low self-esteem, feeling like an imposter. When and where did this start for you?
• A past event(s) that affected us emotionally - and where it hasn’t been processed to allow the healing process to take place. Dealing with past hurt may be painful to relive and be challenging to understand. You may experience a strong resistance to finding forgiveness and difficulty in letting go of these past hurts, but this only traps you in pain. Are you holding onto something that doesn’t help you be the person you know you can be?
• A present problem in your life -for example, your relationship or the lack of one; your job; your boss; your business; your workload; your children or your parents. When a problem feels too immense to deal with, can lead to thoughts of despair and hopelessness. This, in turn, creates negative emotions and then we eat. Are you avoiding dealing with a current problem and finding comfort in food to help you cope?
• Fear and worry about the future are causing anxiety and stress. This persistent worry produces negative feelings and this causes a hormonal imbalance. The result of this is an overwhelming desire to feel better, and we, therefore, turn to food. Do you manage your anxiety and stress with food?
2. The impact of Thoughts, Feelings and Hormones
Learn more about the relationship between your thoughts and feelings and how they change your body’s hormone levels. When our hormones are imbalanced, this impacts our mental and physical health which can result in low mood and a number of different health issues. Learn how to help balance your hormones to create balance within your body and mind.
3. Habits and Will power
It is not entirely your fault where you’re at today. It is a combination of your own significant life events, society and culture and the change in our food industry.
Combine these aspects with the previous two principles and before you know it, you have trained your brain to behave in a certain way. Yet regardless of how or when the habit was learned and formed, you ARE able to change or irradicate it . It isn’t a simple process but certainly not impossible with the right knowledge, help and support.
It is not just a simple matter of you have no will power! Trust me your will power is fine.
Understanding how will power works and how to strengthen it, is a key to changing your cravings.
4. Nutritional balance, gut health and The diet cycle
We must ensure we have a balanced, nutritious diet so that we are getting enough of the right macro and micro nutrients. Not only are these the building blocks to our body’s health, but importantly, also our mental health. If we are nutritionally ‘out of balance’, then the body can keep sending the brain messages to eat, in the hope that you will eventually consume the nutrient it requires. Having a balanced diet also enables your guts bacteria to be balanced. Different gut bacteria require different foods to be happy. When balanced, they have an equal voice to the brain and exert a powerful influence.
Understanding your diet cycle is crucial . Are you persistently under eating in the battle to lose weight? Is there an unresolved root cause that periodically rears its ugly head? Is it because you are so strict and have so many food rules that it is never going to be sustainable for life? There are a number of different cycles and traps, and understanding yours will help you
5. Core beliefs, true desires, and Your rules
This is ultimately the underpinning source to your success. Understanding the conflict between desiring thoughts of:
‘ I am not going to eat crisps any more’, versus
‘I love crisps, they are my favourite snack when I’ve had a tough day’ Learn to challenge the conflict between:
‘I don’t want to eat cake because I want to be thinner’ and ‘I’m having an awful day and I need cake to make me feel better’.
Also, you must identify any beliefs you have that may hinder your success. The marketing industry has done a fabulous job in planting beliefs that will keep you eating and drinking their products. Which of these, do you hear yourself thinking or saying?:
‘Life’s too short’, ‘Just one won't hurt’, ‘ Go on…treat yourself’, ‘It helps me fit in’, ‘I haven’t got enough will power’ ‘ it’s too hard’ ‘You only live once’, ‘ That’s ok, I can take medication for that’, ‘It’s so expensive to eat healthy’?
We’ll tune into your story that is keeping you stuck in a rut and not allowing you to break free of these ‘beliefs’.
Understanding what your core beliefs and true desires are is crucial and fundamental to your success. YOU must be honest with yourself about what we truly really want, not just for now in this moment, but for our future selves.
Looking at what rules you have made for yourself around food and dieting. How they have fed into supporting your beliefs which are keeping you stuck in the diet cycle, against which ones are actually helping you achieve your weight and health goals.
6. The essential lifestyle habits for success
The core basics to good health also have a massive impact on your food cravings so it is essential to know about them. You’ll learn more about the impact of sleep, exercise, breathing, purpose and goals, monitoring and rewarding.
On the program you will learn how to manage and take different action on these principles. I will teach you what you need to do to start your journey towards a slimmer, healthier, happier you.
Food Impacts Your Mood - Mind - Mental Health
