Weight Loss

If you are overweight, you have plenty of company. A survey carried out recently by the National Health and Nutrition Survey states that 58 million adult Americans in the twenty to seventy-four age group are overweight. Overall, about one in five Americans is overweight. A former Surgeon General, C. Everett Koop, said that "the number one public health crisis today is obesity." More than one in five children aged 6 through 17 are overweight, and the number of overweight youths in this age group totals 4.7 million.

Although the weight loss industry currently makes in excess of $50 billion a year, it has up to now lacked the fundamental clinical understanding of the problem of weight control. "Fad" and "Quick" weight loss programs provide only temporary reduction in weight and can be dangerous for individuals with health problems. Furthermore, surveys estimate that the failure rate of these 'quick diet' programs is as much as 95%! Obesity is linked to chronic diseases such as coronary heart disease, hypertension, high blood pressure, diabetes and some forms of cancer, all of which can cause premature death. But what the studies don't show is the emotional cost to the individual.

Hypnotherapy is a powerful tool to help people to lose weight and maintain a sensible weight thereafter. However, to lose and maintain your ideal weight there are three further elements:

you must take some exercise daily;
you need to follow a sensible eating program of good and healthy food; and
in order to create any change in your life, you have to provide COMMITMENT.

Most of the clients I treat for weight loss have an emotional issue underlying their weight problem. Hypnosis is one of the best and fastest ways of getting to it. Typically common causes of over-eating are tension and frustration caused by domestic upsets, lack of self-esteem, fatigue, sexual problems, and economic worries; but there are many other sources of tension, and some of these can be deeply rooted in the past. In my opinion, it is essential to find the original cause of the problem and then get your unconscious mind to reframe that event or situation, so that your fundamental belief system relating to over-eating (which is lodged in your unconscious mind) is changed permanently.

You have to let yourself think "I am attractive" and "I am slender". Feeling good about who you are is all about commitment to yourself. Change your internal dialogue by telling your self you are slender and talk to yourself about positive affirmations of what you are in the process of achieving. Hypnosis is not a magical wand. You have to make the effort of bringing about changes in your life, and to take responsibility for your actions in life.

I get clients to put down in writing ten reasons why they want to lose weight. I then ask them to set a goal of 'X' pounds of weight loss over a specific period of time. The goals should be obtainable and specific, and the levels of weekly weight loss reasonable, as you will find that the graph will oscillate and not necessarily go down each week.

And to reach your ideal size and weight, you have to choose to form new eating habits. You will need to make appropriate choices of good healthy foods in moderate amounts, and eat only when you are physiologically in need of food - and you must allow this pattern to become a habit.

I tell clients that they should only eat three meals a day, and absolutely no snacking in between meals. You need to understand how your blood sugar levels work, and snacking prevents the breakdown or metabolizing of the fat cells. The best experts I have found recommend that you eat a large breakfast of protein, and eat a moderate meal early in the evening leaving three hours to digest your food before you go to bed. Use your common sense and eat an abundance of fruit and vegetables in your daily diet. By reducing or eliminating the consumption of hydrogenated fats, dairy products, table salt (as opposed to sea salt), refined white sugar, white flour and white rice, and processed foods, your weight will decrease and your energy and vitality will increase.

What about exercising? You don't need to join an expensive gym and undertake excessive physical exercise. Two quick walks of fifteen or twenty minutes each day, exercising arms as you walk, is in most cases adequate exercise. Step out, walk your dog, walk up and down stairs, avoid using the elevator, walk down to the corner shop instead of driving there, park in the far part of the parking lot and walk.

Most importantly you need to make the commitment to keep telling yourself you are achieving your slimming goals and this is done by self-hypnosis every day or evening for fifteen minutes. Self-hypnosis is easily taught, under hypnosis initially, and then if practiced regularly will help you return to being a healthy person with the prospect of an energetic and happy life.

Good news: Your hypnotherapy fees for weight reduction is now a tax write off. It costs you nothing! Learn more about the IRS Tax Credit for weight reduction.