Weight Management

Weight management is now being understood as so much more than just balancing the calories. Many people have dieted, only to find it difficult to stick to the diet, get results or avoid yo-yoing back to their previous weight. Funnily enough your body becomes quite attached to the fat it has, because it serves a very specific function. Body fat is your body’s insurance policy against famine. During our evolution we have had to contend with less food and so have developed chemical messages in the body that regulate the amount of fat storage or burning we perform. What regulates these messages is our stress!

Now you may have heard of the fight or flight response, this is where your body gets ready to run to save its life, well this stress causes people to be skinny so they can run faster. These are the people who loose weight when stressed, eat what ever they want and don’t seem to gain any weight. The other stress message is one of famine, not enough food, so the body does what hibernating bears do, stores as much energy as fat as possible and turns down the metabolism so you use your energy more efficiently. When the body hears this message you gain body fat, even if you eat less, or diet, or have fabulous willpower the end result will be your body trying to protect you from starving.

These two basic messages can not be on at the same time. So the way to loose weight is not to struggle against your body but to switch the correct program on. You need to convince your body that it is safer to be thin and avoid things which activate the stress which the body might interpret as famine.

Things that turn on famine fat storage include:

Nutritional starvation for essential nutrients due to deficiency in the diet or poor digestion, absorption or assimilation;

Toxins, as the body stores them in fat to protect you

Medication which switch on the fat program

Processed foods, artificial flavour enhances and sweetners which interfere with the normal chemical messages in the body

Mental emotional threats such as emotional starvation, fear of limited resources, dysfunctional beliefs – the body interprets these as threat from predator or famine and so make you fat to feel safe.

This is not a diet, the idea is to add the good stuff and don’t deny yourself what you want, as it will only be interpreted by your body as famine! So it is important to feed the body essential fats like omega 3 and conjugated linoleic acid via flaxseeds, non farmed oily fish, organic grass fed animal meat, eggs, raw nuts and seeds. These foods will also give you quality protein which is best eaten with a salad. Eat more green and coloured vegetables and fruit that is fresh and full of vitality.

It is important to exercise, but there is no need to over do it, just make sure you put in some short sprints and go flat out and imagine something that wants to eat you is behind you! You can also do a short burst of exercise whenever you have a strong stressful event. Both these activities switch on the get thin to survive stress message.

And don’t forget to visualize your perfect body daily, doing physical activities that make you feel good. Slow down and relax more, be grateful for the bounty you do have and let go of the guilt. Your body can make you thin just as easily as it can keep you fat. Check out Jon Gabriel for more details.

The information presented on this site is presented as a information guide and reference only, and is not intended as a substitute for competent advice and guidance by a qualified practitioner.

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