“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” – Charles Darwin Increasingly, I’m in awe of the amazing ability we have to triumph over change and challenging circumstances. Some people blame circumstance for their failure. Others cling to old, outdated paradigms until they kill themselves off. But most people don’t. Most people know, innately, that if they want to continue to enjoy their families and passions, and to feel their best for as long as possible, they have to adapt. In the mornings I teach English at a senior center to immigrants from Russia and China. In their 60s and 70s, … Continue reading
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Will You Adapt or Self Destruct?
“It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives. It is the one that is the most adaptable to change.” – Charles Darwin Increasingly, I’m in awe of the amazing ability we have to triumph over change and challenging circumstances. Some people blame circumstance for their failure. Others cling to old, outdated paradigms until they kill themselves off. But most people don’t. Most people know, innately, that if they want to continue to enjoy their families and passions, and to feel their best for as long as possible, they have to adapt. In the mornings I teach English at a senior center to immigrants from Russia and China. In their 60s and 70s, … Continue reading
Making the Most Out of the Hour Before Bed
I didn’t need Mayo Clinic to tell me I was sleep deprived. The crankiness, forgetfulness, public napping and new obsession with Clear Eyes were all the signs I needed. It’s been a long two months. Thankfully, the grisly work project that was keeping me up is over and I’m ready to sleep. Specifically, I’m ready to start claiming the same deep, rapturous Zzzz’s that I’ve been watching my cat Penelope enjoy. The Sleep in America poll for 2011 revealed that 43% of Americans rarely or never get a good night’s sleep on weeknights. 60% say they experience a sleep problem every night or almost every night (i.e., snoring, waking in the night, waking up too early, or feeling un-refreshed when … Continue reading
10 Ways to De-Stress To Shed Pounds
Stress eating is one of the most popular sources of weight gain in today's society. We’ve talked in previous posts about what happens when we get stressed. We release Cortisol to “fight or flight”. Since we don’t usually have to fight someone or take off on a fast run. All that Cortisol in our system isn’t good. The funny thing is in the short-term stress can boost cardiovascular performance. If it’s not too severe it the brain will actually perform better. You’ll be able to solve problems more effectively and you’re likely to retain information better. On the flip side though is if the stress is too severe or too prolonged it can actually harm learning. If you’re stressed out … Continue reading
Brain Food Means Something Completely Different Over There…
A few weeks ago, Carla wrote a terrific post about what she learned from her experiences in other cultures and I thought I’d approach the topic from a different perspective. Different though it may be, we share a wonderful ability to reach unresearched and completely biased opinions about our observations, so keep that in mind. I haven’t traveled all over the world, but I have spent the last three months in China teaching English at various schools. One of my biggest struggles adapting to Chinese life was getting used to the food. I have a sensitive palate—you say picky, I say refined—and to be quite honest, things like ‘coagulated duck blood’, ‘chicken intestines’, and ‘sheep stomach’ to me, seem less … Continue reading
Analogy of Hypnotherapy for weight loss – Training the Brain
We've probably all had a friend who called us for advice about how to lose weight or change a specific negative pattern of behavior. At the time, the friend seemed to enthusiastically listen and agree with your advice. Yet, we later learn that our words of wisdom went in one ear and right out the other. This scenario is actually very similar to applying hypnotherapy to weight loss and understanding how it works. When we are awake, in a conscious state, our thinking, rationalizing, and over-analyzing may often be very well intentioned. Yet, we are still unable to make a positive change, kick a nasty habit, or truly heed words of wisdom for sustainable weight loss. The conscious mind is like a … Continue reading
Brain Appétit!
In my undaunted trek through all the things healthy I found another little gem that I would like to pass on. This weekend I watched a fascinating series by Dr. Daniel Amen on how to change your brain. For those of you that have looked into IdealShape, you know that we put a lot importance on the brains thought process behind a healthy lifestyle, and it’s always great to see another piece of proof behind our practices. In the series he talked of the 3 major parts of our brain and about the choices that we can make to change each of them. Surprise, surprise, he put a lot of focus on proper diet and exercise. Avocado’s, blueberries, broccoli, (decaffeinated) … Continue reading
People are Divine – They are not their Behavior when it comes to Weight Loss
Over the last year I have become a Certified Hypnotherapy and Weight Loss Specialist. As I work with clients I am amazed at the many different behaviors that individuals struggle with in creating their ideal shapes. Over the last 30 years I have observed successful people in many different areas of life. Whether it is business persons, medical field, sports, religious, contractors, real estate, technologies and the list goes on and on, the one thing they all have is a positive mind set. This mind set is what drew me to weight loss hypnotherapy. With the United States struggling with an unprecedented number of obese and overweight individuals, I believe that IdealShape has figured out how to change this dilemma. … Continue reading
Brain Food For Creating and Maintaining Your IdealShape
I have watched thousands of people try all kinds of diets. For the last year I have watched people be very successful taking weight off with HCG. The one thing they all have in common, is that they put the weight right back on. Watching this phenomenon for the past 30 years has made me realize that idealshape has the secret about lasting body shaping. Recently, a woman was having a conversation with an acquaintance of mine. They were talking about HCG and the one woman was hoping to lose 30 pounds in a month. The other woman pointed out to her friend that most people are putting the weight back on. The women made an interesting statement, she did … Continue reading
Better Sleep = Better Appetite Control = Better Weight Loss
When you are tired you eat more. Volume 1 of Mastering the Mind CD series has 3 specific goals. One of those 3 goals is to help our clients get better sleep through daily hypnosis. This volume one CD can be found at www.idealshape.com. Researchers have found that people will eat an average of 221 more calories each day when they’re sleep deprived than they will if they had gotten better sleep. What is startling is this could mean gaining a pound of fat every two weeks. Why is better sleep so critical for appetite control, because lack of sleep disrupts the hormones that control our appetite and cravings? Many medical and sleep experts say that we need at least … Continue reading
Workout, Shape Up!
We all have the good intentions to fit in our daily workout, but how often do we actually get there? I have been one of those people – “I’m going to the gym tonight” “oh, you wanna go to dinner?" "OK, I’ll workout tomorrow.” I think it’s safe to say that it’s a fairly common conversation (at least I’ve heard it or said it about a million times). But there are some tricks to making sure you actually work it in. 1. Have a schedule: If you just say “I’ll do my workout when I have time,” it will NEVER happen. You have to set aside a time. And if it can be the same time every day that’s better … Continue reading
