Friday, March 28, 2014

Time Crunch

Time crunch is what we're all experiencing - lots to do and time seems scant. The idea of healthy eating can feel like an added time-consuming burden. In fact - it's the opposite.

It's intuitive to seek the best quality of life. This means it's intuitive to make things easy when it comes to eating and maintaining a desirable weight. Breakfast is the time to get a solid foundation of energy to seize the day. Eating a fortifying breakfast means you won't want or need a mid-morning snack and you won't gorge at lunchtime. When we eat a solid breakfast, it creates more time in our day because there is no urgency to 'grab a quick bite' or to make lunch a big deal. Importantly, when we eat a solid breakfast, we discover that lunch and dinner are not as important, so eating less is easier.

Here's some help to beat the time crunch and be kind to your body for breakfast, lunch and dinner.
  • Breakfast:  
    • No-cook overnight oatmeal is easy to make in advance and is ready to eat in the morning. It is fortifying and having this for breakfast will mean that a salad for lunch is all you want. If you have the time, enjoy some orange juice with this to make it into even more of a power breakfast. 
  • Lunch:
    • If you skimp on breakfast and are 'starved' for lunch, then take a few deep breaths to remember, that hunger comes from your body, not your mind. Next, have a protein packed sandwich. It can be cheese, steak, fish, tofu or any kind of burger. Now, take just one bite and put it down on the plate. Chew, swallow and take a drink of water. Often, when we're 'starving', our body is really thirsty. Water has zero calories and it's what your body wants. Do this with every bite and you will have eaten a quick and satisfying, hearty lunch.
    • If you had that yummy oatmeal and are having a salad for lunch, remember to take the dressing on the side. Dressing often makes salads high calorie, so be stingy with it. Once you add any dressing, toss your salad before you eat it. You will be amazed at how little is required to get the 'taste.' Even with a salad, your body needs water. Water helps us burn calories by lubricating our metabolism.
  • Dinner
    • Don't let a time crunch cause you to down your dinner without tasting it. What you choose to eat should be balanced and visually appealing.The point of eating is to enjoy the taste and give your body fuel. If you have no time, then cut your portions in half.  Then, follow the same process as outlined for lunch- take a bite, put your fork down and take a swallow of water. Eating less means less calories and drinking some water between bites means you are less likely to have indigestion. 
Intuitive Eating is a way of being kind to yourself. We do this by giving ourselves a chance to succeed. To succeed at being your healthy weight, take a healthy approach. Learn to enjoy having water when you eat because it has no calories, helps us feel full, and our body genuinely needs it.  Nourish your heart and your body by taking your time when you eat.
"Getting my lifelong weight struggle under control has come from a process of treating myself as well as I treat others in every way."   Oprah Winfry

Saturday, March 22, 2014

How To Listen To Your Body When Eating


Guest post by: Catherine Carrigan
One of the most important things you can ever do to stay slim and healthy is to learn how to listen to your body when eating.

Why is this so important? Because your body always knows best.

If you listen carefully, your body will tell you:

1. What food is right for you at this time.

2. How much to eat to maintain your energy, a healthy weight and to avoid digestive distress.

As a medical intuitive, I can’t help but use my intuitive gifts all the time, everywhere, including when I am eating. 

Here is how you can listen to your body when you are eating:

1. If you are at home preparing your own food, open your refrigerator or pantry and ask yourself, “What foods will make me feel best at this time?” You can simply look at the food, visualize yourself eating it and get an immediate hit. If you don’t believe that you can get immediate sensuous information anytime anywhere, imagine yourself biting into a lemon! Notice how just thinking of this act your mouth turns sour. Then – as if this wasn’t enough information already – project about four hours ahead and notice how your mood, your energy and your digestion would feel if you ate what you are considering or not it is good for you.


2. If you are at a restaurant, simply ask inside yourself which option would make you feel the best. I did this Saturday night when I went out for a meal with my friends to a restaurant I had never visited before. I looked over the various options and ranked the top choices on a scale of 0 to 10. It was a very healthy restaurant to begin with – all organic – but I still took the time to tune in to see which entree would make me feel great during and after my meal.


3. When you sit down to eat, rank your hunger level on a scale of 0 to 5. If your hunger is at a 0, your stomach would probably be growling. If you are at 5, you would feel stuffed. Notice where you are when you begin to eat. About midway through your meal, pause from eating and tune in again. What number are you at? Please stop eating when you are at a 4. 


4. You can easily break the habit of overeating by tuning in throughout the day to notice how hungry you actually are. There is a difference between mouth hunger and stomach hunger. This is one of the most mind-body connections you can ever make! When you are eating your meals and stop at 3 or 4, you can tell yourself that you give yourself permission to eat again in 2 or 3 hours if and when you get hungry again. Stop eating before you are completely full and notice how your body weight normalizes and your digestion improves.



Catherine Carrigan is the author of What Is Healing?Awaken Your Intuitive Power for Health and Happiness. You can find out more about her work on her blog and website.

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Get ready to be seen.

Spring fever is around the corner. It's time to get ready to be seen. Intuitive eating is an attitude of taking care of our whole body, inside and out.  When we look good, we feel good.

Looking good demands immediate gratification. In the Spring, we cover-up less.  Look good and feel your best with these tips that include foods to help achieve long-term weight goals.

  • Nails - clean, neatly shaped nails are attractive. I polish mine and currently am welcoming in Spring by wearing turquoise blue. Men and women look at a persons hands when they meet to feel a connection. Keep your hands beautiful and you will feel beautiful.
    • Our nails are both genetic and an indicator of health. Eat balanced meals for optimum appearance.
    • Nail polish - even clear - always makes hands look nice.
  • Hair - clean hair smells nice and looks good. Spring is a perfect time to get a new hairstyle or to get your current do trimmed and shaped. You will know you're looking good and the smile you're wearing will be a turn-on for all who see you. 
    • Eggs, wild salmon, pork, lentils, tofu, spinach, bell peppers, sweet potatoes and oysters are all considered good for shiny, healthy hair.  They are also not fattening and having any of these in moderation with your dinner will help you shed those pounds for bikini season.
    • Depending on your hair type, there are many products in the drugstore that can enhance the way hair looks or feels. Clean hair that smells good is sexy. Have fun.
  • Skin - is exposed more in the Spring. Healthy skin feels and looks good. After a winter of being under wraps and exposed to elements, you might want to indulge yourself in a full body rub with moisturizer to smooth bumps and refresh dry spots. Skin that glows with health is a magnet.
    • Our skin loves, tropical fruits, which are high in vitamin C. Broccoli is collagen booster. Try it sprinkled with lite soy sauce or liquid amino's and you may discover it's strangely addictive. Almonds and whole wheat products are skin nurturers but be sure to have these in moderation as they are also calorie intense. Carrots, salmon and sardines are also great for our skin.
  • Eyes - Wow!  Eye contact brings people in to your heart. When your eyes are bright, alert and looking glamorous, who knows what can happen? :)  
    • All of the foods above that are good for our nails, hair and skin are also good for eye health. Additionally wheat germ and beans are eye food. 
    • Why not put on some eye shadow to compliment your nail polish, or if you like the natural look, just put on your best attitude and watch what happens!
Intuitive eating is an attitude of getting results by staying clear about the big picture. Losing weight is a long term goal. When our nails, hair, skin,  and eyes look good, we feel good.  People pick up that energy.  Focus on your assets and you will be so busy looking great you will eat less.

It's not what you do, it's the way that you do it and that's what gets results. ~ Jane Bernard




Saturday, March 8, 2014

Diet Crisis : Frustration Tips

A diet crisis can happen if we're frustrated or even when feeling good! Either way, it's going off the track of what we really want, and it feels lousy. Stuff happens; we're human. It's time to keep moving forward. Don't get stuck in a diet crisis.

The way to start moving forward is to forgive yourself
Do it to reconnect with the relief of momentum! 
Remember, no matter where you are, if you don't keep moving, you won't reach your goal.
Here are tips for staying on track. They are intuitive, and easy to remember when you feel a crisis. Before you begin eating, especially when you feel frustrated, always take 2 slow deep breath in and out. Look at the food and see what feels right to you. This connects you with your intuition and your body.

4 intuitive tools to connect with calm and relief:
  • Patience with yourself ends frustration and helps overcome the temptation to give up. It is an opportunity to prove yourself to you, to be all that you can be. Patience connects with the big picture. This keeps our attitude flexible and we feel less pressure.
  • Determination to follow through is deep inside each of us. You can call on it by remembering that you are worthy of fighting for. Fight for yourself by eating just enough and no more. Listen to the voice of determination that lives in your heart. This creates the comforting feeling of balance and control.
  • Dignity to honor yourself is especially helpful if you feel frustrated, deprived or sorry for yourself. Dignity directly connects with determination. This means when you try to feel dignified when frustration happens, you will get an extra assist from your intuition to honor yourself. You will discover an inner attitude of gratitude that takes away your appetite.  Dignity is a guide to see, do, feel and be what is best.
  • Prudence is like comparison shopping. It connects with common sense and is very helpful for shedding self-disappointment, frustration or doubt. It is the intuitive way to recognize that there are always options. Frustration connects with a self-defeating victim mentality. Prudence guides us to see choices. It  keeps our minds open.  In fact, determination proves that there is always another option, and prudence is a stress-buster.
There are ten organic, intuitive tools that are amazing for getting rid of frustration at any time. Find them in chapter 15, 'Frustration', in Am I Really Hungry? 6th sense diet: Intuitive Eating.