Feeling stressed today?

 

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Image courtesy of David Castillo Dominici/Freedigitalphotos.net

 

If you answered yes then you will want to read the words that a colleague of mine Ashvini Mashru, MA, RD, LDN.  She has been writing some pretty awesome posts this month on stress and I wanted to take the time to share some of her thoughts on ways to rethink dealing with stress and why you may feel like your walking through a mire of barriers to reach your goal.  The first post is about reflecting on yourself and why you make your choices titled “Emotional Eating and Weight Loss”.  The second post is about an alternative to medication for stress relief title “Stress: Don’t Medicate… Meditate!”.

 

Emotional Eating and Weight Loss

 

Diet and exercise sure can help lose weight but there is a third component that factor in when it comes to losing weight: Emotional eating! We may reach out for a box of cookies or ice-cream when we are sad, angry, bored or lonely. We may also find ourselves standing in front of the fridge and make poor food choices and eat when not hungry!

 

Overeating may be sign that something is missing in your life. When you understand why you emotionally eat, you can start to make the changes that will help you lose weight and make positive, lasting improvements in your life. Here are some tips on doing that:
 

 

Your wellness vision:  Write down everything that you consider a part of your fulfilled life such as health, family, job, finances and friends. Think back to the time when you were feeling at your optimum wellness, it could be before your marriage or before you had kids. Don’t write everything down in one sitting; take the time to think what matters to you.

 

When you are done, put a plus or minus sign next to everything on your list. A plus means you are satisfied with that area of wellness and a minus means you are dissatisfied. Pay close attention to the minuses, these are the areas in your life where something could be missing. Thus, you could be looking to fulfill yourself emotionally with food. This reflection could help you get to the bottom of your emotional eating.

 

It’s easy to come with excuses for why we don’t have time for ourselves. Writing this list will help you practice self-care, gives you permission to take care of yourself first. When you practice self-care, you are a better person, spouse, partner, friend and parent. You will be more productive and happy inside out.

 

So, what is your wellness vision?

 

Stress: Don’t Medicate…Meditate!

 

Anytime of the year, we all have reasons to feel stressed. Whether it’s stress due to work, family, finances, a relationship, or something else, the list never ends.

 

Meditation is a natural way to calm the mind and can help reduce stress. The first basic lesson with meditation is learning how to breathe properly. This involves taking slow, deep breathes, while preventing the shoulders from rising. Instead, the stomach should be expanding as you inhale and then getting smaller as you exhale.

 

Focusing only on the breathing and becoming aware of how different parts of the body feel as you breathe, is another part of meditation. Becoming more aware of yourself and the connection between your mind and body. I recommend trying this in silence or while very calm music is playing. Yoga is also a form of exercise that focuses a lot on breathing.

 

So when you feel overwhelmed and very stressed, remember to take some time to JUST BREATHE!!

 
 

Reflection is a part of future success.  Future success is dependent on setting goals.  I love what Bill Copeland had to say about goal setting.

 

“The trouble with not having a goal is that you can spend your life running up and down the field and never score.”  

–Bill Copeland

 

What steps are needed to reach your wellness vision?

 

We would love to hear your thoughts!
 
 
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Ashvini is the owner of Wellness Nutrition Concepts and works with helping busy moms and women sift through the diet fads and myths to find balance in their lifestyle and nutrition.

 

Brent

Brent

President, Personal Training Manager at Body By Brent LLC
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