Mindful Life Weight Loss was founded by Kim Gold and Steve Kanney as a way to help address obesity through mindful living. It grew out of Kim Gold’s clinical work during her Master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy and Steve Kanney’s work as Chief Instructor at Still Mind Martial Arts, a martial arts dojo. They noticed that some students would begin Aikido with the intention of losing weight, only to find that habitual patterns in other areas of their lives interfered with weight loss goals.
At first, Steve began working with people individually to address weight loss as a mindfulness-based, integrated process. Kim Gold brought her expertise in behavioral change and systems theory. The Mindful Life Weight Loss curriculum was created, and group sessions were soon added.
Group support super-charged the process, as more experienced members helped newcomers, and a sense of community was formed. Inspired by the positive changes in people’s lives, they decided to create a program to help others lose weight and gain health.