When I was working in the Marriage and Family Therapy field, we had a guiding principle when it came to treating children: generally speaking, children’s problems are best addressed at the family level. This doesn’t mean that a family is always to “blame” for the child’s problems. Rather, it means that the solution will be most… Read More »
Some diets promise rapid weight loss. Others aim for a slower pace. Does the rate at which we lose weight have any bearing on whether we keep it off? This is a great question. Conventional wisdom has long held that slow, gradual weight loss is more sustainable. However, a new study questions that wisdom: regardless… Read More »
As someone with a family therapy background who is dedicated to fighting obesity, I am happy to see studies such as this one. It is always nice to see the work we do backed up by hard, scientific data. One of our recommendations for Mindful Living is to eat more meals as a family. Consistent with… Read More »
One popular dieting trick is to quantify how much activity is required to burn off certain foods.Most people underestimate (or don’t even know) the amount of calories in their food, and overestimate their activity level. People assume they expend far more energy than they actually do while exercising. And to top it off, people treat… Read More »
The best diet is a whole foods diet, with foods eaten as close to their natural state as possible. Rather than eating out or buying packaged foods, cook your meals from fresh ingredients. Do not obsess over calories, but rather be aware of calories (they are not as important as we have been led to believe).… Read More »
Let’s use the practice of mindfulness to explore the difference between genuine hunger, craving, and desire. Hunger is your body’s signal that it is time to eat. This is natural and good. However, many people experience the physical sensation of hunger and view it as a state of emergency, and respond in an out-of-proportion way.… Read More »
Here are five ways to bring mindfulness into everyday eating: 1. When you eat, eat. An old Zen adage can be loosely paraphrased as follows: When you walk, walk. When you chop wood, chop wood. When you boil rice, boil rice. As much as possible try to avoid eating while doing other tasks. It is… Read More »
Food is often a symbol of other things, such as love, celebration, gratitude, conformity, cultural identity, gender conformity, etc. Our weight is also not simply about pounds. It can have symbolic meaning. Let’s look a little further into this by contemplating some questions: What else is food a symbol of for you? What does your… Read More »