It may be surprising to hear that the one essential skill for weight loss has nothing to do with counting calories, cooking, or working out. It has to do with the ability to stay present with yourself. If you can cultivate the skill of maintaining awareness of your body and mind—-through difficult feelings as well as… Read More »
People frequently tell us they feel controlled by food, as if an outside force has taken over their body. The mind wants one thing, while the body is doing something else entirely—usually involving some sort of delectable dessert item. We tell them that the answer to this problem begins with practicing the skill of mindfulness.… Read More »
During one of the Friday groups, I promised I would write a blog post on this topic. But first, Steve and I wanted to wish everyone a happy new year. The beginning of the new year is always fresh and exciting with the energy of new beginnings. I encourage you to harness this potent energy.… Read More »
Nobody truly wants to have a weight problem. Social issues, low energy/fatigue, diabetes, sleep apnea, heart disease, asthma, and an untimely death are all correlated with obesity. Most people shut down just from hearing these words. Who wants to live this sort of life? Yet 70% of the American population has a serious problem with… Read More »
For many years I have had a habit of listening to health, personal development, and spiritual audiobooks. It is a big part of my mindfulness practice. Back before you could download books to your phone with Audible, I used to purchase cd sets from Sounds True (ask me about some of these—they may be available… Read More »
Does this sound familiar? A great new weight loss program comes along—“the next new thing.” You haven’t tried it before, which is surprising because you thought you tried everything. Maybe it promises fast weight loss. Maybe it promises to finally get to the root of all of your problems for good this time. Or maybe… Read More »
One of the things I do as part of my work is to monitor the internet for what’s new in the world of weight loss. I have an alert set to receive info on the subjects that interest me: weight loss, obesity, mindfulness, yoga, meditation, etc. I spend a few minutes browsing the headlines every… Read More »
A main part of my job is to facilitate the development of a mindfulness practice for our members, and to support them as they grow in this process. Ultimately, as people become more mindful, they are led from within themselves to make their own necessary choices toward improved health. As people become more mindful, self-care… Read More »
Practice, noun: the repeated exercise in, or performance of, an activity or skill so as to acquire or maintain proficiency in it. A foundational tenet of our program is that in order to change habits, a person must have “a practice.” We borrowed the idea of a practice from the Eastern traditions of yoga, meditation, and… Read More »
Patience: the capacity to accept or tolerate delay, trouble, or suffering without getting angry or upset. “Patience guards us against losing our presence of mind so we can remain undisturbed even when the situation is really difficult.” 14th Dalai Lama The field of psychology does not contain many references to patience, but the spiritual traditions… Read More »