Posts Tagged ‘Mindful Eating’
Thursday, December 15th, 2011
Biggest Loser winner John Rhode recently revealed to the Los Angeles Times that one of his biggest fears is regaining the weight. Rhode lost 220 pounds on the show. While it’s statistically proven that people gain weight back after drastic dieting, we agree with registered dietician, Felicia Stoler that the key to keeping the weight off is a lifestyle change and a support system. To read more, check out this article. \’Biggest Loser\’ winner John Rhode fears weight regain: How to keep weight off?
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Tags: bariatric patient, biggest loser, diet, exercise, john rhode, Mind Over Eating, Mindful Eating, obesity, support system, weight loss
Posted in Category1 |
Thursday, February 3rd, 2011
Super bowl, parties and snacking; words that just fit together?
What comes up for you when you think of the super bowl? What about parties in general? For many the answer is food. We are constantly seeing articles with healthy snacks for the super bowl but the bigger question is are you physically hungry? If so, how hungry are you? If you are not physically hungry (whether the food choices are healthy or not) calories will be stored as fat.
During this weekend’s game and at other events, become aware. Are parties, the super bowl, and other people eating triggers for you to eat when you are not physically hungry? If you want to stop the vicious cycle of emotional eating or the weight battle, the first step is to become aware of what you are associating with food. This is an essential key to losing weight and maintaining a healthy weight long-term. The great thing is that you have options; if you want to be a part of the party crowd, then let the party food be your dinner.
When most people usually snack it has nothing to do with actual physical hunger, rather it is due to a head hunger. Think, have you ever been to a party, gone out to dinner or gone to a function and chosen not to eat? Many of us just want to be apart of the crowd, if we are not eating we feel like we are not included.
Be proactive whatever you decide. You can put yourself to the challenge to stand apart, be your own person by choosing not to eat. Go and enjoy the game, the camaraderie and friends. Get your “feel good” from this. Or, you can plan your day, have the party foods be your dinner and even bring some foods that will support your personal intention to be healthy and fit! Be the inspiration of the party.
The key is to wake up and get out of automatic mode! Here are a few things to remember:
- Plan ahead.
- Think about all the possibilities of the variety of foods that will be at the super bowl celebration. What foods will be there that are worth it to you? Decide ahead of time what foods you will eat. Imagine yourself going to the football party and doing exactly what you have planed to do. Remember, we always do what the mind sees.
- Make sure at least one of your food options is a protein or have a protein shake prior to going to the party. This will assist in stabilizing your blood sugar and decrease the chances of overeating or having a carbohydrate craving!
Remember, becoming mindful is key!
Yours in health,
Prudence
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Tags: bariatric patient, Gastric Band Institute of Las Vegas, Mindful Eating, Snacking, Super Bowl
Posted in Eating, Nutrition, Psychological |
Thursday, December 30th, 2010
“You know those goals you’ve set for yourself, those dreams you’ve been waiting for the perfect time to live out? It’s time.” – Maria Shriver
So the big day is almost here. New Year’s Day is on the horizon and the idea of new steps and changing behaviors is racing through the minds of many individuals. Let’s take advantage of this energy and recognize that this year can been different. This is YOUR year and NOW is your time to make your healthy lifestyle dreams become reality.
Take a moment to realize the accomplishments you have had this past year, including the lifestyle changes you’ve already made. Thank yourself for the steps you’ve taken – no matter how large or small the change may have been.
Next, know that life is about dreaming - our challenge is in stepping out of our dreams and taking action. This year, let’s work to move from the dreaming to the doing! Whether your dream is to be healthier through increasing your protein, drinking more water, increasing your fiber, stopping non-hunger eating or incorporating more passion, excitement and fun in your daily living; this system can apply.
Stepping out into the Doing:
1. Dream
2. Write out your intention that supports the dream
3. Write an affirmation to support intention
4. SMART Action
5. Visualize SMART Action
Thinking
Thoughts produce feelings which drive our behaviors. Come up with a specific intention and/or positive affirmation that will produce feelings to act.
Acting
SMART Action: smart, measurable, attainable, realistic, time specific. When you are writing your goal(s) make sure it incorporates being SMART.
Writing
Did you know that when you write a goal down, you have increased your chances on remembering what it was and actually following through up to 50%? Write your affirmation and SMART action daily 10 times.
Visualizing
We do what our mind sees. By visualizing your SMART action daily, you can increase your follow through up to 90%.
Take the time to put a dream into words as an intention and affirmation. Then when January 1st is here, take a few minutes daily to write and visualize!
Please let us know your thoughts as well as if you have any questions by commenting below!
Happy New Year,
Prudence
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Tags: bariatric patient, Gastric Band Institute of Las Vegas, Mind Over Eating, Mindful Eating, new years resolutions, Prudence Ticknor, SMART Action
Posted in Eating, Nutrition, Psychological |
Wednesday, December 29th, 2010
“You have the ability, the awareness and the wisdom to manage your thoughts and emotions, which determine your end behaviors.” – Mind Over Eating
Christmas has come and gone and we have one more week until the New Year! With all of the New Year’s resolutions and ideas of change that are discussed this time of year, consider committing to new beginnings for your health and wellbeing. This year, you can make a difference by focusing on your attitude – and incorporating the Mind Over Eating Attitude can be your first step!
Take a moment to think about all of the seasonal treats we all love that only come around this time of year. For example, consider the Starbucks peppermint mocha. A grande is a whopping 480 calories. A peppermint cheesecake treat is an astonishing 960 calories. Add a glass of eggnog, Christmas cookies, sweet potato pie, etc. Most likely you can name treat, after treat, after treat.
The first step in your new Mind Over Eating Attitude is awareness. Without judgment, take notice of what you are putting into your mouth. Did you realize the coffee you were having a few times a week may be 25 – 50% of your caloric intake or that the special cheesecake is almost your entire caloric intake for the day?
Next, take a moment to think about the words you have attached to these items and pay attention to what feelings are created by these words: “treats,” “special,” “only once a year.” These words that we attach to foods can actually drive our behaviors to overeat. Because we all work very hard and many of us take little time for ourselves, we want treats and special things in our lives.
“Christmas cookies only come once a year. I better eat three times as much because I won’t get it again until next year, right?”
Wrong. Imagine that you had your favorite holiday foods every day, three times a day for the rest of your life. How special are the foods now? The key is to find balance. To do this, create a dialogue to support a feeling of control. Change “I want a treat” to “I want a taste” and notice the difference in your feelings. Most likely, the feeling is not as strong to overindulge. Change “I only get this once a year” to “I can have this anytime I’m physically hungry” and again notice the difference that occurs when you change your dialogue or thoughts about food. With this technique, you can actually change the drive to overeat.
Much of the time our inner dialogue is untruthful because we do not really listen to what is being said and just act based off of the feelings that are being produced. For example, many foods that seem specific to the holidays are actually available throughout the year. Consider chocolate chip cookies. How often are variations of this cookie available? Because we add “Christmas” to the food, is it now a more special chocolate chip cookie? Similar phrasing applies to pies, candies, chocolates, etc. that are actually available and consumed during the year. Acknowledge that these foods may not be as special as your current thoughts might have you believing.
Changing your “treats” into “tastes” is all a mind challenge. Become aware of the few foods that you love that are specific to the holiday time and figure out how you can have them any time of year. Love peppermint? Purchase chocolate peppermint Teechino coffee and make your own latte or Sweet Leaf peppermint sweetener or extract. Make your own flavored cheesecake or flavor your own Greek Yogurt.
Have any ideas or tips that have worked for you and want to share? Let us know by commenting below!
Mindful Season’s Greetings,
Prudence
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Tags: bariatric patient, Gastric Band Institute of Las Vegas, holiday eating habits, Mind Over Eating, Mindful Eating, new years resolutions, Prudence Ticknor, weight loss resolutions
Posted in Eating, Nutrition, Psychological |
Wednesday, December 22nd, 2010
Each holiday season, many of us use food to add “joy” and “merry” to our celebrations. Think for a minute about Christmas treats such as cookies, pies and peppermint chocolates – yummy! During just those few seconds of focused thinking, how were your feelings affected? Did you smile or feel excited? As these reactions are common for many of us, let’s challenge ourselves this year to focus on creating our holiday “joy” and “merry” in different ways in order to stay on track and stay mindful with our food choices.
By creating your own “merry” and “joy” you create the energy you will emanate to others during this holiday season. To get started, make a list of what comes up for you when you think about your ideas of Christmas. How can you incorporate these ideas into your holiday routine to create smiles and excitement? Do you love the idea of Christmas trees, the smell of pine, the idea of snow, fire places and hot chocolate or pretty gift wrap? The key is finding out what ideas about Christmas bring a smile to your face and heart.
Love Christmas Music?
Take some time in the evenings to enjoy Christmas music or sing Christmas carols while you are driving to work. If you have children they will love singing along in the car. On a personal note, Christmas songs have recently helped me refocus my thinking to pleasant, joyful thoughts. I was driving my daughter to school the other day after spending the morning putting Christmas giftbags together for all of the kids in her class. I was running late and found myself full of anxiety due to a severe state of rush and the energy I was emanating to the world was “get out of my way” – forget about joy and merry. However, I became present to what I was feeling and decided I would get to work when I got there as worrying was not doing me any good. I asked my daughter if she wanted to sing some Christmas songs and with the biggest “YES” of excitement we began to sing Rudolph. This took my thinking of nervousness and anxiety to a pure state of merry and joy in an instant! It was such a peaceful ride to work instead of frantic state of stress.
Love the Smell of Pine Trees?
Find joy in creating your holiday environment! I believe the smell of blue spruce fresh pine can put a smile on anyone’s face. If you have a real tree, close your eyes and take in the fresh, crisp scent. If you have a fake tree, consider purchasing scented ornaments. If pine does not put you in the holiday spirit, discover which holiday scent you enjoy and purchase candles to fill your home. Take a few moments first thing when you wake up as well as when you get home in the evening to enjoy the scents of the season. Notice what positive thoughts you have associated with the smells and bask in the freshness of the smells you love.
Love the Lights and Colors of Christmas?
Each day take time with your family to turn on your Christmas lights. Start the fire place and pay attention to your surroundings. Meditate on the vibrancy of the green tree, the beautiful masterpiece you and your family have put together with the lights and bulbs. Pay attention and notice what you love about it. Meditate on the fire place and recognize the associations you may have with it. Is it providing warmth to your soul or creating the sense of being cozy with a special one? Meditate on the poinsettias that you bought or the flowers or plants you have out for Christmas. Pay attention to the colors and the creativity of putting it together.
For family fun or even by yourself, walk or drive around your neighborhood to enjoying all the festive lights. There are many areas of Las Vegas that have houses with the most beautiful lighting and Christmas décor. This is a great way to get out in the brisk cool air, get in some activity and enjoy the festivities of the Christmas spirit.
Love Get-Togethers?
Much of the holiday spirit is around food and eating. As you host get-togethers with family and friends, know that it is your time to be creative. Dare to be different with a scavenger hunt or pull out other games. There is nothing wrong with the delight of food any time of year but we do not want it to be our only or main form of joy or enjoyment. Make the gatherings about something other than food. What other ideas do you have for the main party focus?
Remember, the key is becoming aware of the merry and joyful ideas you have associated with Christmas and create them in your everyday life during the holiday season (or really any season). When you shift your thinking you will find that you are creating your own daily sweetness in life and looking for it less and less in food.
Wishing you a merry, joyful and mindful season!
Prudence
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Tags: Gastric Band Institute of Las Vegas, holiday eating, holiday tips, Mind Over Eating, Mindful Eating, Prudence Ticknor
Posted in Eating, Nutrition, Psychological |
Tuesday, December 21st, 2010
It’s that time again! With one week before Christmas and New Years closely following, are you feeling holiday joy or holiday havoc? For those of your who might be experiencing a more stressful season, let’s consider how Mind Over Eating techniques may assist us in staying on track as we bring in the new year.
While many of us take on tremendous amounts of work with holiday activities, the season can sometimes become a time of anxiety or pressure. Additional stress can be added as there are shopping lists to create, presents to wrap, parties to attend, food to prepare, more money going out and so on. Take a moment now to close your eyes and think of your idea of Christmas; what comes up for you? Do memories from your childhood come up such as decorating the tree, singing or listening to Christmas carols, the excitement you felt from Santa bringing you toys, friends and family getting together, the cookies and yummy treats that are available? Do these memories and activities form part of your current holiday to-dos?
As you continue through this blog, take a moment to tap into what you are currently feeling. Is your blood pressuring rising as you consider ALL the things you NEED to do? Now, take a breath. Consider how mindful eating techniques can apply.
The first step to being mindful is becoming aware of the present moment. Does your idea of Christmas match up with the reality that you experience during the holiday season? How does that make you feel? Now remember, our thoughts create our feelings; if we spend the holidays in the past or the future and build to-do lists accordingly, we may actually miss the holidays altogether. Many of us spend our time in the past thinking about what we forgot to do yesterday or the future thinking about what I have to buy or do tomorrow instead of being in the present moment.
Instead of focusing on buying presents practice being present; this is the best gift you can give yourself and others!
The key is in our thinking! Go back to the phrase from earlier: “ALL the things you NEED to do.” Let’s look at this statement and how it affects our body chemistry. “All” creates a feeling of no escape and no options. “Need” creates a feeling of pressure. If you spend your holiday season with this recorded thought playing over and over again, you get an ongoing, no option, constant pressure feeling. No wonder we are turning to food! From the delicious gourmet cookies, chocolates, and pies that are provided to us during the holidays – they are a moment out of the stress and pressure many of us are feeling during the season.
Before buying gifts, baking cookies or moving through your list, tap into what you are thinking. Change “I need to do…” or “I have to do…” to “I want to do… because I love, appreciate or want to spend time with this person.” For example, change the thought “I have to make the cookies for the work Christmas party,” to “I want to make the cookies for the Christmas party because I want my co-workers to feel appreciated and loved.” Become aware of your present thinking and then reframe or change the thinking to create a positive feeling. This small simple change in thinking changed the feeling from pressured to positive!
What “wants” are you looking forward to over the next couple weeks? Share how you’ve shifted your “needs” to “wants” by commenting below! Be sure to check back this week as we will continue to share mindful tips to bring more holiday joy (and less havoc) to your holiday celebrations!
Season’s Greetings,
Prudence
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Tags: holiday activities, holiday tips, Mind Over Eating, Mindful Eating
Posted in Eating, Nutrition, Psychological |
Monday, December 21st, 2009
Several patients were in the office today who have done very well with their weight loss using the gastric band. Losing the last 15-20lbs is usually more about food choices, exercise and avoiding high calorie snacks than it is about finding a perfect band “adjustment.” Most patients learn this by having their bands adjusted too tight and needing a little bit taken out. When I see patients undergo a series of tiny fluid adjustments and complaining of stagnant weight loss, usually they are depending too much on the band and need to depend more on their food choices. Our support groups and Mindful Eating classes, taught by our nutritionist Prudence Ticknor, are a great way to refocus for those last few pounds. To sign up for the Mindful Eating series or to find out more about our support groups, give us a call at 702-313-8446.
– Dr. Darren Soong
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Tags: bariatric patient, Bariatric Surgeons, Dr. Darren Soong, Gastric Band, Gastric Band Adjustment, Gastric bypass, lap band, lap band adjustment, lap band surgery, Las Vegas Weight Loss Doctors, Mindful Eating, Weight Loss Surgeons, Weight Loss Surgery
Posted in Bariatric Surgeons, Gastric Band, Gastric Band Adjustment, Gastric Band Institute Events, Gastric Sleeve, Las Vegas Weight Loss Surgeons, Weight Loss Support, Weight Loss Surgery, lap band |
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