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Saturday, January 10, 2009

Maintaining your target weight


Long-term change
If, once you've reached your realistic target weight, you go back to your old eating habits and activity levels, you'll put the weight back on. It's as simple as that.

This is usually the problem with quick-fix diets, they don't help you to make changes that you can maintain in the long term.

Stay realistic
Beware of 'how to be even skinnier' media messages that lure you into feeling dissatisfied. You have a life to live and enjoy, so hang on the satisfaction of being at a comfortable, healthy weight you can sustain.

Flexible restraint
Many slim people who stay that way by 'watching their weight', show flexible restraint, rather than following rigid all-or-nothing rules. They make healthy choices most of the time, but no foods are seen as forbidden.

This means enjoying small amounts of favourite foods without feeling guilty. And if you do over-indulge, or have a big night out, cut back a bit or do more exercise the next day to balance things out.

Eating healthily
Learn how to choose, prepare and enjoy a balanced diet. Low-fat cooking skills, understanding food labels and having the ability to judge portion sizes all help with this.

So does eating regular meals, taking time to really taste them and indulging yourself occasionally.

How to maintain weight loss
Continue to eat a balanced,
lower fat diet with plenty of fruit and vegetables
Don't avoid any foods, just watch portion sizes and limit the amount of certain foods
Have three regular meals a day at regular times (starting with breakfast), and fewer snacks.
Eat out occasionally, but limit fast food
Sit down to eat your meals, take time over them and pay attention to what you're eating
Keep 'self-monitoring' to stay conscious of your new eating and activity habits


Stay active

Getting regular physical activity is one of the strongest indicators of long-term success. Not only does it burn calories and increase metabolism-boosting muscle, it also boosts self-esteem and beats stress.

Studies show that just walking for 30 minutes or so each day, plus some other activities during the week, may be enough.

Learn to deal with stress

For many people, food is a quick and effective way to deal with stress. If this sounds like you, take some time to think about the stresses in your life and how you respond to them. A food and thoughts diary can be helpful.

Think about how you could manage stress differently. Things that help include regular exercise, breathing techniques and challenging negative self-talk that spirals into anxiety.

What if you could have the perfect life?


The Perfect Life..
What if the true nature of life was such that we are able to have everything we could ever dream of having in life if we but simply assert the power of our free will to have it? What would you create in your life?

The truth is that this is the nature of life. Life is such that we have been created in the image and likeness of the creator of the All, and, as such we too are creators. We have the (literally) God-given powers to create anything into our experience that we choose. All that we have to do is intend to experience something, and, by law we are certain to experience because intent is the force that initiates movement in the entire cosmos. In the context of understanding the powerful law of attraction, this means that the force that activates the law of attraction is intent. And therefore, rather than thinking of the law of attraction that is operating outside of you, in response to your predominant state of thinking and feeling, you should understand that the way that you are thinking and feelings is, in fact, dictated by your intentions for how you want to think and feel. Thus, if it is your intention to only think positive thoughts that lead to positive emotion, which, of course, leads to positive energy being in motion towards you, then positive thoughts and positive emotion will be your experience.

Thus, if you want to experience a perfect life, all you have to do is intend a perfect life to flow into your experience, in every domain of life (money, relationships, career, health, etc.). This intention, the intention to activate the highest states of thought and feeling, in order to experience a perfect life must manifest because intent activates the law of attraction, which is, again the law which ultimately determines the outward conditions of your life. The outward conditions of your life are but a mirror reflecting back to you your true inner state. Thus, if you look out into the world at your outer circumstances and find them not to your liking, understand that they are nothing more than mirror reflecting back to your state of being, and thus, the manner in which you must shift your inner world in order to shift your outer world.

So, one of the great secrets to living a perfect life is to regularly utilize meditative practice as a means of shifting your inner state of being. If you do this, you are certainly shifting your inner state, and this inner state of peace and joy must manifest outwardly as all that is reflective or peace and joy including money, love, and meaningful vocation. And thus, the single most powerful intention that anyone can have in order to have a perfect life is the intention to continuously live in peace. That is, to have the experience of the kingdom of heaven that is within. For, in truth, this is what we are all here to do. Many of us, through conditioning have learned to believe that the outer world is more important than the inner world, when, in fact, it is the exact opposite that is true. The true relationship to the inner world and the outer world is that they are one. They are, in no way separate from each other because the outer world is simply the manifestation of our inner world in accordance with our level of enlightenment. One that is in a consciousness of sadness and despair has, for the moment, completed disconnected themselves from their source energy which only radiates peace and joy. Literally, radiates from your Inner Being to your Outer Being. That is to say, that what many people to tend to think that they are experiencing as a world “out there” are simply experiencing their inner state manifesting itself outwardly as the conditions and circumstances of their life. Thus, the outer conditions and circumstances can be thought of as your Outer Being. They reflect the true state of your Inner Being. Or, more pointedly, the degree to which you are in alignment with your true self which is your soul, your spirit, your Inner Being, etc.

So, I say to you again that the words found in the Bible are indeed wise: “seek ye first the kingdom of heaven, and all these material things will be added onto you. In other words, make sure to stay connected with your Inner Being, and you will always be radiating out the experiences of peace and joy as the most enjoyable conditions of your life. That is, make it your intention to always stay connected with your Inner Being, and you will always have all that you desire in life. For, in activating the creative thoughts and positive emotions that emerge when connected with your Inner Being because of this intention, you will always stay connected with your Inner Being, and thus always be experiencing the kingdom of heaven that is within you, and that kingdom will manifest outwardly in your life as the conditions that are fit for a king: wealth, health, love, and happiness. For, having entered the kingdom of heaven, you have gained access to all the vast riches afforded to the true king. That is, the one that has attained the peace of enlightenment.