I just had to get the word out about an event that I am so excited about. My friend and colleague Tracy Liebmann has put together an amazing Tele~Summit that is sure to inspiring, informative, and healing on many levels. It's taking place from May 9th to the 13th, so it's coming up fast.
There will be many dynamic speakers sharing their wisdom on a range of topics including, soul to soul parenting, intuitive parenting, EFT, tapping into your intuition, conscious conception,and motherhood to the path of mastery. Furthermore, I have been graciously asked to give a talk on food, feelings, and body image freedom (more on that later in this post). Additionally, it is absolutely free! It is sure to be a great event. Just go to the website for more information and to sign up. www.Momstelesummit.com
I'll be speaking Tuesday may 10th at 7:00 EDT about Food, Feelings, and Body image freedom. Here's a bit of a preview.Einstein defined insanity as, “doing the same thing over again and expecting different results“. Nowhere is this description more accurate than when applied to our current view of food, nutrition, weight, body image, and overall health. There no shortage of diets, experts, books, plans, or clinics to weigh in on this issue. What IS in short supply, however, are favorable results. With a failure rate of 95- 98% diets, quiet simply, are not effective. They are part of the problem. Collectively our current approach to nutritional health and wellness is not working, and in fact, is getting worse. On any given day it is estimated that at least 140 million Americans are on a diet. Obesity rates continue to climb as does the incidence of nutrition -linked metabolic disorders, overeating, body image dissatisfaction, and digestive ailments. If it seems like there is a missing piece in the current health equation, there is. And it is both startling and empowering in its simplicity. WHAT one eats is only half of the weight, body image and health equation. HOW one eats is the long overlooked piece of the puzzle.
Some topics we'll cover...
- A majority of people who overeat think they have a “willpower problem” – but they really don’t. If you can’t seem to control your appetite, willpower is NOT your issue. The problem is, we don’t really eat when we eat – we forget to notice, taste, and enjoy our food. The brain interprets this missed experience of eating as “hunger” – and it drives us to eat more.
- Approximately 98% of all people who lose weight on a weight loss diet gain it back within 1-2 years. When you question the 2% of people who keep that weight off long term, they have one fascinating thing in common – something powerful in their life story changed. This can mean a new career, letting go of an outdated relationship, embracing a new and positive one, moving to a new state, or changing their beliefs about who they are and how life works.
- 40-60% of our metabolic power at any meal – meaning our ability to digest, assimilate and calorie burn - comes from something called the Cephalic Phase Digestive Response – which is a scientific term for taste, pleasure, aroma, satisfaction, and our visuals of a meal. So, doing the math, if we don’t receive this very intimate and subjective experience of eating, we are metabolizing at only 40-60% efficiency – a stunning statistic.
- Pleasure is a nutritional requirement. All organisms on planet Earth are programmed at the most primitive level of nervous system physiology to “seek pleasure and avoid pain”. The problem is, when we aren’t receiving “Vitamin P” – pleasure from our food – perhaps because we’re following a punishing diet or not savoring our meals, the brain interprets this missed experience of pleasure as “hunger”, and we are driven to eat more.
- Stress depletes nutrition. Simply put, anxiety, rushing, forcing, pushing, and negative self talk all put the body in the physiologic fight-or-flight response. In this stress state, vitamins and minerals are excreted, blood flow to the digestive organs dramatically decreases, calorie burning is slowed, and hormones that signal the body to gain weight are produced. Our mental/emotional state has powerfully influenced our nutritional metabolism, regardless of the good and healthy food we may have eaten.
- Relaxation is the optimum state of digestion and assimilation. Amazingly enough, the body is optimally designed by evolution to metabolize a meal and burn calories under “parasympathetic dominance”, also know as the physiologic “relaxation response”. So, the question is, are you a relaxed eater, or an anxious and hurried one
- Negative self talk about food or the body – can actually generate a placebo response that causes the body to create the very thing we fear. So for example, if you are constantly living in fear of gaining weight, you will produce consistent elevated levels of the stress associated hormones cortisol and insulin, which both signal the body to store weight, store fat, and to refrain from building muscle. Our fears can literally create a metabolic reality.
- There is no doubt our mind effects our physical body, but that is not the whole picture. There is a deeper layer asking for attention. The wisdom of the soul speaks through our body. Our symptoms and cravings are messages teaching us the wisdom we are here to learn. How we digest food is how we digest life. Our relationship with food is a reflection of our relationship with ourselves. What are we “weighting” for? What are we “starving” for? What are we “full” of that is asking for release? These are the questions of the soul. This understanding is so often the missing ingredient in transforming health, weight problems, compulsive eating, and body image distortions.
I look forward to speaking more about it and love to have you join me on Tuesday, May 10th at 7:00 EST. Of course, you can always find more information about the work I do at www.alekasky.com or email me at alekasky@gmail.com
