Most of us think our weight is the main problem that needs to be solved. I wholeheartedly disagree. When our obsession with our weight is front and center, we’re unable to focus on any aspect of self-care that doesn’t involve shrinking our bodies. I’ll be kinder to myself once I lose weight. I’ll start walking (or go to a yoga class) once I lose weight. I’ll buy quality clothes that fit well once I lose weight. I’ll eat what truly feels good in my body once I lose weight. I’ll book that vacation once I lose weight. I’ll stop starving myself once I lose weight. Essentially, we’re neglecting our basic needs and desires until we feel we “deserve” it by losing weight. This is incredibly unhelpful. What leads to … [Read more...] about Once I Lose Weight
Why Nature Makes Us Healthier, Happier and More Creative
I knew that spending time outside was good for me before reading Florence Williams’s, “The Nature Fix.” To be honest, I wasn’t sure I’d learn anything new from the book. I was wrong. Williams decided to write the book after a move from Boulder, Colorado to Washington D.C. left her depressed and wondering if it had to do with the sudden shift to metropolitan living. Nature, Williams concludes in the book, isn’t just something nice, it is a necessity - and one that is profoundly undervalued. Researchers have found that time in nature can reduce blood pressure, anxiety, depression, stress, rumination and mental fatigue. It can also improve attention, memory, cognition, sleep, self-esteem and happiness. And … [Read more...] about Why Nature Makes Us Healthier, Happier and More Creative
The REAL Reason Healthy Eating is Hard (and how to do it anyway)
The benefits of good nutrition and maintaining a healthy weight are clear. There’s no need to provide yet another list. With so many compelling reasons to eat a healthy diet, why is it so difficult to actually do? Hint: the answer is not more willpower or greater motivation. One of the MAIN reasons eating a healthy diet is difficult is because JUNK FOOD IS DELICIOUS (+ widely available + inexpensive). Steven Witherly is a food scientist who has spent the last 20 years studying what makes certain foods more addictive (and tasty) than others. Much of the science that follows is from his brilliant report, Why Humans Like Junk Food. According to Witherly, when you eat tasty food, there are two factors that make the experience … [Read more...] about The REAL Reason Healthy Eating is Hard (and how to do it anyway)
Beauty Sick Book Review
I sometimes struggle with reconciling my advocacy of body acceptance with the fact that I help women lose weight. Can you respect your body and want to change it? My answer is a resounding yes. More than ever. If I didn’t believe this to be true, there is no way I could do this work with integrity. Unwinding beauty sickness and appreciating what our bodies do FOR us is an essential component of well-being. In her book, Beauty Sick, Renee Englen, a professor at Northwestern University and head of the Body and Media Lab, very clearly and in a very compelling manner exposes the cultural epidemic of beauty sickness, the obsession with appearance, and how it affects or has affected most women in America. Using scientific … [Read more...] about Beauty Sick Book Review