Can you lose weight eating anything you want? Yes, it is absolutely possible to lose weight and eat whatever you want.

Top Tips to Stop Food Cravings by Mel Thompson

When you are feeling tired or stressed, do you notice that your mind begins conjuring up images of your favorite foods?

Do chocolates, donuts, or a slice of warm bread and butter tempt and taunt you when you are trying to keep your weight down?

If so, then you are one of many millions of people battling cravings on an almost daily basis.

According to Dr. Omar Manejwala, author of fascinating book, Craving: Why We Can’t Seem to Get Enough…

Human beings are hard-wired to crave food; he states there are powerful evolutionary, biological and social factors that create a ‘craving culture’ that overtakes our body and mind.

The good news, it is relatively easy to fight  cravings, if you take a few important steps…

Simply follow these tips and you will find that losing and maintaining weight…

Or simply following a healthier, sounder nutritional regime, is far easier than you ever imagined:

• Do something else when you’re feeling tired or stressed: Focus on positive steps you can take to stop your cravings.

Instead of asking yourself, “What do I need to stop doing?”

Ask, “What do I need to start doing?”

Often, stress occurs when we have too much pent-up energy, or when we are not getting enough exercise.

Regular physical activity (and specific exercises and activities like yoga and mindful meditation) significantly lower levels of stress hormone cortisol.

When our stress levels are down, it is much easier to battle the urge to binge or indulge in unhealthy foods.

• Keep a journal: When you see a nutritionist, one of the first things they ask you to do is to keep a journal; jot down absolutely everything you eat, and at what time.

You may be surprised to find that you tend to indulge cravings at specific times of the day.

This makes it much easier to avoid low sugar levels that often make you crave unhealthy foods, by bringing healthier snacks to work, school or college, so you can keep  glucose levels stable throughout the day.

• Take the time to shop: When you have cravings, you tend to desperately reach for the first food available.

It therefore helps to have a kitchen and pantry full of healthy snacks, and devoid of chips, cookies, sweets and other processed, refined foods.

Always prepare a wide range of salad ingredients and keep them in the fridge; chop and wash them beforehand, so whipping up a healthy salad takes just a few seconds.

• Avoid tempting scenarios: If you know you can’t resist buying a cupcake from your favorite pastry shop, don’t walk past it.

Make it easier on yourself so that following a healthy eating plan doesn’t seem like torture.

• Create a sense of belonging: Sometimes, human beings indulge in dangerous habits and addictions (to alcohol, substances and food alike) because we have unmet needs in our lives.

It is important to build a healthy social network, to eliminate the sense of emptiness that often leads us to binge.

Thank you Mel Thompson for sharing your valued tips and insights.

Food Cravings

Feeling wired, tired and moody?

All day long, do you constantly think about getting peaceful and restful sleep?

And despite your sheer exhaustion…at the end of the day, you just cannot sleep…

Are your so called “healthy” food choices destroying your fat loss hormones?

How to stop hormonal damage as a result of “low carb dieting”, which suppresses thyroid and leptin levels significantly…

Reset fat-burning hormones which keep your metabolism and body healthy…

Increase leptin sensitivity to help support thyroid converting T4 to T3 more efficiently.

We’ll dive into why it’s not your fault…it’s got to do with food choices and hormones.

Please allow me to explain…

First, let me ask you a question, does any of this sound familiar to you…

• anxiety
• panic attacks
• depression
• mood swings

Ever feel like you’re on a daily roller coaster ride?

Thyroid is a small, butterfly-shaped gland in your neck, weighing only about 1 ½ ounces.

The ‘wings’ of thyroid are called lobes and they wrap around the windpipe.

And while it may be tiny when it comes to size, many health experts consider thyroid to be a master gland when it comes to controlling numerous body functions…

From the beating of heart to function of sex organs.

Your thyroid exerts its powerful hormonal influence on many different and critical body tasks throughout your body.

Most women are hormonal imbalanced and don’t even know it…

Sadly too many women are misdiagnosed and over prescribed…

Did you know your hormones should ideally all work together to create an environment of balance and harmony?

An imbalance of one hormone affects them all…

For women with a biochemical imbalance, it’s very common to feel like you’re on a mood roller coaster.

Endocrine system involves glands that control all hormones and neurotransmitters.

Hormones and neurotransmitters are chemicals which control mental and emotional states…

These chemicals help the brain to balance emotions.

What if you have a problem with one gland?

For example, our thyroid…does all the other glands play into it as well?

Our endocrine system functions like a biomechanical vehicle.

All the parts have to be working at just the right time for us to feel good and be biochemically functional.

When looking at low thyroid levels…

This involves adrenals, pituitary, hypothalamus, pancreas and ovaries as well.

What if you have symptoms of hypothyroidism or hypoadrenalism (hypo means low), mood swings can be an everyday problem…

Many women feel this way and it’s very common for them to go to a western medical doctor and give symptoms of mood swings, anxiety or depression…

Leaving with a antianxiety or antidepressant prescription.

The truth is, depression is not a drug deficiency.

The cause is the common problem of your poorly functioning inflamed glands in the game of emotional stability…

And if not working at the right speed, can give you symptoms that include riding on mental roller coasters.

Most people know the thyroid regulates metabolism, but did you know it is also part of your immune system, nervous system and also helps the functioning of your brain?

Most people think our brains tell our bodies what to do…

The truth is hormones are released into our blood…

They travel to the brain, the level of hormones tells our brain what our body must do next.

Hormone imbalances are hard on us because once symptoms start, they set in motion an exhausting, self-perpetuating cycle which can be very difficult to stop.

This is a downward spiral for most women…

Women suffering with low thyroid and/or low adrenals are usually feeling very stressed and overwhelmed, and they are usually irritable and moody.

The stress creates more feelings of being overwhelmed, which creates more stress on the adrenal glands, which in turn creates more fatigue…

And the cycle continues into a snowballing multi-level problem.

What is low thyroid and adrenal fatigue and why is it happening?

Thyroid function is weakened by stress, pollution, bad eating habits…

And a history of yo-yo dieting.

If our bodies are functionally perfect, our adrenal glands would be able to deliver a perfect balance of stress hormones cortisol, adrenaline and DHEA.

That way is helps us cope with the day-to-day stresses and demands of life…

They also have plenty of sleep time to recover, rejuvenate and replenish themselves in order to come to our aid when called upon.

In a perfect world the thyroid would be the “master switch: to tell each cell if it needs to be consuming more oxygen and nutrients…

Thereby stepping up or slowing down its rate of metabolism.

Unfortunately, none of us can create the ideal situation for the perfect hormone system, especially women whose lives are generally more responsive, wearing and demanding.

We must meet deadlines, jobs, finances with families to care for…some even have hormonal teens to look after and some even aging parents or grandparents.

All of which can place an enormous stress and strain on our lives and our adrenal glands.

Our adrenal glands can become so overwhelmed and exhausted they’re unable to meet the body’s demand for adrenaline, cortisol, and DHEA.

Instead of being in adaption phase where we are able to adapt to everything, we are in a low phase where we cannot adapt at all.

We’re also micronutrient and mineral deficient…

And if stress wasn’t enough, the food that’s our fuel to repair is missing micronutrients.

None of us eat right, even if we did, the food we eat is deficient in the nutrients we need.

It is like filling-up your car on low octane gas and expecting it to perform at it highest level.

Sometimes, even when your thyroid is working normal and you’re supporting with good supplements you can still have mood swings because your cortisol is low or high.

Take a moment to feel your thyroid, remember the last time you swerved your car to avoid hitting a stray dog or another vehicle whose driver was to busy texting and in your lane.

How did you feel?

Were you shaking?

Tense?

Out of breath?

Was your mind racing?

All of the physical reactions during that moment were the result of the stress hormones adrenaline and cortisol…

Known as “flight or fight,” when our bodies are under physical stress due to hormone imbalances, stress, lack of sleep or lack of nutrients.

These two stress hormones can be out of balance as well, they can be too high or too low.

As they rise and fall, surges of either one or both of them, can cause feelings of anxiety, heart palpitations, and panic attacks.

They can even cause you to bolt awake out of a deep sleep in the dead of night.

They cause you to feel wired and tired at the same time.

Balancing stress hormones, tips and strategies to help you out right now:

Minimize your exposure to environmental toxins, such as pesticides, fertilizers, and even household cleaning products and antibacterials.

These can act as hormone disruptors, which may interfere with thyroid function.

Avoid heavy metals like mercury, found in tuna, amalgam dental fillings, certain vaccines, and even some over-the-counter products like contact lens fluid.

Mercury can also adversely affect your thyroid.

Limit your stress level as much as possible. Chronic stress interferes significantly with thyroid function.

Interestingly, in an interview several years ago on Good Morning America, talk show diva and producer Oprah Winfrey blamed her own thyroid concerns on excessive stress level.

Stop eating soy, except in fermented forms such as miso or tempeh.

Despite marketing efforts by “Big Soy” (certain multinational food corporations), soy is NOT a health food.

Unfermented soy is high in chemicals called isoflavones, which may contribute to abnormal function of your thyroid gland and other health concerns.

Make sleep a high priority.

A thyroid imbalance may cause or contribute to sleep difficulties.

While there is no “magic number” when it comes to the amount of sleep you need, most adults need 7-9 hours per night according to the National Sleep Foundation.

Support your thyroid with optimal levels of thyroid-loving nutrients like vitamins A, D, E, riboflavin, niacin, and minerals such as zinc, selenium, and manganese.

Plus, any effective approach to correcting sub-optimal thyroid function must also provide support for the adrenal glands.

Your adrenals, which sit on top of kidneys, may become fatigued when overstimulation of these important glands (from physical or emotional stress) leaves them unable to supply your body with an adequate amount of their hormones…

T3 is often discussed in regards to weight loss and it’s for good reason…

T3 thyroid hormone naturally speeds up your metabolism.

If you are finding it hard to lose weight it is a good idea to discuss testing your free T3 (FT3) with your health practitioner.

T3 and weight loss

T3 is the most active thyroid hormone and adequate T3 activity not only helps with weight loss, it can also reduce many of the other symptoms of an underactive thyroid.

In fact low T3 can have far-reaching effects in the body.

Reduced T3 activity is often associated with a slow heart rate, lower than normal body temperature, thyroid hair loss and fatigue.

T3 blood test result…

What is considered a good number?

The standard reference range for free T3 is 4.0-8.0 pmol/L.

This provides a very good clue that you ideally want to see your free T3 test result above 4.5 pmol/L.

A main reason you may have anxiety, depression, panic attacks, mood swings and low thyroid function, is a lack of nutrients that are vital for normal function of thyroid hormones.

Nutrient deficiencies put a ton of stress on our bodies, especially the thyroid and adrenals.

Here are supplements to speak to your doctor about:

1 – Suggest you get a whole food multivitamin

Make sure you get your selenium and B12 levels tested in case you need to supplement with extra in addition to your multivitamin.

2 – It is also important to take Omega-3.

3 – May be good to take magnesium at night before bed (this helps with insomnia).

4. Ashwagandha is a great adaptogenic herb, meaning it helps the body to adapt.

It is a great herb for supporting adrenals and thyroid and really helps in times of stress.

How stress affects your thyroid…

Most diets are deficient in all these nutrients, even when you think you eat well, you are most likely still deficient according to many clinical studies and researched studies.

The thyroid makes free radicals (cell damaging toxins) even when it functions normally, once thyroid is slower and working much harder, it continues makes more free radicals…

This causes more inflammation in the body.

Free radicals are only neutralized by antioxidants.

Once your antioxidant reserves are depleted your thyroid function slows down.

Unfortunately, most diets are lacking in nutrients and antioxidants.

You should be eating foods with antioxidants in them every day such as grapes, berries, nuts, dark green veggies, and sweet potatoes (this is also good for anti-aging).

Supplements mentioned above enhance the formation of thyroid hormone and protect thyroid gland as well as liver so they can more efficiently produce and activate hormones.

These supplements may help make it easier for your body to increase T3, and help the transport of thyroid hormone into cell tissues to turn on your metabolism.

These supplements are great to support healthy mood levels.

In addition support healthy weight management, other biochemical balance and cholesterol too, all important to anyone that is struggling with mood swings and thyroid functions.

What if you have been under a tremendous amount of mental or physical stress you might find thyroid and adrenal glandular supplements taken short term are helpful to recovery…

However, do consider talking with your doctor first before just trying a glandular.

Sleep and exercise are lifestyle factors which are important to rebalance your mood and hormones.

It is difficult to sleep without enough exercise.

Suggest 8-10 hours of solid, uninterrupted sleep in a complete dark room without TV or music on.

It is important if you do get up in the middle of the night that you don’t turn a light on as this gives your brain signals that the night is over.

Suggest some form of exercise that you love, just because it’s great for you and will help with stress too.

A good walk everyday is good for everyone; yoga, Pilates and dance are great too.

Everyone wants to lose weight fast and easy nowadays…there are plenty of crash diet plans out there and almost all of these types of diet plans will crush your metabolism.

Does fast and easy weight loss mean you’re setting yourself up for rebound weight gains?

There’s a saying that goes like this: “don’t let the turkeys get you down”…

Do you know who to trust online?

There are a few simple rules to keep in mind so you know who to avoid and who to trust.

Actually by the time you’re done reading this short report, 1 of 2 things is going to happen.

1) You’re going to love me
2) You’re going to hate me

Guess we’ll find out…

Well, I’m about to unveil a truth to you that you’ve most likely never thought about before.

Do hormones play a significant role in your fat loss success?

I’m always up for talking about them because success can be difficult at best.

And stop choosing the wrong fat burning diet plan…

Get ready for some hard facts…only 2 stand up in this study.

More than 60 percent of Americans have tried to lose weight at least once.

And yet, two-thirds of Americans are either overweight or obese.

Many women, it seems aren’t winning this losing game.

Why? The reason could be due, in part to methods they’re using to drop excess pounds.

Some weight loss plan rely heavily on precise compliance, so there is very strict and zero tolerance for how to go about following the diet…

It’s certainly not for everyone…

According to new research in Annals of Internal Medicine…

Only 2 of the commercial rated weight-loss programs studied delivered results better than or equal to those seen via weight-loss coach or provided by healthcare professionals.

And those 2 programs come with limitations that could make them poor choices.

About the study conducted by researchers that wanted to find out how much weight women lost on various commercial diets, in both the short and long terms.

To do that, the researchers looked through previously published research articles.

Most participants of these studies were women and between 37 and 57 years of age.

Researchers examined 11 different diets and split results into 3 separate groups:

1 – Market leaders including Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and Nutrisystem.
2 – Very-low-calorie programs like Medifast and OPTIFAST.
3 – Self-directed programs including Atkins, SlimFast and eDiets.

To determine how effective these programs were…

The team of researchers compared weight-loss results of those following the programs with what they could expect to lose through traditional weight-loss counseling.

The results are only 2 programs came out ahead…

Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig.

Both can deliver weight-loss results, researchers said and those losses tend to stick.

It’s NOT clear if results are better than those people might see with traditional counseling.

Some diets were clear losers…

Meal-replacement diets like Medifast may help people to lose more than they might lose with counseling, researchers said.

These types of diets come with health related risks such as gallstones.

And since most of the studies on these weight loss plans for women didn’t exceed one full year, so researchers had no real evidence the weight lost really stayed off?

While the results of Atkins and SlimFast looked good on paper, researchers suggested they weren’t applicable to the real world…

NOTE: Study participants on these weight loss plans often received advice from dietitians and that means most consumers wouldn’t typically receive this professional guidance.

Another reason results of studies of commercial programs raise doubts?

Those participating in the studies didn’t have to pay for them.

And if any specific methods or tricks were used to manipulate the fat burning hormones to make sure someone is always in the highest state of fat burning.

The reality is commercial weight-loss plans can be incredibly expensive…

People who have to pay for meal replacements, counseling sessions and more might drop out a lot quicker than those getting the same for free.

That difference may suggest the results seen in these studies would be less likely to stick for average consumers.

The take-home message is there are tons of weight management options out there and not all of them work, but it doesn’t mean losing weight is impossible.

You’ll just need to use caution when researching and planning your weight-loss strategy.

The best weight loss plans, according to the National Institutes of Health, gives you more than a quick fix.

The results come through counseling, education and support…

These programs may help you understand how to change your eating habits and your lifestyle to lose weight slowly and keep it off.

Your doctor may be able to help, but most are clueless so before you dive in to the losing game, make an appointment.

Do your homework, be prepared and ask questions.

Then open up further dialogue by discussing your goals, expectations and overall health.

The key to a weight loss plan is an enhanced metabolism…  

Unfortunately, too many women develop nutritional deficiencies while dieting because they’re limiting their intake of calories with crucial nutrients.  

Proper nutrition is critical to maintaining normal as well as supporting a faster metabolism. 

If you want to save yourself pain, frustration, disappointment and heartbreak of wasting both time and money, it’s important to be able to spot winners and avoid turkeys.

You can find the right weight loss plan and measure progress so you lose weight safely and effectively which includes the word permanently in there for enjoying a great lifestyle.

Weight Loss Plan