Weight Loss – A Healthy Scam.

Recent reports on the television here in Australia are beginning to show people the real truth behind many of the so called ” Miracle Weight Loss” programmes out there. Recently some of the more popular ones were given the harsh criticism they deserve in my opinion especially one from a well known pharmacist…and we all know how I feel about them! It is long overdue in my professional opinion. These places are lying to people, they are telling you that you will loose weight and keep it off…but you do not and this is the whole scam. They fill you full of artificial crap that you don’t have a hope of maintaining long term and once you stop,  your weight comes back up and you must return for more products. It is in their best interests to have to coming back time and again…profits are soaring!

Not only this, but the damage this can do to someone’s self esteem, a major contributor to weight gain in many, is substantial as people feel like total failures for not maintaining their weight loss, which as we can see, was never the intention of these product manufacturers and their peddlers! Interestingly, it is mostly pharmacies that are selling these products! These are the same people peddling drugs with questionable science behind them which is being proven time and again both here and overseas and our government regulatory bodies are a joke at best for allowing this to happen…yet anything truly therapeutic and natural is scrutinized radically. Interesting that most of the so called “negative” publicity about natural therapies in recent times has been leaked by pharmaceutical companies and when proper science has been employed…the natural products pass with flying colours! Does this smell fishy to you too?? MMMmm. Still it works in my favour as a therapist and yours because every time they rubbish us, we prove them wrong…we look even better..and that is because we are!

Pharmacists, despite popular television advertising, are NOT trained in nutrition, they are essentially chemists. I know this as I was a naturopathic consultant in a pharmacy and had the pharmacists tell me herself that she knew nothing of nutrition or herbal products. Interesting then that these are the places now being sold to us as places of wellness and weight loss…if it wasn’t so serious it would be funny! Pharmaceutical companies do not care in the least about your wellbeing nor do they care if their product even works, it is all about making money and as much as possible folks and they will buy off, and manipulate whoever and whatever they can to make more of it make no mistake and if you think our governments have our best interests at heart…think again, most of them get handsome rewards for their poor regulation, just look at the FDA in the US…we aren’t far behind them. It is up to folks like me and you to think independently and not fall for this garbage.

When it comes to weight loss, your nutritionist, naturopath, dietician is the person to see. Learn to eat real food in proper proportions and in a good, balanced way, add in some regular exercise and you will see a return to a healthy weight. There are no miracle cures, there are no faster ways, you must have patience, persistence and proper guidance from a professional with the correct knowledge.

Have a great day!

Craig Hitchens. B.HSc.

The Power Of Positive Thinking

Greeting to everyone.

By now you all would have read about “The Secret” or “The Law of Attraction”. Well you can use this to your advantage when you are on your weight loss plan. You see the trouble with most people trying to lose weight is that you only see your flaws and not your positives!

For those of you not familiar with the law of attraction, casically you will mainfest whatever it is you place your attention and will to and affirm. Energy flows where the attention goes…this has be proven to a large degree by quantum physics to be true. Now to use this for losing weight you need to do a couple of things first. obviously you need to acknowledge that you are over weight. You then need to visualize yourself at your goal weight or size..be realistic! Then on a daily basis you need to look in the mirror and tell yourself you are getting there and find at least one positive thing about yourself and affirm it.

Do not focus much attention on the negatives…I’m still fat, I’ll never get there etc etc….place energy here and that is what will mainfest. This is not to say you go into denial, you know you are not there yet but you affirm the progress you have made, give thanks for that, tell yourself you are worth loving and the outcomes, and affirm, affirm affirm. In time you will notice changes coming and situations will alter to suit you etc…the universe is your ally if you want it to be!

So go ahead, give it a try…I just know it will work for you!

I’d love to hear your stories of success so please feel free to comment.

Have a great day!

Craig Hitchens. B.HSc.

Weight Loss Part 3 – The Blockages!

Greetings folks!

So you have gotten rid of all the junk in your cupboards by now and you know to avoid the scams, you have had your check up and you have started to exercise and eat real foods in a balanced way again keeping in mind the energy in must = energy out equation. So what can you expect next?

This is where most people fall down and give up, from here you will begin to do a few things. Your body will begin to detoxify itself. This can bring along a few symptoms that can be a little uncomfortable. These are all normal symptoms and nothing more than a sign of your body correcting itself and returning to good health but still it can be a little uncomfortable.

You may experience body aches, some lethargy and the need for more sleep, more frequent toilet visits and possibly some short episodes of flu or cold like symptoms. This is NOT your signal to give up! This is also the time when your mind will begin to throw every reason under the sun to give up, to just leave it till tomorrow etc etc, you need to be aware of the tricks your mind will play on you and learn to use the one reason you are doing this, you are doing this to get healthy, lose weight, look great and live a longer healthier life. That is a fact! You will need to remind yourself of this on a regular basis, sometimes several times a day on a bad day. Write it down and place it where you can affirm it often..you need to reprogram your mind as much as your body during this time.

Now having said all this there are a couple of things to be aware of. When beginning your exercise programme be aware not to go too hard straight off, keep it to a level you can achieve and up the pace only when you are able to. Too much too soon will burn you out…and this won’t get you over the line. Personal trainers are big on push, push, push…they are clowns mostly! You have a body condition that is already straining due to excess bodyfat…pushing too hard too soon can be dangerous so go easy until some weight comes off and you feel you are able to increase the load or pace. Remember this is a long term project, not an overnighter!

There will be a point early on where you will begin to get cravings for the junk foods etc again…this is actually a positive sign…it means the body is starting to detox and break the cycle of junk. NEVER give into these cravings..they will only send you backwards at this point. Not even a little bit! These cravings will pass quite quickly and can return from time to time but usually are very mld and will not bother you.

I am also debunking the myth that you can reward yourself with a chocolate or naughty snack here and there etc etc…whilst on the weight loss mission; YOU CAN NOT! You need to learn to reward yourself differently..not with food…perhaps a day at the dayspa or footy etc is a better reward. Rewarding yourself or comforting yourself with food is a negative behaviour and will lead you back to fattyville again real quick! You should certainly reward yourself…just not with foods.

When dining out, use your brain and look for the healthiest options on the menu and avoid overindulgent desserts…they have huge calorie/kilojuoule counts and remember we are adhering to energy in = energy out, so if you take in excess it will be stored as bodyfat…that’s the truth. Remember I am not selling you a product here, I have no vested interests…many other that supposedly “advise” on this topic are selling you something at the end of the day. Beware of salespeople misinforming you!

Days when you are just too tired or don’t have time….this is rubbish! If you are tired or pressed for time…do a shorter version but do not skip it! Discapline!!! If you are sick or unwell then obviously you need not exercise…rest is what you need. Exercising when you are sick will only take you backwards. Don’t lose sight of reality!! You are not superhuman!

Losing bodyfat is something that requires work, persistence and dedication to a total lifestyle change. It requires common sense and you not being a sook! There will be hard times but they are worth it. There is no quick fix, no magic pill and no faster way…the grass is not greener…you must understand that your lifestyle choices and habits have made you this way, you must now choose differently and you must understand that it has taken time for you to get this way so it is going to take time for you to undo it as well. Your mind will try to make you seek out a faster way…particularly duiring the early uncomfortable parts..be aware of this and do not give in to it.

That’s it for now on this topic, I would love to hear any comments and stories from others on the weightloss mission and I would love to hear from anyone who has taken my advice and is reaping the rewards.

Have a great day!

Craig Hitchens. B.HSc.

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