Meditation as a Weight-loss Tool
We-ve all done it. We are tired, stressed, and in a hurry, so we grab a bite to eat and wolf it down, barely paying attention to what the food tastes like or how much we are actually eating.
An occasional incident like this won-t hurt our weight in the long-run, but for many of us -mindless eating- is a way of life, which daily contributes to our weight problems
Is Meditation the Answer?
If -mindless eating- is one of your weight loss downfalls, what can you do to stop it? Some psychologists believe that meditation may be the solution to -mindless eating.-
There are many forms of meditation. Most forms have their roots in various spiritual traditions; all of the world-s major religious traditions have some form of meditation. Research on the health benefits of meditation has focused on concentrative and mindful meditation.
Meditation techniques such as transcendental meditation are known as concentrative meditation because they focus on a single word or image or on your breathing.
Techniques such as mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) are called mindful meditation because the aim is to become aware of all the images, thoughts or feeling which pass through your mind.
Ruth Quillian-Wolever, Ph.D., clinical director of the Duke Center for Integrative Medicine in Durham, N.C. and her associate Jean Kristeller, Ph.D., of Indiana State University, are studying the effects of vipassana, an ancient Indian form of mediation rooted in Buddhism, on weight loss.
Quillian-Wolever and Kristeller-s studies are monitoring the weight of 230 people who regularly practice vipassana. These National Institute of Health funded studies are among the few to scientifically study the effects of meditation on weight loss.
All forms of mediation produce relaxation, but the researchers have chosen Vipassana for the study, because this form of meditation teaches people to be mindful of what they are doing,
The technique teaches students to define their thoughts, sensations, and emotions and to learn to distinguish between them. Quillian-Wolever, a clinical psychologist, has used for Vipassana to help individual patients succeed at weight loss.
Why Would Meditation Help?
Learning to distinguish between thoughts and feelings is one key to successful weight loss. According to Quillian-Wolever, people with weight problems often have difficulty distinguishing between physical hunger and emotional urges to eat.
Laboratory research has shown that people with weight issues frequently are less aware when they are truly hungry and when they are full.
Quillian-Wolever believes that the main benefit of Vipassana is that it teaches people to be more mindful of their physical sensations and thus helps them learn to control emotional eating.
Vipassana in its original form, takes some effort to learn, but Quillian-Wolever and Kristeller have developed mindfulness exercises specifically designed to teach people awareness of physical hunger, satiety cues, and the emotional urge to eat.
Patients are taught to focus on the food they are eating at the moment and enjoy it, rather than mindlessly gobbling down calories while distracted by other things. In this way, people learn to eat until their physical hunger is satisfied and then to stop.
Quillian-Wolever and Kristeller-s mindfulness techniques have been successful in helping people with binge eating disorder develop self-control of eating and increased self-acceptance.
Mindfulness Techniques
Both the relaxation and the mindfulness produced by meditation offer weight loss benefits. To experience the relaxation benefits offered by concentrative meditation try these simple steps:
Sit in a comfortable position and close your eyes.
Concentrate on one word such a peace or relax and silently repeat it over and over. You can also concentrate on your breathing, rather than a word.
Notice any distractions that enter your mind, but then calmly move on and continue focusing on your word or your breath.
Practice this exercise for a minute or two at first and then work up to thirty minutes of meditation.
To practice mindfulness, remember to concentrate on what you are doing at a particular moment. Sit down at the table to eat and concentrate simply on eating. Do not talk on the phone or watch television or try to read a newspaper.
Pay attention to what you are eating. Chew your food carefully and thoroughly; savor the food-s aroma, texture and flavor. With practice, this way of eating will come more naturally; you will begin to enjoy the food you eat more and eat less of it, because you are more aware of what you are eating.
Explore Meditation
If meditation sounds like it might help you in your weight loss battle, explore the various options. There are many classes available which teach the various meditation techniques, as well as numerous books on the subject.
Audio tapes are also available which teach the various techniques; many tapes and CDs feature recordings of soothing nature sounds, such as the ocean or birds singing to help you focus your attention and relax.
Tags: weight loss