by Suzanne Fisher

Few people look in the mirror nowadays and like what they see. Most folks would like to shed a few (or many) pounds. The challenge for people interested in weight loss tips is in finding those tips that are a healthy way to lose weight.

Many diet plans offer fast weight loss.  Exciting as it may be to see those pounds come off fast, though, rapid weight loss has its downside – formation of wrinkles, nutritional depletion, dehydration, electrolyte imbalance, and possibly the formation of gallstones. Other side effects of rapid weight loss include: fatigue, hair loss, headaches, and irritability.

#1: Choose Your Words Carefully

The first weight loss tip is to reorient the mind toward the idea of weight reduction – notice the use of the word ‘reduction’ instead of ‘loss.’ When folks think of a loss, their minds and bodies immediately react with an urge to hold onto what they might lose. Thus if they refer to weight ‘loss,’ people subconsciously program their minds to grab whatever they are losing back, in this instance weight.

#2: Bring More Love into Your Life

The second weight ‘reduction’ tip involves people figuring out why they are holding onto excess weight.  Many people use food to compensate for love they feel they did not get in childhood or are currently not getting.  If they see themselves as unlovable because they are overweight, they may even be blocking the love they could receive. Figuring out how to replace the love they perceive as lost or not available can go a long way toward negating the need for excess food.

One of the easiest yet most difficult ways for people to get more love into their lives is to learn to love themselves. Because each person is his own harshest critic, learning to love themselves can be a daunting task for most people.  Yet it is also an easy task –  multiple daily repetitions of the following phrases can work miracles in a person’s ability to love himself or herself within just two weeks.

Record the following sentences and then play them back several times each day:

I love myself just the way I am.  I am loveable in every possible way. I acknowledge my flaws and I love myself as a flawed person.  I love my body. I am perfect in my imperfection.  I love my ability to change.  I love myself as I change and incorporate a healthy lifestyle into my life.  I love myself when I eat healthy foods. I love myself when I eat healthy portions of food.

#3: Foods to Avoid

Eating healthy means avoiding junk foods, diet sodas, eating between meals, and snacking in front of the television as they all promote weight gain.

#4: Foods to Choose

Opt for low carbohydrate, high protein meals as they have been shown to increase weight reduction.  Also eat lots of veggies, and include foods that researchers have determined help fight obesity such as blueberries (potent anthrocyanins), red grapes (resveratrol in their skins), green tea and foods seasoned with curcumin.

#5: Supplement Your Nutritional Needs

Find out what your nutritional deficiencies are and correct them. This allows the body to better heal physical problems including excess weight. Excellent nutritional tests are available from Genova Diagnostics at www.gdx.net but there are also online nutritional tests at www.nutritiontest.com that can be taken to determine nutritional deficiencies.

#6: Consider Taking Vitamin D Supplements

Vitamin D supplements have been shown to promote weight loss in persons who are Vitamin D deficient (and most people are).

#7: Get a Good Night’s Sleep

Lastly, get a good night’s sleep. Research has determined that being sleep deprived can cause weight gain by increasing appetite and decreasing metabolism.

Once you have implemented some of these weight ‘loss’ (reduction) strategies, the next time you look in the mirror you are much more apt to like what you see.