January Diet Tips

In the UK, today is known as Blue Monday. Statistically it’s the most depressing day of the year. The weather is cold and the sky is grey. Everyone is broke from Christmas (and waiting for their January pay). All those new years resolutions (like dieting and getting fit) are feeling impossible. Or to put it another way, things are feeling a bit rubbish.

It’s also the day most people are likely to give up on those New Years resolutions. Instead of thinking about their healthy food choices, they are calling for take out, shopping for cake and drinking the sugary and often alcoholic drinks. Coincidence? I think not.

So how do you stay on track when all around you are running for the sweet stuff?

1. Remember why you started

When you told yourself that this was going to be the year that you got control of your diet, you meant it. Has anything changed? Have you suddenly decided that you want to be overweight? Probably not. So think about what you want to achieve, how you’re going to do it and feel the motivation. Why do you want to lose weight? Is it important to you? How will you feel when you reach your ideal weight?

2. Give yourself a treat (that’s not food/drink related)

When life is a bit tough, it’s only natural to want to make yourself feel better, but it doesn’t need to be related to food or drink. Pamper yourself. Get your hair cut, have a facial, get your nails done – whatever works for you. Then again maybe it’s a day out, booking a trip or getting tickets to an event. Possibly it’s just organising a catch up with friends or calling someone you like a chat with. There are millions of calorie free treats out there – find one that works for you.

3. Think about how you’ll feel tomorrow.

Lots of people with weight issues live in the past or the present, but rarely the future. Let me explain. When faced with a high calorie treat they are focussed only on the treat. About how they will feel when they are eating it and the few moments that follow. They rarely think about how they will feel tomorrow when they stand on the scales and the number has gone up. How they will feel in 2 months when they haven’t achieved the weight loss they were hoping for. When you want to indulge, use your imagination to project into the future and think how you will feel.

4. Be nice to yourself

Life can be hard sometimes and when it is we could all do with our own personal cheerleader to get us through the day. Someone who believes in us, someone who will help and motivate us, someone who cares about us. The great news is, you can do that for yourself. That little voice in your head can be a bully or a cheerleader – it’s up to you. If you have a natural bully, make the decision to not listen to that voice anymore and ask yourself what your inner cheerleader would say to you – listen to that voice instead.

5. Forgive yourself

If all else fails and you buckle to the sweet treat – forgive yourself. A moment of madness need not ruin your whole eating plan. Diets don’t work by the hour or the day or even the week. One bad moment shouldn’t ruin your day, One bad day shouldn’t affect the rest of the week. Forgive your little moment and get back on with making the choices that will make you feel great.

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If you’re having trouble getting your eating under control hypnosis is a great tool to help get your head into the right space to make the changes you want.

Poem for today

May my heart always be open

May my heart always be open to little
birds who are the secrets of living
whatever they sing is better than to know
and if men should not hear them men are old

May my mind stroll about hungry
and fearless and thirsty and supple
and even if it’s sunday may i be wrong
for whenever men are right they are not young

and may myself do nothing usefully
and love yourself so more than truly
there’s never been quite such a fool who could fail
pulling all the sky over him with one smile

– e.e.cummings

and Relax

It’s Sunday

It’s time to kick off your shoes and relax

Relaxing is not just nice – it’s important.

Stress is bad for your health.

Seriously.

Relax.

Take some time today to switch off all your electronics, move away from any screens – TV, LapTop, Tablet and phone – yes all of them – and relax.

Be in the moment.

Listen to the sounds that you can hear.

Really listen to them.

What do they make you think of?

Smell what you can smell.

Feel what you can feel.

Notice your thoughts – see where they take you.

Go for a walk and find a flower.

Go into your garden and find something new.

Enjoy a shower or luxuriate in a bubble bath.

Put on some clean, comfy clothes and just relax.

if you start worrying about stuff you need to do – decide when you’re going to do it and relax until then.

Monday comes around before you know it,

until then,

Relax.

My Sunday poem delivered on a Monday – If

I like to post a poem on a Sunday, but I must admit to having a rather lazy weekend and not doing very much of anything except catching up on some TV and eating plenty of yummy food with my partner. We were in hibernation mode – no excuses – just felt like it.

Today the guilt is kicking in and I feel like we wasted a perfectly lovely day.

But then again, was it a waste, as we had a perfectly lovely day?

So, I’ve decided to get over the guilt, roll up my sleeves and do all the stuff that I would have normally done yesterday today and be extra productive on this beautiful Monday – so here’s yesterdays poem – I hope you like it.

I decided to post this one as it was written in a letter to a contestant on celebrity big brother this year. Most people seemed moved by the poem, yet almost all of them had never heard it before, which surprised me as I believed it was very well known.

For those of you that know it, be reminded of these stunning words. For those of you that are new to it, enjoy it, share it and live it.

If—

BY RUDYARD KIPLING

If you can keep your head when all about you

    Are losing theirs and blaming it on you,

If you can trust yourself when all men doubt you,

    But make allowance for their doubting too;

If you can wait and not be tired by waiting,

    Or being lied about, don’t deal in lies,

Or being hated, don’t give way to hating,

    And yet don’t look too good, nor talk too wise:

If you can dream—and not make dreams your master;

    If you can think—and not make thoughts your aim;

If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

    And treat those two impostors just the same;

If you can bear to hear the truth you’ve spoken

    Twisted by knaves to make a trap for fools,

Or watch the things you gave your life to, broken,

    And stoop and build ’em up with worn-out tools:

If you can make one heap of all your winnings

    And risk it on one turn of pitch-and-toss,

And lose, and start again at your beginnings

    And never breathe a word about your loss;

If you can force your heart and nerve and sinew

    To serve your turn long after they are gone,

And so hold on when there is nothing in you

    Except the Will which says to them: ‘Hold on!’

If you can talk with crowds and keep your virtue,

    Or walk with Kings—nor lose the common touch,

If neither foes nor loving friends can hurt you,

    If all men count with you, but none too much;

If you can fill the unforgiving minute

    With sixty seconds’ worth of distance run,

Yours is the Earth and everything that’s in it,

    And—which is more—you’ll be a Man, my son!

In a modern day of equal opportunity I feel the same applies to Man or Woman and these glorious goals are things I aspire to.

Have a great week 🙂

Blue Monday – Terrific Tuesday

Apparently yesterday was Blue Monday. It’s the most depressing day of the year.

The money has run out, it’s cold, the resolutions are hard work, the lack or parties and events is getting to us and if you’ve decided to have a dry January then it’s feeling tough.

I took the above picture this morning when I was walking the dog.

I’m no better off than I was yesterday (but the mortgage is covered, I can have the heating on without worrying and there’s food in the fridge)

It’s still blooming cold (but I can heat my house and wear big fluffy jumpers, scarves and socks when I go walking in the bright sunshine)

The resolutions are easy (if you approach them in the right way – make habits not resolutions – I will post more on this soon)

I have made plans for February and March so I have things to look forward to

and finally the dry January thing is not something I subscribe to (but having said that I rarely drink anyway so it wouldn’t really bother me)

The sun is shining somewhere and the most depressing day of the year is already behind us. Spring is on it’s way, but I don’t want to wait until then to be happy.

Have a Terrific Tuesday x

Thank Goodness it’s Monday!

T.G.I.M.

At last, It’s Monday!

You remember all those things you said you’d start on Monday – well It’s here!

Time to start!

Did you say you’d get fitter ? – go for a walk, run, skip or swim

Did you say you’d get healthier ? – eat something green, throw away your cigarettes, chuck out the booze

Did you say you’d start your diet ? – bin the sweets, lose the crisps, get rid of the cake

Did you say you’d get organised ? – clean out the cupboard, sort through the paperwork, tidy your office

Did you say you’d get in touch with people ? – pick up the phone, write the email, send a card

Did you sat you’d make time to relax ? – Light a candle, switch off the computer, listen to some music

Did you say you’d cook your own meals ? – Get your ingredients together, find a recipe and sharpen the knife.

Be excited – today is the day you were waiting for!

Have a great Monday x

How to Nail your next Job Interview

It’s Monday – If you have that sinking feeling on a Monday morning, maybe you’re in the wrong job.

As Ricky Gervais said ‘Remember, Mondays are fine. It’s your life that sucks’

In order to get the job of your dreams, you are going to have to get through the interview.

Here’s how.

Research the job

Before you go anywhere near the interview it’s important that you know what you’re interviewing for. Find out about the job. If it’s a customer facing position, go and be the customer and ask the staff what it is they like and don’t like about the job. Find out what the job entails – for every bit of it you are aware of there are probably bit’s that you had never thought of.

Find out about the company. What makes them special. They are the things you are going to want to demonstrate about yourself at the interview. If the company is green, think green. If it’s community based, think community.

Dress to impress

(because nobody gets a job wearing flip flops)

Know what you are going to wear to the interview. It doesn’t always have to be a suit – that depends on the job – but most potential employers are going to want to know that you have made an effort. That goes for your general appearance as well as your clothes. Make sure your are clean and smart. Clean hair and nails, appropriate make up and jewellery and subtle perfume or aftershave. What ever you decide to wear to the interview it needs to be clean – that includes footwear, so get the polish out.

Turn up 5 minutes before you are expected

At the very least you turn up on time, but it is always better to be a little early. Yes you might have to hang around for a bit if things are overrunning, but that’s just how it goes. Nobody is impressed by lateness. It is always a good idea to know exactly where you are going and do a practice run a day or two before. If a disaster happens and you are going to be late, make sure that you have the contact details of the person you are meeting and call to let them know what has happened. Apologise and ask them if it would be possible to reschedule.

The Interview – present the best you

Be calm and be confident.

Be calm, not laid back. Calmness shows in your voice and your body language. Think about what somebody who is calm looks like. Now imagine them nervous. You need to be copying the calm body language. No fidgeting, no biting of nails, no playing with your clothes or hair. Hands in your lap, shoulders relaxed and looking interested.

Be confident, not cocky or arrogant. The person who is interviewing you wants to find somebody to fill this position. Confidence will prove to them that you are the person for the job. They are also going to have to work with the person they hire, so they are going to want to like them. Arrogance is not likeable.

It is important to be yourself in the interview. There is a thing know as discordance that makes us feel uncomfortable around people who are not being genuine. It’s subtle, but we tend to pick up on it. So be yourself – but be the best version of yourself. It’s worth looking up classic interview questions on line and preparing some answers for the more tricky ones, but again, keep it real. If the question is ‘what are your weaknesses?’ the interviewer doesn’t want to hear ‘I work too hard and need to be perfect at everything!’ something like ‘maths isn’t my strong suit, but I’ve done some work to improve it’ would be better.

If you are prone to nerves or lack of confidence it is worth doing some work on this prior to the interview. There are several self hypnosis techniques you could use like the Betty Erickson technique or The Switch which can be used, but if you are having real trouble I would encourage you to seek professional help – it could be the difference you need to make Mondays a joy for the rest of your life.

Ask Questions

Ask good questions. Don’t ask ‘how soon can I take holiday?’ or ‘Do I get sick pay straight away?’

Ask about career progression. Ask about volunteer work the company is involved with. Ask about charities they support. Ask about things that show you are interested in working for these people for a long time!

It’s as easy as that.

If you can’t decide what your dream job is just ask yourself the following question

‘If money was no object, what would I do for the rest of my life?’

What are you waiting for?

Go with the Flow

“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them – that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” – Lao-Tzu 

I was reminded of this a few days ago when I was looking through my feed and saw a post from Optimistic Kid with this quote, and it got me to thinking – what do we need to do in order to be able to go with the flow?

Firstly you have to Realize that you can’t control everything. Bad hair days were sent to remind us of this fact. Then you need to Notice when you are becoming frustrated with something you cannot control. Once you are aware of it take a few seconds to just Breath and relax. It’s then worth asking yourself a question ‘will I care about this in a week, a month or a year?’ If the answer is no, is it really worth getting upset about now? This might seem simple enough, but it takes practise to get good at it and you might have to do it consciously at first, until it becomes habit and just happens naturally. As you get better at it you may find that you laugh at situations that would previously have ruined your day, and as you accept that you don’t control everything you will also see that you can’t control what other people think or do and you may notice yourself becoming more understanding of their imperfections as well as your own. All of these things help us to accept change when it comes along and that is basically what we mean when we say – go with the flow.

It is said ‘What you resist, persists’ so “Flow with whatever is happening and let your mind be free. Stay centered by accepting whatever you are doing. This is the ultimate.” – Chuang Tzu

Wishing you a peaceful and harmonious week  🙂

Time flies when you’re having Fun

It’s Sunday – That lovely day when you have nothing pressing to do…

So why does it go so fast? And why do Mondays last so much longer?

Why does 5 minutes between snoozes on the alarm go by in seconds, but the 5 minutes before your lunch break takes an eternity?

Why does a watched kettle never boil?

Because you can distort time! (aren’t you a clever thing)

We all do it.

The problem is most of us are doing it wrong.

We extend the periods of boredom, of discomfort, of sadness or of pain, and we shorten the times of joy, relaxation, happiness and love.

In hypnosis, time distortion is a regular phenomenon. People often say to me that we’ve only been talking for a few minutes, when often an hour has gone by. This is a trick you can learn. When you are hypnotised your mind is incredibly focussed on one thought, usually the voice of the person who has hypnotised you. That focus is where time goes…it’s like you can’t concentrate on time and be completely focussed on something else. That’s why time can disappear when you are lost in a good book, listening to music, or having a great time with friends.

When you are unhappy, bored or in pain, your focus is often on the time itself…so it gets longer. By willing it to go fast, we extend it further and further until it feels like an eternity.

So, if you want time to pass quickly, STOP focussing on the time and START focussing on something else.

Sometimes that’s easier said than done, but that’s where hypnosis is fantastic. Whether you use self hypnosis or go to a clinical hypnotherapist, that focus can be achieved.

Enjoy what’s left of your weekend – I hope your happy moments last a life time 🙂

It’s all about perspective

It’s a Bank Holiday here in the UK.

It’s raining.

So, is it a great day as you have a day off work, or is it a rubbish day because the weather is bad?

How you feel about it doesn’t change the facts. It will still be a day off work and it will still be raining, but depending on your perspective you can either be happy and grateful, or you can be fed up and miserable.

It’s up to you.