Got your resolutions all set for the upcoming year? I used to make lots of resolutions and sometimes, some of them got done, eventually. It turns out that there are methods you can use that help you move smoothly towards your goals almost effortlessly. Almost, I said.

Here are some wise thoughts from the author of one of the most effective weight loss systems ever written down. As a scientist, I appreciate the years of research that have gone into the seemingly simple steps he outlines here. I hope you enjoy it and find something of use in it.

Brain Science And New Year's Resolutions
By Tom Venuto, NSCA-CPT, CSCS
www.burnthefat.com

Motivational speaker Jim Rohn once said, "I find it fascinating that most people plan their vacations with better care than they plan their lives. Perhaps it's because escape is easier than change."

Success psychologists say that 95% - 97% of the people in the world do NOT have written goals and fail, while 3-5% have written goals and succeed.

If these statistics are correct, then Mr Rohn's observation really IS quite fascinating isn't it?

Unfortunately for most people, the odds for success are actually even lower, because out of the few people who do set goals, most don't take goal setting seriously, they don't do it scientifically and they only do it once a year.

Goal setting is so important, that I always teach goal setting and mind dynamics first, and only THEN, do I teach nutrition and training second.

It doesn't matter how much you know about nutrition or exercise. Until specialized fitness knowledge is linked with goals and directions, the knowledge is useless and you won't accomplish very much or keep the changes long term.

In fact, I devoted the entire first chapter of my book, Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle (www.burnthefat.com) to the subject of goals and constructive "mind programming" for successful, permanent behavior change.

I've also studied neuro linguistic programming (NLP) for many years and more recently spent many months researching the latest information about neuroscience to see just how much of the traditional self help and goal setting wisdom is actually backed by brain research.

As you start thinking about your goals for 2007 right Now, I'd like to help you start the year off right by sharing two very valuable, science based tips on achieving your goals:

SCIENTIFIC GOAL SETTING TIP #1: Repetition is an effective way to "plant" a goal in the non-conscious mind

Why don't most resolutions stick? Psychology and neuroscience today are giving us the answers.

Thanks to new technologies in brain imaging, such as PET scans, SPECT scans and functional MRI's, we can now actually see your thoughts as electrochemical impulses and we can see the formation of new neural connections in real time right before our eyes.

We can also see where, geographically, in your brain, a particular type of thought is occurring.

most importantly, we can see how long it takes to form strong neural patterns and what types of stimuli cause the patterns to form more quickly

Here's what we've discovered:

Setting a goal once is a conscious activity. Willpower is also a conscious activity. But research has shown that at least 5/6 of your brain power is in the non conscious mind and that the information and instructions that reach the non conscious mind are responsible for your automatic behavior.

Some psychologists believe that 95% of our behaviors are unconscious and automatic… more commonly known as habits.

Long term behavior changes don't take place when you set goals one time as with most new years resolutions. There's an old saying in "self help" circles that it takes at least 21-30 days to form a habit. This has now been prove to be fairly accurate on a neurological basis.

New neural patterns begin to form only after they've been repeated enough times. They continue to strengthen with further repetition. If you make resolutions on January 1st and you don't continue to repeat and reinforce your desire for those "goals," no new neural connection is formed, no new habits are formed, no new behaviors are formed….

Your resolutions wither away and die and any results obtained through willpower (trying to force the new behaviors through conscious effort), are quickly lost when you slip back to your old ways.

What you repeat over and over again is programmed into the subconscious mind and begins to take root. On a practical level, this means RE-writing your goals everyday and thinking about them in positive terms and in mental pictures, every day, repeatedly until the habit is formed and turned over to "auto-pilot."

In 1956, when Earl Nightingale wrote "The Strangest Secret is that we become what we think about most of the time," we didn't know what we know now about the brain.

Nevertheless, Earl was right.

You don't change your body by trying to change your body. You change your body by creating new habitual patterns of thinking and visualizing.

Trying to force new behaviors with willpower while continuing with your old ways of thinking will always fail because your automatic behavior is mostly under non-conscious control.

Its not the resolution you set once… its the goals (mental thoughts and images) you focus on all day long that create the long term (and automatic) behavioral change… when you change your behaviors, you change your body and your life…

SCIENTIFIC GOAL SETTING TIP #2: Emotion is a goal-turbocharger

Is there any way around this tedious process of "mental programming" through repetition? Not really. The fields of NLP and hypnosis have given us some tools for creating more rapid changes, but ultimately you have to begin to "run your own brain" and change your habitual way of thinking. No one else can do it for you and there's no way around it.

there is however, a scientifically proven way to to speed up the process and that is with the use of strong emotion.

Since modern imaging technology can see activity in the brain and scientists have located the seat of emotions in the brain, we know that the strength and number of neural connections associated with a thought or behavior are increased when you're in a highly emotional state.

The neuron connections are also stronger, longer lasting and it takes longer to lose a neural connection when it was formed with great emotion.

With this knowledge, we see another reason why new years resolutions fail: They are set casually with no emotion and no strong emotional "reason why" that gives you the leverage to you need to make a change permanent.

On January 1st, you may think you're setting "real" goals, but if you're like most people, you're not only doing it a mere once a year and then losing focus, you're also likely to be making flimsy, wishy-washy, emotion-less "resolutions."

Zig Ziglar once said that, "A goal casually set and lightly taken will be freely abandoned at the first obstacle."

You might want to back up and read that quote again, maybe even write it down or print it out, because this one hits the bull's-eye!

This truly explains why New Year's resolutions almost never work, and why so few people can keep off the pounds after they get rid of them.

Goal setting should not be casual or lightly taken. Goal setting is an important and serious matter. This is not a game - this is your life, and you only have one life to live.

Goal setting is also not a one time event - it is an ongoing process of literally "re-wiring your brain." With the discovery of brain plasticity, we now know that this is science fact, not self-help fiction.

Make the time to set REAL goals, today! Take it seriously, do it scientifically, re-write your goals every day, think about them constantly, and then take massive action

Do it and this will be the most successful year of your life!

About the Author:

Tom Venuto is a natural bodybuilder and author of the #1 best selling e-book, "Burn the Fat, Feed The Muscle,” which teaches you how to burn fat without drugs or supplements using the little-known secrets of the world's best bodybuilders and fitness models. Learn how to get rid of stubborn fat and turbo-charge your metabolism by visiting: www.burnthefat.com.

I'll be writing more about aligning the inner self with what you really want so you can actually enjoy the process of becoming slimmer and healthier from time to time. Meanwhile, if you haven't already, do go have a look at the Burn the Fat website. He's got some neat reports there just for the asking. –Di

technorati tags:weight, loss, resolutions, burn, fat, goal, setting, lose, weight

If you’re new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

Quick answer : Yes, there is some evidence that Hoodia extract can help you eat less and thus lose weight if you are very careful about where you get it .

Happy New Year!! May you fulfill all your goals in 2007!

If you have determined that you will take up a more healthful lifestyle this year, there may be an intention to release a few pounds in the process. And you may be thinking weight loss = diet = deprivation = hunger = arghhh! Believe me, I know that chain of thought.

For sure, the intake of energy (food) has to go down and the outgo of energy (exercise) has to go up if we aim for a slimmer, healthier body. This doesn't have to be so painful if you follow Tom Venuto's Burn the Fat system  but still, the prospect can be a little daunting. What if you could just cut down on your hunger in the initial stages of your re shaping process, just to get the body used to the idea?

Hoodia gordonii is the botanical name for a leafless, spiky succulent plant that grows throughout the semi-arid areas of Southern Africa primarily the Kalahari desert. The local San people have intentionally used Hoodia stems to stave off hunger and thirst when on long journeys for many, many years, since it acts as an appetite suppressant.

Many news sources, including CBS's 60 Minutes show, ABC News, NBC's Today Show, Oprah's "O" magazine, and many others have talked about this plant as an appetite suppressant that really works. Is it true?

The Phytopharm company that bought the rights from the South African government to control the distribution of Hoodia first tested it on rats and found it made even a special strain that is morbidly obese stop eating so much. Then came trials in humans. Phytopharm discovered that the active ingredient that works in the brain as an appetite suppressant is a protein called P 57. They carried out classical double blind placebo-controlled studies in human subjects that showed that the people who took P 57 lost significantly more weight than people who took the placebo and consumed about 1000 fewer calories per day. This study is included in their application for a U.S. patent. So it works.

The problem, as pointed out in a BBC article, is that many products claim to have Hoodia in them that don't have any or very little. If you buy those, you are wasting your money. Hoodia is actually rare and expensive. You should look for two things from the manufacturer of any Hoodia product you buy. One is the C.I.T.E.S. certification that guarantees that the company bought the licensed South African Hoodia. The other is actual testing data on the product from an independent pharmaceutical testing laboratory. In the U.S., Alkemist Pharmaceuticals is the industry leader in herbal testing.

One company that meets these criteria is Prime Life (TM) Nutraceuticals. They have the CITES certification and the results of two types of tests from Alkemist verifying that they only use 100% pure South African Hoodia in their product prominently displayed on their website. Their product is called Hoodia Thin (R). It comes in liquid form so it is easy to take, rapidly and efficiently absorbed, and doesn't have the fillers needed to make pills or the bitter aftertaste. It is unconditionally guaranteed. So if you think Hoodia might be a useful tool in your quest for a slim and healthy body, this would seem to be a reliable place to get it .  –Di 

How did your weight loss and body sculpting resolutions fare last year?  Did you adopt a way of life that included lots of fruits, veggies, and lean protein with a good mix of aerobic, high output, resistance, and flexibility exercise? Did you have some fun doing all this and are you liking what the mirror and your energy levels are telling you about all you’ve been doing? If so, let’s celebrate! Here’s to you!!

If not, you might be tempted to rush into something drastic at the beginning of the year “just to get a jump on things.” One practice that rears its ugly head at about this time every year is the Master Cleanse. Originally designed as a way to detoxify the body by abstaining from foods that contain pesticides, heavy metals and various other forms of toxins for a period of time, some people have promoted Burroughs’ plans as a weight loss program. Is it? Does it work?

Here’s the basic plan. For more details, if you really want to learn about this, you can get Stanley Burroughs’ book, Master Cleansers and read it yourself. I would not recommend you buy pre-made “kits.” The necessary items are cheap and readily available in the English-speaking world.

For 10 days, more or less, you will ingest only three things, all liquids. Starting the evening before the first day and continuing through the entire cleanse, you make yourself some herbal laxative tea and drink it. There are a number of brands that will do the trick. You are looking for tea that contains Senna leaf. Just read the ingredients of whatever laxative or “diet” teas you can find and look for this ingredient with as few others as possible. This will act, probably, before the night is through, so be prepared. It causes quite as bit of commotion in the lower gastrointestinal tract, so expect pronounced physical sensations, including some cramp-like feelings.

Then, in the morning, there is the salt water flush. You mix two teaspoons of salt in a quart of warm water and drink the whole thing. Do not stray far from the bathroom until it has worked through your system.

Next, over the course of the day, you drink about six 8-10 oz glasses of a sort of zesty lemonade. To make a glass, you mix 2 Tbs of freshly squeezed lemon or lime juice, 2 Tbs grade B (darker color, more nutrients) maple syrup, 1/10 tsp cayenne pepper, and 8 oz. of spring water. It tastes better if you make it fresh, but you can make a whole day’s supply at once and keep it in the frig.

That’s your diet for 10 or so days. Then you go on a day or so of citrus fruit juice, then fruits, then vegetable broth, then vegetable soup, then slowly back to normal.

If you would like to read the journal of someone undergoing this cleanse for the first time, here’s a link: http://yestheyrefake.net/lemonade_diet_cleanse_journal.htm It’s a little graphic in places so be forewarned.

This is a starvation diet. All-in-all, it has about 650-700 calories per day with very limited vitamin and mineral content, virtually no protein, and no fat, and no fiber. The weight you lose is water and muscle and maybe a little fat. Your metabolism will slow, so when you start eating food again, the weight will come back fast. When you stop stimulating your colon with that senna tea, it may have forgotten how to deal with the relatively mild stimulus of natural food and you may get clogged up until it recovers.

Here’s a pretty good description of the whole concept from the Chicago Tribune:

Experts are appalled, but `master cleanse’ has a large following (Chicago Tribune)

What’s a body to do? There’s no such thing as a quick fix when it comes to managing our precious bodies. The things that work quickly aren’t really fixes, are they? The best fix I’ve found is in the book by Tom Venuto, Burn the Fat...  He really has been there, done that, and tells you exactly how you can do it, too.   –Di

technorati tags:master, cleanse, weight, loss, maple, syrup, diet, starvation, diet, detox

So how much weight have you gained so far since the week before Thanksgiving (pardon my geocentrism, to our non-U.S. readers)?  A recent study said most Americans gain only a pound or two, while there are others of us who put on five to seven pounds

So what’s a body to do? It’s a matter of choices. Do you drink the egg nog or have a glass of red wine? Do you pour the gravy onto your meet, potatoes and dressing or put on just a little to moiston them up? Do you put butter and cream in the mashed potatoes?

When you go to the mall for after-CHristmas shopping, where do you park? Do you take an extra lap around the mall just for the sight-seeing and the exercise? Did you know neighborhood CHristmas lights are even better seen on foot? What do you do at halftime of the football games? Reach for another brew, some more pizza, and settle back to watch the pretty girls? Or take the chance to get in some lunges, crunches, and maybe some running in place to wake up the metabolism?

I think you have the idea. Then comes January. Do not despair when you look in the mirror! Putting on those fes pounds temporarily isn’t so bad. What’s bad is if youy leave them there and add to them the next year. So take the New Year holiday to map out your goals for the next year and lay out your exact wellness plan with respect to what and when you will eat, what and when you will exercise, and how you will manage the inner game so you enjoy the whole process of uncovering the fitter, more beautiful (handsome) you!  –Di

Even Slight Holiday Weight Gain Can Set Stage For Obesity, Health Risks (Science Daily)

Although some Americans gain five to seven pounds with a diet of big meals and sweets between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Day, most people only gain a pound or two during the holidays, according to a UT Southwestern Medical Center registered dietitian.

technorati tags:holidays, weight, gain, diet, weight, loss, obesity, fitness, nutrition

I am always looking for ways to keep moving that are fun and burn lots of calories as part of my weight loss program. What could be better than belly-dancing? If you have ever seen professionals who have trained for a long time, you know it is an art form, as well as using many different parts of the body. Also, in order to practice, you have to look into the mirror. That in itself should provide incentive to keep it up as you move from not-so-svelte and not-so-skillful to ever more svelte and ever more skillful. Might do great things for your romantic life as well.

Can you believe so august an institution as the Mayo Clinic is actually saying good things about belly-dancing for weight loss on their web site?

Actually, many types of dancing are also excellent forms of exercise. So pick one that fits your style and go sign up for classes. See you on the dance floor!  –Di

Belly-dancing: A good exercise for weight loss? - MayoClinic.com

technorati tags:lose, weight, loss, belly-dancing, dancing, exercise

The CBS News team leads off with a description of the struggles of a young woman in her nearly lifelong battle of the bulge. She deserves a lost of respect for dropping 57 pounds, with 50 more to go. Then she will have the slightly less arduous task of keeping those pounds at bay.

It’s no secret some of us tend to put on the weight easier than others, even with identical lifestyles. We would do well under spartan conditions. Dr. Liebel, the scientist standing in for weight researchers everywhere in this report points out that there are probably 30 or 40 genes that affect body weight and goes on to mention two hormones that have particularly noticeable effects in mice that have been genetically engineered to lack active forms of them. One, grehlin, tells the mice you are really hungry. The other, leptin, kills their appetites and stimulates their metabolisms.

So wouldn’t it be wonderful if there was an anti-grehlin vaccine? There is, but it doesn’t work in obese people. And imagine what injecting antibodies against something your body naturally makes might do to you.

Well then, how about injecting some leptin? Generally, leptin levels are normal or even above normal in obese people so it’s not whether or not we have it, but whether we respond to it that counts. In the very small population of obese people who have a genetic defect in producing that hormone, it probably would have an appetite-reducing effect, but we’re not talking about many people here. And even for those people, the question of what would happen over the long term is wide open.

The golden age of bariatric pharmaceuticals doesn’t appear likely to dawn soon. While there are people who are have inborn abnormalities in their metabolic genes, there don’t seem to be many who have any one particular defect. So the treatment would have to be tailored to each individual’s specific genetic makeup to be effective. So for the vast majority of us who tend to be a bit overweight, this approach would be prohibitively expensive relative to the effects derived, not very efficient, and could lead to physiologically devastating consequences.

All in all, the magic pill in weight control is made up of knowledge, determination, and action. Onwards!  –Di

Is Obesity About Willpower Or Wiring? (CBS News)

technorati tags:weight, loss, genetics, leptin, grehlin, diet

We love to eat, right? And from every direction, including our own inner Moms, we hear, “Don’t eat (much, anyway)!” Well, here’s an article that says eating certain things can actually be a help to our weight loss efforts.

Sounds crazy, huh? To be fair, I don’t think the author means we should go out and load up on these 8 items in addition to our usual feasts. In think she means to eat these INSTEAD of the sugary starchy things we love so much.

Here’s the list with brief comments from me, but read the article to get the author’s perspective.

Fiber - both soluble and insoluble. The foods that are fiber rich help you feel fuller longer and some of them keep things moving.

High moisture content fruits and veggies - also fill you up and many are just full of vitamins and other nutrients.

Lean protein - helps keep you from getting hungry again so soon and good for maintaining or building muscle when accompanied by resistance exercise.

Foods that make you work - like peanuts or soybeans in the shell. Slow down your eating process so you can enjoy every bite and maybe feel satisfied sooner. One of my personal favorites is steamed or boiled (in a flavorful broth) whole artichokes. They take forever to eat, taste wonderful, have very few calories, and are good for you.

Sugarless gum - she says it gives you a shot of flavor with virtually no calories and thus save you a snack. Maybe for some people that is true. For me, the taste of sweet is enough to set off my snack hunt for real.

Hot beverages - fill you up and give you some great flavors at no or virtually no calories if you choose well. The heat makes you sip so it lasts longer. Only works if you stay away from sugar and cream. Herbal and green teas are good choices. Lots of flavor without having to add anything.

Spicy hot foods - very satisfying, usually eaten slowly, and the “heat” (capsaicin) is a known calorie burner itself.

Pre-portioned snacks - either the ones you buy in 100 - 200 calorie portions or ones you measure out yourself. The prepared ones are often loaded with sodium and other “flavor enhancers” that one would be better without, of course. Some fruit with a half cup of nonfat cottage cheese or, if your diet is OK with carb snacks, some air-popped popcorn come to mind as possibilities.

8 Foods That Help You Lose Weight! (BruDirect.com)

technorati tags:weight, loss, lose, weight, diet, plan