The Truth Within

Do you find yourself constantly seeking out diet advice or jumping on board with the newest weight-loss program? Do you feel like your thoughts are consumed with what to eat or what not to eat? Do you wish you could be free from the non-stop chatter of the monkey-mind, obsessing about how your health or your body is not enough?

The fact that the weight loss industry rakes in almost $70 billion a year tells me that this is indeed an epidemic.

Weight loss programs and products start with the premise that there is something wrong with you. The product or the program will fix you and you will be cured.

This is not true. There is nothing wrong with you. You are exactly where you are meant to be right now. And you have everything inside to be radiantly healthy right now.

Are you ready to release the struggle and find that truth of healthy radiance inside?

The truth will be discovered with presence.

To begin, be present with your thoughts. Can you observe that constant monkey-mind chatter? Does it babble on non-stop: comparing you to others, obsessing about food, convincing you to try this or that diet?

If you can observe that monkey-mind you can discover the fundamental truth that you are not your thoughts. You are the calm, non-reactive observer; the truth within.

When you practice observing your thoughts, don’t try to change them. Simply observe them. You can even say, “How interesting, there is that monkey-mind again.” You might have to say that all day long! But the more you practice presence with your thoughts the more you will realize that the thoughts are not you.

There is no need to follow the commands of the monkey-mind. You don’t need to spend your time and money on weight loss gimmicks and programs.

The key, once again, to weight release, comes back to presence.

Be present with food: before, during, and after eating.

As you prepare your food, admire its beauty and vibrancy. (This is most easily accomplished with vegetables and fruits; just saying!) Appreciate the journey your food took to arrive in your kitchen. Give thanks that you have enough to eat. Be present with the food preparation process, and spend a bit of time plating your food in a beautiful way.

As you eat, maintain that presence. Sit down. Put away technology. Eat slowly, paying attention to flavors and textures. Consider those nutrients heading into the body, assisting your immune system, repairing your cells, giving you energy. When you feel satisfied, stop eating!

After you eat, notice how your body feels. Does your body feel content, steady with energy to sustain you for several hours? Do you notice any unease in your stomach? Do you feel a rush of buzzy energy followed by a crash a few hours later? These are signals that can guide your food choices in the future.

They body knows what it needs to eat for optimal functioning and radiant health. You can discover that truth when you are present.

Now, be present in the instances when your monkey-mind takes over and demands food even when your body is not hungry. Food is often used as a self-soothing mechanism to numb uncomfortable emotions. These patterns and behaviors are habitual and may feel impossible to release. But you can release them. They are not your truth.

Again, it starts with presence.

Perhaps you had a difficult day at work. You feel like you made a huge mistake and now your monkey-mind is releasing an endless stream of criticisms. Your conditioned behavior is to reach for the chocolate/potato chips/ice cream; to eat mechanically without presence until the dopamine from food covers up those uncomfortable thoughts.

When this happens, don’t try to stop the conditioned behaviors. Instead, become the present, non-judgmental observer. Say, “How interesting, this is a conditioned behavior used to numb unease.” Be present with the behavior. Watch it and realize that you are not the behavior, you are the impartial observer.

Presence allows you to discover the truth within. The truth within is not your monkey-mind thoughts of want or inadequacy, nor your conditioned behaviors that prevent optimal health. The truth within knows that the body thrives when one is present with food.

You don’t need a diet guru or a commercial program to teach you how to be present. You can do this all by yourself!!

Be present with your thoughts and discover the truth of the observer within.

Be present with food: before, during, and after eating.

Be present with conditioned eating behaviors and understand that you are not the behaviors.

It is so simple and beautiful. Now, if it doesn’t sound simple, please let me know why! What questions do you have? How can I serve you in your journey to presence and the truth within? Email me: katie@awakenyourglow.com .