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People are obsessed with their weight and appearance, trying to gain perfect Hollywood bodies. Many people, however, get depressed just trying. Diet after diet has failed them. People starve themselves, skipping meals only later to binge. Author and Mind-Body Wellness expert Kathy Balland knows achieving optimal weight isn't about counting calories. The root of the problem lies in what drives people to eat what they eat.
While most diet books focus on calories, nutrients and exercise-Balland goes a step farther by looking at the reasons we eat. She suggests readers keep a diary of their emotions when they have cravings. She provides written exercises to explore our subconscious motives for eating, and she demonstrates how through meditation and affirmation, we can change how we think about ourselves. By teaching people how to connect with their Higher Power-be it God, family, friends, or a higher calling-Balland shows them how to get back in touch with their bodies and souls. People's feelings about themselves affect how they treat their bodies. "Lose the Diet" demonstrates how to love the body by loving oneself.
Lose the Diet: Transform Your Body by Connecting with Your Soul
Kathy Balland
Blissful Publications (2009)
ISBN 9780982183106
Reviewed by Carol Hoyer, PhD, for Reader Views (4/09)
Author Kathy Balland has written a very informative and educational book for those of us who continue to diet with and without success. She provides great insight on the mind-body connection, which most dieters don’t even consider.
A very important point in this book is that we as a society have lost connection to others, our inner feelings and ourselves. The author provides us with many scenarios that show we are not taking care of ourselves emotionally. We eat when we are stressed, depressed or just because we live in a fast-paced world and want instant gratification.
Many try to starve themselves to lose weight and others skip meals thinking this will help. Ms. Balland addresses several topics in her book to include: sleep or lack of, meditation, exercise and loving ourselves.
In the chapter on No Pain, No Gain the author discusses becoming mindful- connect with what is going on with us and look at why we are eating. She recommends that individuals write down what they are feeling emotionally when having cravings.
Although the subject matter is not new, the author approaches weight and happiness in a new way. She does not lecture, but gives straightforward guidance and makes one look at making changes in their life.
Her final chapter deals with a higher power- for some that might be God, family or friends - whatever keeps you going. She gives suggestions on several poems or books to read when one is feeling the need to binge eat. “Lose the Diet: Transform Your Body by Connecting with Your Soul” by Kathy Balland is a very good, easy to read book with a lot of great insight.
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