Weight Loss Journal (WLJ): Hypnosis Update

The BIG QUESTION is whether or not the Hypnosis helped me.

Of course, only time will tell. So I didn't know the answer to that question the next day, or even the next week.

But now -- six weeks have passed. So -- here's my assessment...

First of all -- here's how the Mark Patrick Hypnosis session worked.

During the first hour, the speaker talked about how the human body works. How and why we gain weight, and what we have to do to lose weight...good habits versus bad habits...he was quoting dozens of scientific studies...it was boring. SOOO BORING....I almost fell asleep several times...

(fake sleeping -- Sew Expo 2012)...

Here are some notes I took:

· The only way the body can lose weight is to burn more calories than you take in.

· MUSCLES are the only thing in your body that can burn calories.

·  Muscle cells can only start burning calories when you eat food.

·        Once they start burning calories, they burn for 3 hours.

· If you go for long periods of time with NO FOOD, your muscle cells go into a famine state...which slows your metabolism...

TO LOSE WEIGHT, I MUST:

1. Drink lots of water (to hydrate your muscle cells so they can burn calories)

2. Eat something every 3 hours...a piece of fruit, a handful of nuts, oatmeal, eggs.
    (EAT REAL FOOD...forget about low fat, light, skim milk, etc. Stay away from artificial sweeteners...)

3. Get 8 hours of sleep every night.

SLEEP:

· If you don’t get enough sleep at night, your muscles are not rested, they basically have to work twice as hard the next day...so one night of bad sleep will cost you 1300 calories the next day.

· The reason America is having so much trouble sleeping is because we’re not getting the natural tryptophan we used to get everyday in milk. Many protein foods (especially turkey) have natural tryptophan, but for hundreds of years, we got it every day via our dairy --which used to be delivered fresh to our door.  But then, they fired all the milkmen and started to pasteurize milk to give it a longer shelf life...no more tryptophan.

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So -- after the long, boring scientific lecture -- we got to the actual hypnosis part of the event.

FINALLY!!

There were about 50 participants in the room. And the speaker told us that we would be awake the entire time...we'd hear every word he said.

The whole point of hypnosis is to put everything we'd learned about losing weight...from our conscious mind into our subconscious mind.  Because, 80% of our daily actions are habits controlled by our subconscious mind.

(are you falling asleep yet?  sorry...)

Everybody in the room was told to think of a giant white board....and to write our SINGLE WORST EATING HABIT on that chalkboard.

For me -- that was easy -- Late Night Snacking.  I wrote that on my imaginary chalkboard...it was MY WORST SINGLE BAD EATING HABIT.  I might have had the perfect day -- oatmeal for breakfast, one hour in the pool, a light lunch, a frozen Healthy Choices supper...everything PERFECT.  Then, at 10:00, I'd start jonesing for something crunchy and/or salty...but, since I don't buy junk food or chips...I'd settle for 20 Ritz crackers with peanut butter....or a toasted English muffin with cheese...of course, two corn tortillas and some cheese at Midnight is NOT a good thing...

Yes -- I need help.

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Two weeks later, Monday, March 9 -- I realized I'd lost 6 pounds.  That was HUGE for me....

And, looking back at the last month, I definitely know the late night snacking isn't the problem it once was.....

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MMWI:   233.6....hey -- nobody said it was gonna be EASY.  It was Easter...the official CHOCOLATE HOLIDAY OF THE YEAR...and there was ham...and coconut custard pie... What would've happened if I hadn't walked on my treadmill FIVE days last week??!!  They don't call it an uphill battle for nothing...

I wrote an official EASTER post on Sunday.  Just in case you missed it...scroll down..