Book Excerpt for Relax to Lose Weight

Relax to Lose Weight -- Extract

How to Shed Pounds Without Starvation Dieting, Gimmicks or Dangerous Diet Pills, Using the Power of Sensible Foods, Water, Oxygen and Self-Image Psychology

Melissa Martin

Cover graphic design by Drew at idrewdesign on Fiverr.com.

The right of Melissa Martin to be identified as the author of this book has been asserted in accordance with Sections 77 and 78 of the Copyrights and Patents Act 1988.

Except for use in any review, the reproduction or utilization of this work in whole or in part in any form by any electronic, mechanical or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including xerography, photocopying, and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, is forbidden without the written permission of the author.

All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.

Introduction

Maybe so many Americans (and millions of other people around the world) are obese because losing weight has been made to seem like such hard work.

Going to meetings, counting calories, running until we drop, counting fat grams, keeping a journal (which often includes writing down every single bite you took during the day), buying (and using) expensive exercise machines . . . whew!

I don't know about you, but I need to eat a lot of calories just to keep up with the typical weight loss program.

We're stressed out enough by the rest of our lives. Heck, we're stressed out by being overweight. Who wants to add more items to their "To Do List?"

I don't want to add stress to your life. I don't want you to count calories. I don't want you to go to meetings. I don't want you to run long, boring hours as "cardio." I don't want to control every bite of what you eat. I don't want you to write a food blog or journal. I don't want you to waste money on diet pills. If you like certain protein bars or shakes and they're convenient to eat on the run, that's fine, but they're not required. I don't want you to pay for a gym membership or an exercise machine.

Most of what I'll ask you to do consists of -- are you ready for this? -- sitting down and relaxing.

Obesity is a serious problem.

Why Do You Want to Lose Weight

According to experts in the field, people want to lose weight for many reasons. But boiled down, there're only two:

1. You want to look better.

2. You fear current or future health problems caused by carrying excess pounds.

I wrote this book to help you look and feel better -- the simple and easy way.

Weight loss should be simple and easy -- or it won't last.

That's why too many people see their weight bounce up and down like yo-yos -- they get so exhausted from their weight loss programs they have to stop and rest, and so the weight soon returns.

Look at it this way . . .

If your goal is just immediate weight loss, you can achieve that simply by spending the next entire twenty-four hours fasting (don't even drink any water) and exercising (walk as far as you can, stop and rest, continue walking).

You'll lose weight all right, but will you keep it off? Probably not. The next day, you'll sleep all morning and then eat three times as much food as normal.

The Seed of This Book

Late last year I read a dieting book that gave a weight loss "tip" that enraged me.

Because all physical activity burns up calories, this book advised readers to be constantly moving some part of their body. That means tapping their feet or twitching their fingers. Work, church, movie theaters or any other place where you can't accomplish any major physical movement are perfect for this.

The author's rationale is that all such movement burns calories. Yes, of course tapping your finger all day doesn't use up a lot of calories -- but the calories it does burn are calories you no longer need to lose.

And over time, those calories can add up to a significant amount of weight that's no longer on your body.

So why did that advice outrage me?

Maybe it's because I have a tendency to be nervous. Continuously tapping your finger is not a healthy activity.

Besides, if you're in a public place you may be a stress "spreader." I know many times at work and in other places, I've been stressed out by people's nervous habits, including nonstop shifting around in their chairs and tapping their fingers (especially drumming their fingernails).

What's even worse is that acting nervous not only bugs the people around you, but our own feelings tend to correspond to our physical states. So when we act nervous, we FEEL nervous.

If you're always jittery, people won't notice and admire you for losing weight -- they'll be too busy trying to move away from you because you make them feel nervous.

What's the point of losing weight if you're always acting like a cokehead who hasn't snorted a line in two weeks?

And how can you have perfect health when you're all stressed out?

You can't.

Sometimes what seems like a good idea doesn't work in real life.

Weight Loss is About a Lot More Than Food and Blood Sugar Levels

Here's another example that affected my thinking, eventually leading to this book.

In my opinion, the best eating plan to lose weight and improve your health is the Zone Diet by Dr. Barry Sears.

I've read all his books. I've been on it as much as practically possible. And I have lost a lot of weight -- 38 pounds in the past seven months.

So it works. I absolutely believe it's the healthiest way for everybody to eat. But one thing Dr. Sears says in his books irritates me.

Perhaps it's because of his scientific training.

According to research, he writes, we feel "hungry" when our blood sugar levels fall below a certain amount.

The Zone Diet advises you to eat what you need and no more, spreading your meals throughout the day. According to Dr. Sears, this will prevent your blood sugar levels from falling far enough to make you feel hungry from one meal to the next.

According to Dr. Sears, the Zone Diet keep your blood sugar over "hunger signal" levels. Therefore, you don't feel hungry between meals. So you aren't tempted to eat too much.

Yeah, right.

I knew it was B.S. the first time I read it. And my own experience with the Zone Diet reinforces that opinion.

I keep to the Zone as much as I can -- enough to lose 38 pounds in 7 months -- but I'm perfectly capable of feeling hunger almost right after eating a full meal for men (according to the Zone plan), even though I'm a woman.

I used to deliver pizzas. Sometimes I'd eat a (Zone) Balance Bar while on a delivery, then return to the store and still have room to stuff my face with several slices of a "mistake" pizza.

I've never tickled my throat to induce vomiting so I could stuff even more food down my mouth, as ancient Romans reputedly did. However, I have many times felt totally full -- even stuffed -- after one plate, then gone back to the line for a second plate full of food.

I'm willing to bet you've done that too.

The Zone Diet worked for me, but not because every Zone meal and snack made me feel "just" satisfied when I really wanted to feel stuffed to the gills.

It worked because I combined it with meditation and other techniques I've learned over the years.

That brings home the point an effective diet is not just about the food you eat, or even how much food you eat.

Those things are important, but what's going on inside your head has the most effect on your diet's ultimate, long-term success or failure.

And yet your mind is blocked because you've been brainwashed into thinking losing weight is hard work.

Wouldn't it be great, I thought, if somebody could write a book about losing weight the EASY way?

So I did.

You're welcome.

Chapter 1

Why Lose Weight

Weight loss experts know the two major reasons people want to lose weight are:

1. To improve appearance

2. To improve health

I suspect most people have both these motivations, but one or the other predominates.

Some people argue we should ignore #1 because it's politically incorrect. We should see the value in people based on who they are on the inside -- on their character and personality.

I can't really say those people are wrong, because this area is subjective.

For the record, I love, honor, cherish the inner beauty and appreciate the intelligence and character of many people . . . old and young, men and women, of all races, weak and strong, conventionally beautiful and conventionally ugly, thin and fat -- but that doesn't mean I want to have sex with all or any of them.

Yes, it's true many people are in a gray area. They're not physically attractive at first glance, but when you get to know and like them the idea of sex with them becomes more comfortable, even attractive.

So, within limits, I do agree #1 should not be so important.

But since when did most people do what they *should* do?

We're Affected by Physical Appearances, Probably More Than We Admit

Let's face it, when I'm walking around a shopping center or on the beach it's not a guy's inner personality that catches my eye and makes my heart thump and my vagina moisten -- it's his broad shoulders, muscular chest and six pack abs.

I absolutely agree beauty is subjective and many men vary in their own sexual desires more than the mainstream media would have us believe. Not all men want a perfect 36-24-36 Barbie doll. Not even most.

Some men do prefer a three hundred pound woman.

But if your particular partner/husband/boyfriend prefers a hundred thirty pound woman and you're three hundred pounds, you've got a situation to deal with.

And if you don't have a partner/husband/boyfriend and you want one, you're much more likely to attract favorable male attention if you weigh one hundred thirty pounds than if you weigh three hundred.

It's a simple matter of odds. Because fewer men want three hundred pounds, they're harder to find.

Yes, the Internet has made this process a lot easier than it used to be. However, it's also true you're looking for men who have other favorable qualities besides lusting after your flesh. The more of those you can meet and date, the more likely you are to find not only one who lusts for you, but one you lust for in return.

There are also many studies verifying in our "shallow" society good looking people (body weight is not all of this, but part of it) get promoted more often, make more money and are more liked and trusted.

I Agree Health Is Most Important

These days, however, many women are not focused on what other people (men or women) think of them -- they're concerned about themselves, including their health.

So I have no problem with women making the politically correct choice to not lose weight to adhere to the body profile standards of the mainstream media and most men.

However, I must part company with the line of political correctness which claims body size is simply an individual choice or caused by your genes, and heavy people would all be fine of society would just stop "oppressing" them by telling them they should lose weight.

I'm totally against all forms of discrimination.

However, obese people aren't nearly as oppressed by society as they are by the extra fat cells they carry in their bodies.

The medical evidence is clear, political correctness notwithstanding. Excess weight is a health risk.

So Reason #2 for losing weight is the most important, at least in my opinion. After all, you won't care how you look to people when you're dead.

The negative health effects of excess weight are many.

Increased risk of coronary heart disease, sleep apnea, diabetes, fatty liver disease, gout, arthritis, stroke, higher blood pressure, some cancers, gallstones, injuries from falling and more.

Pregnant obese women are more than twice as likely to suffer from blood clots in the lungs, which can even be fatal.

Obese people are at greater risk during surgery because even minor procedures are more difficult.

Recently I read a fascinating book HOW NOT TO DIE by Dr. Jan Garavaglia, M.D., a long time medical examiner. She's performed thousands of autopsies.

She tells how the obese corpses she examines all have enlarged hearts, yellow-tinged granules of cholesterol in their coronary arteries and sacs of diverticulosis in their colons.

Obesity is Either a Cause of, Or Another Medical Condition Associated with Insulin Resistance

Current medical research is showing many conditions we think of as separate diseases are really related manifestations of insulin resistance caused by eating too many carbohydrates and keeping the body in a state of permanent inflammation.

I have a friend who's worked a long time for a welfare agency taking disability applications. She tells me when an obese woman sit down at her desk she could write half the application by rote: arthritis, high blood pressure, diabetes and, in more advanced cases, heart problems and/or cancer.

She says she connected the dots between these conditions long before medical science started talking about Metabolic Syndrome or Syndrome X.

Most people who begin diet programs such as Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig, buy diet books, take diet pills and sign up for weight loss programs at hypnosis clinics are women.

Therefore, most experts conclude it's mainly women who want to lose weight.

I believe this is only a partial truth.

Men Want to Lose Weight Too, But Call it "Building Muscle"

I suspect many men also want to look better and improve their health but they're just less likely to seek help (just as women go to the doctor a lot more than men).

After all, many men buy exercise programs promising them six pack abs. What are six pack abs but ordinary stomach muscles currently hiding behind a beer belly? The trainers selling these products understand men must lose a lot of fat to have the muscular body they desire.

Most men want to appear sexually attractive.

Most men want to live longer and in better physical condition.

They are more likely to take their health for granted and neglect their appearance than women, but may also be motivated to improve their appearance by a divorce or to improve their health by a diagnosis of high blood pressure.

They would be embarrassed to go to Jenny Craig, but men run, swim, cycle, lift weights, and go to gyms. They don't spend all that effort for nothing. They'll explain it's about health, fitness and building muscles -- but that's just another way of saying "look sexier and have better health." So to me it's just another side of the same coin.

If you're a man, welcome!

This book is for you too.

The good news is everybody's health improves as soon as you start eating in a more healthy fashion.

You'll start looking better.

You'll start feeling better.

You'll reduce your risk of coronary heart disease, diabetes, arthritis and high blood pressure.

(NOTE: as mentioned in the Disclaimer, if you already have any of these conditions, check with your doctor before changing your diet.)

You'll have more energy.

You'll accomplish more, smile more, enjoy being with people more and enjoy life.

Start with your next meal.