When we spend our lives in the present moment, with what we already have (the other side of wanting), we lose control. The things we love get lost or shattered or stolen. People leave us. People die. As soon as we realize the preciousness of what we already have, we realize someday we may lose it.

If weight loss could make us happy, our happiness would increase in direct proportion to weight loss. As you are well aware, no weight loss program ever promised that if you lost 50% of the weight you want to lose, you will be 50% happier.

But it doesn’t work that way. You will only be happy when you reach that weight goal. But how many of you reach that goal, and then lower the goal? Because they still feel comfortable, and they will continue to worry and fret about what they eat and their weight.

The Body Police Quiz is a tongue-in-check look at body image in our culture, but also hints at how to deal with those Body Police in real life. Take some time to shake up any negative body thoughts you have. Perhaps new perceptions can help you feel better in your body.

We live in a world of unexamined fat prejudice and size prejudice, especially against women. This results in a bias that influences researchers, impacting how research is carried out and interpreted. We end up with questionable research that few people question.

There are two forms of eating that can feel out-of-control: deprivation-driven eating and emotional eating. Most people think that out-of-control eating is mostly emotional. Actually, it is far more likely that ‘over’eating is deprivation-driven.

Body checking is a plague on the modern individual. Reflective surfaces have become the enemy. From the glass panes on passing cars to our cell phones (the REAL metaphorical ball-and-chain!) to the poorly lit changing rooms in our favorite shops, we are forced to view ourselves to the point of being even beyond what might be comfortable. However, when it becomes too much, uncomfortable - vulnerable, even - we start to no longer see ourselves staring back at us.

Everyone knows you can pick a number on the scale, change your food and exercise and get to that weight and stay there, right? Yet no scientific research exists which shows this this is possible. A quick look at the research and what you can do.

Sadly, some of the worst fat shaming comes from those who we pay to help us -- medical professionals. These well-meaning (or not) professionals have been reported to make negative comments about a patient’s weight, pressure patients to lose weight, and even dismiss worrying symptoms as mere byproducts of body size. While this is not only bad medicine, it is highly irresponsible.

Professionals tend to view “exercise resistance” as a behavioral problem or worse, a character flaw. They focus on education, motivation and other behavioral strategies to get us moving. However, if you are exercise resistant, if you have a conscious or unconscious block against becoming physically active, these strategies will not work for you. To become joyfully active, a shift away from “exercise think” is needed.

Research about intuitive eating was sparse in the 90s, but the more people experience success, the more the scientists are taking notice, and in the recent years, we are seeing significant research confirming intuitive eating works.  Following are some of the key earlier studies, plus other article relevant to intuitive eating.

Men and women are presenting to counseling in increasing numbers--not because they want to slow down their exercise, but because something is interfering with it. If these exercisers were willing to take a look at what they are doing, they would find that their activity is not about performance or reshaping their bodies, but about dealing with life. They would find exercise is essential to them to provide a feeling of mental well-being, to release their tension and anger, and even relieve anxiety and depression.  They also would find they have few other strategies to cope with these feelings.

The ongoing support of a spouse, parent, sibling, or friend is one of the most valuable tools a person with an eating disorder eating can have. This article focuses on helping someone with bulimia, but the article can apply to helping someone with anorexia, binge eating disorder and emotional eating as well.