Eating less is something that many people want to do.  It is often viewed as the ultimate goal when trying to lose weight.  Still, many people have issues with this.  They might have the motivation and reasons for doing it, but when they aren't busy and food is available it is often difficult to resist eating excessively.  This is because it gives them a break from the reality of what they are or aren't doing.  It also might satisfy a nutritional need in the moment, like raising blood sugar.  Still, our dietary choices aren't always beneficial to our health even if they make us temporarily feel better.

Here are some reasons for this behavior:

Lack of minerals in the food we're eating
Lack of appropriate foods that sustain our energy levels for long periods
Emotions that are not being addressed

While there are nutritional and emotional strategies to deal with all of these, there is an easy to follow formula for eating less.  This might not always be the appropriate guideline for everyone, but it is something that offers a new way of viewing dieting that can encourage actual solutions.  Here it is:

Emotional Ease ( The Sedona Method or EFT can help) + Nutrient Dense Foods and Herbs ( Some of the Superfoods that David Wolfe promotes and any Tonic Herb that works with you) + Creative Expression or Flowing Productivity = Lower Food Intake With Less Effort

With some people, especially if they are into meditation, just the first two categories are enough to easily reduce food intake.  By being in a clear, content emotional state and eating foods which empower you and increase feelings of wellbeing you will naturally have less desire for unhealthy foods or excessive eating.  You might find yourself being content with eating almost half as much as you usually do, especially if you are eating foods that are high in minerals.  Being really productive toward something that you really are drawn can really help those who still find it hard to resist over-eating.

Finding something that you are passionate about gives you something to focus on instead of food, especially if you have an outlet to pursue it.  If you don't know what it is, you can find what you are naturally drawn toward that you feel can benefit yourself and others in some way.  Eating foods which give you more energy is another way to get more into a mindset of exploration and productivity, which can help to generate passion and creativity.  Explore the world of tonic herbalism if you have no other interest to focus on besides eating.

One tonic herb which is remarkable for helping people to eat less by having an abundance of energy is Astragalus.  Renowned Herbalist and Tonic Bar visionary, Truth Calkins, suggested in an interview that he experimented with eating high amounts of Astragalus and found that he had so much energy throughout the day that he actually forgot about eating.  He also recommends Astragalus for people trying to lose weight as it helps with metabolism.  The Jing Herbs Astragalus is the one he recommended.  Dragon Herbs also has good products, including Astragalus.

Another herb that is extraordinary for weightloss and just eating less is Gynostemma.  This can be bought as a tea, such as the very powerful Spring Dragon Longevity Tea by Dragon Herbs, or as an extract.  It has properties that increase relaxation and calmness among other beneficial weight-loss aiding aspects.  This is a very inexpensive herb, compared to many tonic herbs, that can be taken throughout the day to ensure greater "adaptobility" to life and increased resisiliency to over-eating habits.  Just taking high quality gynostemma and astragalus products, in itself, is a powerful way to reduce the need to over-eat.  As eating is often emotional in nature, products like these that are very uplifting and emotional-relieving provide the extra strength needed to overcome our habitual patterns.

According to Dr. Brian Clement, director of the Hippocrates Health Institute, Chlorella and other algae products help to reduce cravings for sweet foods.  He says this is because of their high protein content (over 60 percent protein), which is also very bio-available.  In addition, they contain high amounts of minerals, enzymes, and oxygenating chlorophyl, which help to satiate and increase overall vitality.  Some people, however, might not digest Chlorella well due to lack of a certain enzyme.  If this is the case, consider trying other products with similar attributes.

AFA Blue Green Algae is also a powerful supplement for eating less because of it's high protein content and neurotransmitter increasing qualities.  Many people who take it find they can effortlessly eat less and have noticably more energy.  The PEA, which Blue Green Algae contains, is a natural mood elevator and appetite suppressant.  E3 Live products and Ancient Sun nutrition products are considered to be two of the best sources of blue green algae products. Both offer a high quality dried algae product which contains active enzymes and is very easy to use.  You can just stir it into water or even put it on salads.  Adding it to smoothies or elixirs is another idea.

With these foods and herbs, along with a clear and exciting direction, you can be empowered to go beyond the habit of emotional eating.

How have you conquered over-eating?  Do you have any other solutions that weren't listed?

When we are first trying to meditate, our thoughts often appear to get in the way.  We may have underlying anxiety that makes it difficult to just breathe and be in the moment.  Here's what I've found to be helpful with this.

1.  Meditate while grounded.  This means that you have part of you connected to the earth.  New research has found that grounding or earthing increases overall health and reduces anxiety.

2.  Look at a tree or another plant and notice how it just is, without having to fight against wind or other forces.  It moves with it, without trying to change it.

3.  Try having a calming or energizing tea or food before meditating.  This could include Reishi Mushroom extract or even Dark or Raw Chocolate.  Dark Chocolate, for some people, has a calming yet energizing effect that encourages contentment and alertness.  See if this or other foods help you to be more "in the moment" during meditation.

4.  Drink water and focus on the flowing aspect of it, especially as you absorb it.  This might help you tune into that aspect of yourself.  Having a cup of springwater next to you might be very helpful.

5.  Do EFT first or just tap on some of the spots.  This could help by increasing calmness and overall energy flow.

6.  Let go of something that creates tension in you.  This can bring you to a meditation-like state without trying to meditate.  Letting go is a very powerful way to increase your ability to meditate.

7.  Listen to music that utterly inspires you and connect with that sense of upliftment.

In my experience, procrastination is often the result of two different causes.  One of them is feeling as if the goal is insurmountable.  When we feel hopeless about something, we naturally will focus our attention elsewhere.  Another is not having enough energy or drive to accomplish whatever it is that we want to do or feel that we have to do.

One of the quickest ways out of procrastination is to realize that you likely are dealing with one or more of these aspects.  In many cases, it is actually our energy state which is leading us to feel a certain way about the task and have less than optimal motivation for doing it.  You can notice whether it is your energy level just by seeing how vibrant you feel in this moment.  We often think that we need to feel stressed or less than excited before we finish a task but this actually can make you less likely to do it.  By reversing this pattern and feeling good now, you can shift into feeling up to the task and complete it with less effort.  The question then is, how do we do this?

1.  Food - Find out which foods make you feel good and seek out those to increase your overall vitality.  In my experience certain foods, like raw cacao, allow me to experience greater energy levels and contenment very quickly.  Notice which foods effect you positively and eat more of those.

2.  Letting go - Learn the Sedona Method, which is a letting go technique and release your feelings that are creating tension and making you feel less vibrant.  This will impact your level of productivity greatly.

3. EFT - Learn EFT and tap on some of the points for increased energy and sense of balance and relaxation.  You don't even necessarily have to do the entire protocol or even have a specific thing you are working on to experience benefits.  You can just tap on a few of the points for a little more vitality.

Another way to step out of procrastination is to ask yourself what the smallest step is that you can do to move forward on whatever it is you are working on.  By asking what the smallest step is you move away from resistance and into realistic opportunities that you can easilty choose to take.  Though they may seem to be unimportant steps, they add up and lead to greater and greater steps by increasing momentum.  By just concentrating on the smallest next step, you move into action verses not doing anything.

Weight loss, as anybody can imagine, would be much easier if you felt incredible.  By feeling well, you can more easily elude temptations and cravings for foods that you really don't want to eat.  In this article, you'll learn three easy foods that anyone can add to their diet to increase their overall feeling state and metabolism, making weightloss much easier and more fun.

1.  Coconut - Coconut products, when they are natural, help to increase metabolism and thyroid function.  This, for many people, leads to added weight loss and more energy.  Also, the saturated fat in coconut is said to convert very quickly to energy rather than being stored as fat.  Much of the fat in coconut is in the form of medium chain tryglycerides, which are quick sources of fuel similar to a carbohydrate rather than a slow burning fat.

2.  Cacao or Chocolate -  Chocolate is one of the most concentrated sources of magnesium.  This is a mineral which is depleted by stress and relieves tension as well as increases focus and feelings of contentment.  Chocolate also contains chromium in high amounts, which helps to balance blood sugar levels.  Often times our intense cravings or emotional eating can actually be due to low blood sugar levels.  This can make us crave things to raise it or our overall mood might drop do to low amounts of energy.  Either way, eating is often a result.  In addition to helping with this, chocolate or cacao also contains various components which help us to feel better overall.  One of these is PEA which is present naturally when we are feeling love and increases focus and feelings of contentment along with MAO inhibitors which allow feel-good neurotransmitters to stay in flow longer.  Chocolate also contains one of the endorphins that is present after excersize, known as andandamide.  These qualities all make it easier to eat less.

3.  Blue Green Algae - Blue Green Algae is a very powerful weight loss and mood improving food in many ways.  It contains a component called PEA which increases feelings of wellbeing and is prevalent in high amounts in people naturally when they are feeling love.  It also contains phycocyanin, the blue quality of blue green algae, which is said to increase neurotransmitter production.  This can potentially increase feel-good serotonin and dopamine levels, making us feel better.  It also has a lot of minerals and bio-available protein which can increase our level of satiation.

Many people feel that they cannot meditate. They might try once in a while but feel that they cannot get into the "zone". One way to understand how to meditate is by listening to music and feeling it inside. When you listen to music, you are naturally letting go to at least some extent and connecting with something beyond your thoughts. This is essentially the goal of meditation, at least in my interpretation. Find something you appreciate a lot and listen to it as you notice a sense of something higher within yourself. Feel the music resonating with you and notice how you are fully in the moment and connected to a sense of vibrancy. Now, just try to do that without music and notice what's inside.

Whenever you feel "stuck", consider that you are only holding on to a perception of being stuck. You likely have many options in front of you, It's just that you are only allowing in a few ideas. Still, even if you really have only a couple different directions to take, the perception of being "forced" does not really create more empowerment, does it? If you feel like you are in this position, where you cannot get motivated to do something you really don't want to do but feel that you have to, you still have many choices about the way you look at the situation. This can help you to be more recourceful because you feel more empowered. By stepping into a state of inspiration verses hopelessness, you have a greater ability to be more productive. This can lead you to accomplish something that you previously didn't think would happen because you were lacking motivation.

One way to increase you sense of power, or choice, is by deciding to actually want to do whatever task you are doing. Even if you feel "hopeless" about it in the beginning, forget the fact that you "have to" do it for a moment and choose to be excited about some aspect of it. You can always find something interesting or exciting about anything. Use that to your advantage and shift your focus into one of excitement.

1. Move like you would if you felt powerful and inspired. Tony Robbins says this really changes how you feel.

2. Breathe deeper and stand straighter with your chest out somewhat if you can. Imagine that you are someone who can handle just about anything.

3. Notice that any sense of fear or worry that you have is just based on a thought. They are not necessarily true. See if you can doubt them in some way. If you can, there must be a more empowering viewpoint for you to take.

4. Allow any feelings that you feel to be there and let them go via the Sedona Method or EFT.

5. View situations that cause you to feel doubtful as challenges that lead to growth.

6. Tap on the Donna Eden "energy medicine" points.

7. Practice Tai Chi or Qi Gong and carry that sense of flow with you when you are dealing with challenging situations.

8. Eat a food that makes you feel more empowered, such as chocolate or goji berries. Drinking more water can be helpful also.

9. Carry a quartz crystal with you.

10. Feel the empowerment that is naturally within you even if it feels covered by feelings.