Chocolate, for certain people, can be an effective weight-loss tool.  This is because it has a very high level of nutrition, which satiates faster than many other foods.  When you eat chocolate, particularly dark or raw chocolate, you "load up" your body with minerals and feel-good components that make over-eating less likely.  Because of this, it can be helpful to eat it before or after you eat what you would usually eat.  Do this and see if your desire to eat excessively or more than you really want to goes down considerably.

One thing to note is that chocolate does contain some amount of caffeine, or caffeine-like substance called theobromine.  This is generally much less stimulating than the same amount of coffee, especially if you eat raw cacao (raw chocolate), but some people might not react well to it.  Therefore, if you don't usually eat chocolate or drink coffee, it might be good to eat small amounts of chocolate at first to see if you feel well with it.

Still, for many, chocolate is an effective way to get a lot of the minerals that people are really "trying" to get through typical food.  When you are low in minerals, over-eating is likely to be more prominent.  Chocolate is one of the highest sources of some of the minerals that people are often lacking, such as magnesium and chromium, which makes it an incredible choice for weight-loss.

Weight loss is one of the most sought after benefits of increased health.  Many people even go to extremes with diet restriction and try to eat as little calories or "bad foods" as they can.  This often does not work very well.  While it can produce weight loss results, especially in the short term, it is very hard to rely only on willpower and restriction to do it.  Succeeding both short term and long term with weight loss requires a new way of viewing food.  When we look at food as something to avoid, this sets up a feeling of worry and guilt which can cause people to try to keep themselves from eating almost anything.  This is not a very sustainable lifestyle approach to weightloss.  Furthermore, it is not likely the best approach for overall health.  Food does not have to be limited by willpower in order to have wonderful weightloss results.  You can even eat until you are completely satisfied.  The key is to choose the foods that you both like and feel contribute to increased health and wellbeing.  This will eventually bring about a more normalized weight.  In the short term, however, there are foods that you can add to your diet for a likely quicker weightloss experience.  Again, by EATING these foods you can lose more weight.  This is because they both increase metabolism function and overall feelings of well-being, which contributes to weight loss.  They also begin to cancel out the foods that were causing weight gain.

Here are some incredible foods that can allow you lose weight more easily.  They might not work for everybody, as some people do not respond as well to certain foods, but they tend to work for a lot of people.

1. Fruit - Fruit can be an incredible satiating food when you eat enough of it to feel satisfied.  If you are craving carbohydrates and resort to eating less than vibrant types of foods, consider eating as much fruit as you feel like.  They contain moderate amounts of carbohydrate calories, but in a form that you can eat without experiencing health issues associated with processed carbohydrate foods.  Many people feel satiated by listening to their sweet tooth and eating an abundance of fruit in place of other options.

2. Astragalus - The amazing tonic herb Astragalus has incredible properties which allow us to feel more in balance and content.  It also increases overall energy considerably.  When you have enough energy, eating food that you really feel you shouldn't eat becomes less of an attraction.  You'll be more apt to go work on something than sit down and eat excessively.  Also, Astragalus is said to have metabolism increasing effects.

3. Goji Berries - This "happy berry' is known to increase feelings of well-being.  By doing that, it lessens the need to eat excessively because of emotional reasons.  It also contains high amounts of nutrition, including various minerals.  Since we often eat more food due to a lack of certain minerals, eating Goji Berries can help to satiate us.

4.  Cacao (raw chocolate) - Cacao or chocolate is an incredibly satiating food.  It contains very high amounts of minerals, especially the one's that many people are low in.  These are minerals that are often depleted due to stress and result in less of an ability to deal with stress.  When we eat raw cacao, as long as we respond well to it and don't completely overdo it, we are giving our bodies a food with the minerals to bring back more balance.  Cacao also contains powerful well-being qualities, including the endorphin anandamide and PEA which is known to increase concentration and contentment.  These qualities allow for an easier time transitioning to a better diet without feeling deprived.  When we feel well, we often eat better without as much willpower.  Certain types of cacao don't work well for some people.  Therefore, choose high quality cacao if you can.

5. Coconut Oil - This amazing oil that comes naturally in coconut products brings about quick weightloss results in many people.  It has powerful metabolism and thyroid function increasing effects, which allows for increased ability to lose weight.  It is also a wonderful food for a weightloss diet because it provides calories and a quick source of energy without being stored as fat. Unlike many foods, it is almost immediately used as fuel.  Rather than running low in energy, and being tempted for "pick me up foods" you don't really want to eat, you can have a more maintained state of energy by eating coconut oil during the day.

6.  Blue Green Algae - This amazing nutrient dense food contains high amounts of minerals, which satisfy appetite and allow for a greater feeling of balance and overall well-being.  In addition, it contains  PEA which is also in cacao (raw chocolate).  PEA is a mood balancing component that our bodies create more of when we are feeling in love.  It is known to increase overall contentment and concentration.  This allows for increased weightloss due to the emotional connection to food that many people have issues with and over-eat because of.  Blue Green Algae, for many people, satiates nutritionally and increases overall feelings of well-being to the point that over-eating naturally starts to fade.

7.  Raw Vegetables - Adding more raw vegetables to your diet will likely increase weightloss because they contain very little calories but have a lot of vitality inducing components.  They have a high water content, in a pure form, which increases our overall vitality.  Eat as many of these as you like and watch you start to transform your eating habits naturally.

There are many more foods that you can find that will help you to lose weight.  These are just some of them.

Experiment and listen to your body to find what you feel is right for yourself.

Coconut Oil is known to increase weightloss for many people.  It's other effects, for some people, can be even more powerful.  This article will detail some of the more subtle empowerment-oriented benefits of coconut oil.

1.  Coconut oil is very good for neurological health.  As a clean source of saturated fat, it is very good for the brain and nervous system.  While saturated fat has gotten negative reviews, especially regarding animal products, high quality saturated fat without toxins can actually improve biological functioning.  Coconut Oil is not at all connected to the potentially negative effects of other saturated fat sources.  In fact, it can help to reduce cholesterol in people who need it.  On the contrary, for people with too low cholesterol that may be suffering from hormone related depression, coconut oil has been found to increase cholesterol to a more appropriate level.  Dr. Gabriel Cousens has found this to be true and often suggests coconut oil or coconut butter to patients with this issue.  Cholesterol and saturated fat is also needed for myelin sheath regeneration, as that is what it is partly composed of.

2.  Coconut oil is a powerful Jing tonic.  This means that it nourishes our deep inner energy that is connected to our kidney's and adrenals as well as reproductive function.  It's powerful thyroid rejuvinating properties may account for some of this aspect.  Coconut oil stimulates the thyroid, which, in turn, increases metabolism leading to weight loss.  Coconut oil also has growth factors and other strength inducing qualities.  It's medium chain triglycerides, composing much of the fat content, is used very quickly as energy rather than being stored as fat.  This gives you more immediate energy and a sense of empowerment.  Eating coconut oil, either by itself or mixed into other foods, can promote activity, leading to more exercise due to this energy increasing quality.

3.  Coconut oil is a powerful anti-viral, anti-fungal, and anti-bacterial supplement.  It naturally increases immunity as well as protects against many microbes that have a lipid coating.  Taking coconut oil is a powerful way to increase resiliency against foreign microbes.  Sometimes, just increasing immunity brings a natural inner empowerment and sense of vitality.

If you are just becoming interested in health and nutrition or want to incorporate something into your lifestyle to give you more energy and vitality, green smoothies are likely the way to go.

This is because:

They are easy - you just blend fruit, leafy greens, and water.

They are fast - They take less than five minutes to make

They are alkaline - Alkaline is what many people are after, especially if there are health issues.  Leafy greens are some of the most alkaline foods in the world and drinking a lot of them gives more of that quality to you.  Alkalinity is associated with flexibility and calmness.  Alkaline foods are usually those with more alkaline minerals like magnesium and calcium.

One very prominent aspect of drinking green smoothies is less cravings for other foods.  Drinking highly alkaline, easily absorbed foods and juices often reduce cravings significantly because they are so energizing and give so much nutrition.

If you don't know where to start in your health journey, green smoothies are a great starting point.

To make them - Put as much greens in a blender as you want - Start with less or around a handful in the beginning - and fill up the blender with enough water to cover the greens.

  (If you are using a vitamix or other similar blender you can blend all the ingredients at once without the extra step of blending the greens and then blending again after adding fruit)

Blend for around 10 seconds.  Now add as much fruit as you want and blend again for another 10 to 30 seconds, until it looks completely blended.

The drink should be green but somewhat sweet tasting.  If you use fruit that you like, the drink will likely taste good overall.

Many people drink around a liter a day and experience significant health benefits.  For people trying to lose weight, green smoothies are a powerful tool.

For those who want more information on green smoothies check out:

Any book by Victoria Boutenko including Green For Life.  She also has many youtube video's online which talk about and show how to make green smoothies.

One way to diet effortlessly is to focus on other aspects besides food.  Even if you are eating the same foods, you can still eat less and lose weight without counting calories or restricting foods.  Trying to stop eating foods that you like can be very difficult and often doesn't work.  Inspiring yourself, however, is an antidote that actually works.  It is the real secret to eating well and increasing health without feeling deprived.  One way to inspire yourself is through momentum and productivity.  Once you see that you are going in a direction that you want to go in, in some aspect of your life, food becomes much less of a pull.  You might even find yourself forgetting to eat at certain parts of the day or just not caring about it as much.  Snacking can become a lost habit.  This, however, is all without focusing on diet at all.

As we can see, food is often tied into our emotions.  While you can deal with the emotions directly, setting goals and focusing your energy on working toward that rather than food will help incredibly.  With many people, excessive eating is a result of not feeling fulfilled creatively or otherwise.  You can break this cycle by finding whatever it is that inspires you and bringing that out more in your life.  Finding something that makes you feel artistic or productive is one way to encourage yourself to move forward on tasks other than eating.  Since there are only so many hours in the day, finding something that truly calls out to you will divert much of your available time for eating into something which can generate real fulfillment.

Bestselling author and speaker, Tony Robbins, suggests that the questions that we ask ourselves can have measurable impact on our ability to be resourceful and generate ideas.  By asking yourself questions which cause you to look for solutions and empowering answers, you'll find more choices available for you to take that are in line with what you want and where you want to go.

Still, food is not something that has to be looked at as bad.  You can eat when you want to eat.  The key is motivating yourself to have more of your attention on what you want to create and do. This will naturally allow you to eat a more balanced amount of food.

What are your views on this topic?  Leave a comment if you want to.

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?

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.