Thursday 1 July 2010

One last excerpt from my e-Book



STRATEGY FOR CHANGE

Resistance to Change of any kind is inevitable, 
it's our brain's natural response to something new, unfamiliar.
How then do we beat this resistance, how do we overcome it?

All neural pathways in our brain are linked to the emotional 
centre of the brain too. Pathways, patterns and habits built 
over time carry with them their own baggage of integrated 
emotions.  The more developed the pathway, the more 
emotional attachment and intensity there is....

We might intellectually understand the reasons for the change 
and even want to change, but emotionally it is another 
matter to let go!
We have images and scenes from the past, memories of smells, 
sensations, tastes, feelings of love, happiness and belonging, 
as well as nostalgia and yearning for what is known and 
experienced before. 
To give it all up can be painful and very difficult.

However, the beauty of creating sustainable Change is that 
you are not expected to give up what you are attached to!
The idea is to FOCUS on building the new pathway, 
instead of forgetting the old one.
Remember, the old pathway will disappear on its own anyway, 
so why spend time and energy trying to destroy it?
If I tell you – Don't think of the pink elephant, 
what do you instantly think of? Pink elephant, right?
Same way, if someone tells you to forget Pizzas, to give them 
up and forget they exist – what would you begin yearning for?

This is just the way our minds work. Thus the best way 
to get a child to stop bad behaviour, is not to shout at him 
to stop doing it , but to distract him with something new 
and interesting to do instead.
This works very well for resistance on any level. 
Instead of continuing to think negative thoughts which are 
only another form of resistance on the cognitive level, 
we become aware and use positive affirmations instead.

The FOCUS is on what needs to be done, on what is next, 
on what is new and better for us.....

You don't get rid of your old clothes without buying 
new clothes, right? Otherwise what will you wear? 
You have to replace your old clothes with the new ones. 
 
Sometimes, its possible that you are so motivated for
the change, you can't wait – so you chuck all your old 
clothes out and get a whole new wardrobe all at once.
Most of us change our wardrobes one dress at a time though. 
You buy something new, maybe a skirt you fall in love 
with the first time you see it in the shop window. 
Then you buy a new top to go with it, perhaps a new pair 
of shoes and a new bag to complete the ensemble. 
You come home and try it on and you look amazing, 
really fabulous. You discover this style suits you so the 
next time you go shopping you buy some more clothes 
and accessories in the same style.
You keep ADDING IN the new clothes and little by little 
you let go of the old ones, by giving them away to make space 
for your new wardrobe. You might even keep a few old clothes
as you are attached to them and wear them once in a while.

In the same way, we keep ADDING IN new foods that are 
healthier and better for us, one step at a time, consistently, 
till the need for the old empty foods reduces on its own. 
 
The next time you go out for a pizza, instead of eating a 
whole one, eat only a slice or two and add in a delicious 
salad on the side. One of the Italian restaurants in our town 
offers a pizza with the centre taken out and replaced by a salad. 
It is a hot favourite with the health conscious people here. 
What a brilliant idea from a restaurant chain!

You can go a step further and REPLACE the white flour crust, 
yeast risen, processed, fatty and empty calorie Pizza with a whole 
flour flat bread or sourdough risen crust, topped with home made 
sauce, lots of vegetables and greens, a sprinkling of cheese, 
a yummy and healthy Pizza made at home.

REPLACE the old, the inessential, the not suitable anymore 
with something new and nutritious, aligned with your goals 
and even better tasting than what you used to have before.

On this journey, we replace empty calorie empty foods by 
nutrient dense true foods, acidic lifestyle by an alkaline one, 
emotional eating by conscious eating, feeling low and bored by 
cultivating happiness, stagnation and being stuck by flow and 
letting go.....little by little, one step at a time, at our own rhythm 
and pace, with no pressure, no guilt, no stress, no strain.

Thus, we begin to Break the Pattern.  
With constant Repetition and Practice.



RECAPITULATE


Before we move ahead and step into the New World, 
let us go through all that we have discovered and learnt till now.

*The main purpose of food is to provide energy to nourish us.

*Empty calorie foods are those that are high in calories but 
lacking in nutrients. Instead of giving us energy they take it 
away from us, leaving us sick and tired.

*The more acidic food you eat, the more acidic food you 
will want to eat.

*At times we eat to avoid boredom, emptiness or emotional 
pain. We feed instead of feeling.

*Your body is a juicer.

*The cause of most diseases is imbalance created by
toxicity, acidic waste festering  inside your body 
instead of flowing out.

*Change begins the moment you step out of your comfort zone.

*It takes 3 to 6 weeks of regular practice to break old patterns 
and create new ones.

Let us go through all the steps in our Strategy of Change once again:

  1. Awareness of our present state of health and fitness.
  2. A deep desire to change from an old way to a new way way of nourishing ourselves.
  3. An understanding of our brain biology and the change process.
  4. Focusing on what needs to be done next.
  5. Adding in the new, reducing and letting go of the old.
  6. Replacing the old by the new, one step at a time, at our own rhythm and pace.
  7. Breaking the pattern to create lasting change by constant repetition and practice.

Time to move forward in our journey and step into the New world now.....


THE NEW WORLD

You are what you eat, drink and think.



6 comments:

Sharanya said...

beautiful,neeta...:)
xoxo
sharanya

Anonymous said...

I loved every word ♥ What a kind and tender approach ♥

Neeta said...

thank you very much, now i just have to finish the book lol xoxox

evergreen said...

Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and beautiful recipes with us:)

ॐRachel said...

Love it, love it, love it! Inspirational, bountiful and beautiful. Sat nam x

Neeta said...

Thnaks Angela, your blog is a constant inspiration for me, I love your food :-)

Sat Nam Rachel :-) and thank you very much, I need a kick to get writing again!!! xox

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