Meditation as a weight loss tool?

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RunMyOregonBunsOff
RunMyOregonBunsOff Posts: 862 Member
in Health and Weight Loss
Does anybody use meditation regularly as a part of their weight loss effort? It is know to reduce stress and stress doesn't play well with weight loss (the whole cortisol thing, right?) so do you think that it would be a helpful tool? I'm thinking that I might just give it a go because it can't hurt but I'm just curious to hear thoughts of others.

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  • taunto
    taunto Posts: 6,420 Member
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    Meditate to bring peace to yourself and to focus. Once you have inner peace and focus, you'll realize what makes you eat too much or what makes you eat poorly. In that sense meditation will help you ton
  • sgoessling
    sgoessling Posts: 119
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    Meditation is more than a weight loss tool, it's a life tool. I put in my planet yoga cd, do some slow stretches taking my time, and then just closing my eyes and let my mind drift. I alway come out relax, but I feel powerful and strong. I always seem to know the answer to my questions and feel so ready to face challenges afterwards. Plus it's you time. I chace to clear the buzzing in your mind and free it to clear thinking. Idk if it will help you lose weight directly, but my freeing your mind and letting yourself feel powerful it will help to motivate you when you feel weak. Hope this helped!
  • RunMyOregonBunsOff
    RunMyOregonBunsOff Posts: 862 Member
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    Thanks for your thoughts. I do meditate for just a couple minutes every time I have a lesson at the martial arts school that I teach at. I used to meditate for longer periods at home but then life (young children most of all) got in the way and it went by the wayside. I was already thinking that I wanted to try to make it a bigger priorety again and then figured that it could help in this area too. I'm not looking for it to be a miricle drug so to speak. I just thought that it would be fun to hear thoughts and maybe, just maybe put the idea in somebody else's head as well. :happy: Thanks again for your thoughts!
  • JesterMFP
    JesterMFP Posts: 3,596 Member
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    I've not used it directly for weight loss, but it's definitely a good stress-reducing tool. I can see how you could also use it for mindful eating, and to combat emotional/compulsive overeating, if that's an issue.
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
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    Great replies above. It all helps. Also, it depends on the type of meditation. Chi kung? There's movement in that so extra benefit of relaxation and physical activity.
  • RunMyOregonBunsOff
    RunMyOregonBunsOff Posts: 862 Member
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    Great replies above. It all helps. Also, it depends on the type of meditation. Chi kung? There's movement in that so extra benefit of relaxation and physical activity.

    I have a couple of chi kung exercises but I never really thought of it as medtation. I should try to find somebody to teach me more though. They are a great way to use your body differently. Thanks!
  • Illona88
    Illona88 Posts: 903 Member
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    You could practice mindfulness, which is a form of informal meditation (i.e. you can do it while doing other things).
    This is a form of meditation where you are very aware of what you are doing and what your senses are experiencing.

    This could help to eat slower and really savor your food, making you eat less and usually healthier.
    I've tried an experiment with this at work (I'm a writer) and first I tried to practice mindfulness while eating an apple and it was amazing and delicious. Later I tried it with some french fries and being really aware of what it tastes like made me want to -literally- spit it out. It was absolutely gross.

    I would suggest giving this a Google, because it's quite hard explaining how it works on a forum.
  • Aphroditee
    Aphroditee Posts: 31 Member
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    I love to meditate, my grandfather gave me a book awhile ago with different types of meditation. My favorite (which took FOREVER to be able to do) was zoning out completely, where the mind just goes blank and it's all blackness. It usually only lasts 30 seconds - a minute for me but I'm working on doing it longer. But it's the most relaxing feelings, and I feel it helps clear my mind of unwanted thoughts and stress. And helps me to think about the important stuff in life, I love it.
  • girlykate143
    girlykate143 Posts: 220 Member
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    total newbie here, but absolutely use meditation or something like it. Even if it means sitting in my backyard staring up at the trees. 15 minutes or so of quiet all to myself has been really, really great to settle my mind from spinning, and therefore, shoving more food in my face.;)

    Within the last month and a half I've done a lot of work trying to settle myself and work on my anxiety issues. Anxiety and stress are what push me to eat compulsively. Identifying what makes me eat poorly, or want to a donut for dinner, has really helped me to accept what's going on. Identify and accept. Then I can make the better food choices, and that's easy to say, but only easy to do once I got the anxiety (about food, about loneliness, about anxiety itself) somewhat under control.
  • gaia3rd
    gaia3rd Posts: 151
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    bump!
  • sunshine_gem
    sunshine_gem Posts: 390 Member
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    I love to meditate, my grandfather gave me a book awhile ago with different types of meditation. My favorite (which took FOREVER to be able to do) was zoning out completely, where the mind just goes blank and it's all blackness. It usually only lasts 30 seconds - a minute for me but I'm working on doing it longer. But it's the most relaxing feelings, and I feel it helps clear my mind of unwanted thoughts and stress. And helps me to think about the important stuff in life, I love it.

    I've been thining about meditation for a while as I'm trying to work on lots of issues including depression btu just didn't know where to start. Can you tell me the name of the book? I really think it's something I could use. I've found pilates to be helpful but would love something else aswell.
  • billsica
    billsica Posts: 4,741 Member
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    When I meditate I end up binging on chi tea and chamomile. No thanks,
  • darrensurrey
    darrensurrey Posts: 3,942 Member
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    Great replies above. It all helps. Also, it depends on the type of meditation. Chi kung? There's movement in that so extra benefit of relaxation and physical activity.

    I have a couple of chi kung exercises but I never really thought of it as medtation. I should try to find somebody to teach me more though. They are a great way to use your body differently. Thanks!

    Yep. You could learn it and teach it at your martial arts school. It's all related.
  • Happyoceangirl
    Happyoceangirl Posts: 1,993 Member
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    I'm trying to build more and more meditation into my life. A poster above mentioned mindful meditation and that is great to apply when going for a walk. Your body gets exercise, you get grounded and your mind gets a much needed break. Just by focusing on your feet hitting the pavement, observing what you see in each moment, and your breathing. It takes some practice to not be distracted but it's so refreshing! It helps to start with a series of long slow breaths to zen your mind out. If I can be mindful for even 10 minutes, I notice a huge benefit.

    Another idea is to look into "Meditations for Manifesting" with Wayne Dyer. There's an app in the itunes app store for it. It's designed to help you visualize what you want to manifest in your life (weight loss could be a goal) and the idea is to help you feel positive energy when you think about what you want... which in turn will help you create it.

    This is an awesome topic! :) I hope some of these ideas help!
  • Happyoceangirl
    Happyoceangirl Posts: 1,993 Member
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    I've not used it directly for weight loss, but it's definitely a good stress-reducing tool. I can see how you could also use it for mindful eating, and to combat emotional/compulsive overeating, if that's an issue.

    I like your profile picture. :)

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