Day 59 - Is the Recession Making You Fat?

Have you ever had a negative conversation about money, the stock market, the economy or the state of the world, and subsequently felt hunger bubble its way into your awareness?

Have you ever watched the news packed full of war, murder and rape, and suddenly felt the desire to snack on something rich and dense?

What about watching a horror, suspense, or doomsday movie? Do you have the urge to calm your nerves with food during or after?

A recent study was presented August 5th at the annual meeting of the American Psychological Association in Washington, D.C. In it the researchers took two groups of participants. One group was primed to have a 'survival' mindset with words like "withstand" and "deprivation." The other group was primed with an abundance mindset with words such as "plenty" and "ample."

The participants with the survival mindset ended up choosing food that was high calorie and dense, while the abundant-minded participants simply chose the items that were the most tasty to them at the moment.

What this study is implying is that when we feel that resources are in jeopardy we naturally compensate by choosing calorie-dense, life-sustaining foods. 

Normally there is nothing wrong with this. Our psychology is intertwined with our physiology; we are designed to perceive a threat or coming famine and act on in with instinctual behavior. This is one of the reasons why the human species is still here.

The problem is that we are bombarded with the survival mindset constantly. Any news segment proves that with the now standard phrases of the 'bad economy', the 'stock market falling' and 'the recession'.

You may even have due reason to react. Maybe you have been out of work, your investments are in peril or there has been talks of lay-offs at your company. You could be skimming by every month to pay your mortgage.

The key, no matter what your situation, is to realize that a healthy and happy body is THE most important asset in whatever may come. 

So, our goal today is to get you to shift from instinctively reacting to joyously embracing the world.

Here are some tips to shift your mindset to abundance, 

and truly believe it:

1. 80/20 Rule: 80% of the time that you watch or read something, have it be positive, good-feeling news or entertainment. 20% of the time become informed by observing the negative things. You are not putting your head in the sand. You are becoming aware, while also choosing to feel good and grateful for what is working in your world, and THE world. 
1. One way I do the 80/20 Rule is by simply watching 15-20 minutes of the evening news (morning news seems to be more fluff) while devoting all of my other free time to inspirational or comedic reading, movies or TV programs.
2. Solution-Mindset: Every time that you find yourself experiencing negative emotion when you come up against the survival aspects of living, simply find a quick action-step. For instance, if you get fearful about the rising cost of food, make a commitment to, instead of buying your Iced Latte every morning, putting that money away to buy canned goods and non-perishables for your pantry. This feels good and 'abundant' verses feeling helpless and doubtful.
3. The Power of Three: Every time you think a negative thought, come up with three better-feeling ones. This one works like a charm!
4. Spend Money on Food: I know this sounds pretty silly - but so many of us spend money on other things; coffee, clothing, trips, tickets, alcohol, etc. Make sure that you are stocking your house full of food so that you do not get caught in the 'survival' mindset. 
1. I know this one sounds counter-intuitive. Nutritionists have been saying for eons to not buy too much food, because we will end up eating what is available. Yet we are finding that deprivation and the feeling of  'not enough' is what perpetuates detached eating behavior (just like the above study shows).  

When you use the above tips, you will notice a dramatic increase in your ability to function and thrive no matter what economic environment you live in.

To a day of abundant-mindset thoughts and eating...

Nat

Resources: Wild Stock Market Could Make You Eat More, msnbc.com, by Rachael Rettner