[Note: This is part 6 of a 10 part series on using EFT/Tapping for weight release with a new article or podcast being added every 10 days. The complete series can be found @ weight release series.]
 photo by Carl Carpenter |
One of the places it is easiest to emotionally beat ourselves up is over the types of foods we are eating. There are days that we can feel great because we have eaten “good” food, while other days we can be emotionally distraught be cause we ate “bad” foods.
It can be a dangerous when we build our emotional state off of the types foods that we have eaten. Part of the problem is the fact that there are no such thing as good food and bad food. Food is nothing more than nourishment and energy that the body uses to help to power and maintain the body.
Now, it is true that some foods are better at doing these jobs than others, but it is not a simple cut a dry good and bad. Consider these examples:
- foods that are good for one functions, but not another (protein is a great source of energy and building blocks for the body, but most froms of protein take time for the body to break down and if they are eaten in the evening they hinder necessary sleep)
- foods that are good for one person, but not for another (I love nuts, but I have friends that could die from eating them)
- foods that are good in one portion (eating few raisins is good, but 2lbs of raisins for lunch and I am not going to be leaving the
bathroom for hours)
Our worth, our value, and who we are going to become is not related to the food we eat. Food is a tool. As we talked in Dealing With Mindless Eating sometimes the food is serving another function than just providing nourishment and energy, but as a way to deal with emotions. Even here, even thought it is not being used for our betterment, it is still a tool.
By taking steps to eliminate mindless eating we are going to help change our emotional state about when we are eating. In addition to that step we also do some work improving our relationship the food that we are eating when we do eat and take the emotional charge away from that experience.
The tapping might look something like:
I have to eat food…food is necessary for me to stay alive…I need it to maintain and energize my body…i am very blessed to have some many different food options in my life…I live in a time and place in which I can choose foods not only because they help my body to function…but I also can choose food based off of what I enjoy eating…sometimes I am very hard on myself because of the foods I choose to know…I know there are foods that are better for me…but I choose food that is bad for me…I recognize the fact that there is no such thing as bad food…there are foods that might not provide as much nourishment as others…there are foods that are better for me at one time than another…there are some foods that are better for me in one amount, but not another…there are even foods that my body can’t process affectively and I should avoid…but none of this means that food is bad…food is not the enemy…I know I need to make good choices about the food I consume…but by understanding what food is…I am going to be less likely to be hard on myself when I eat “bad” food…my body knows the food that I need in every situation…there are times that I need fiber…or protein…or vitamins…or minerals…when I recognize that food is not the enemy…then I can trust my body to ask for the food that it needs in this moment…my body has the wisdom to ask for the needs that are needed to grown…maintain…and power the body…I give myself to trust my body to ask for the food it needs…to do this I need to be in tune with my body…which I can do…by doing this I will be more likely to eat the food the body needs for this moment in time…because this is a unique moment in time…and the body has unique needs…food is not the enemy…the goal is good choices…and I am not going to make the right choice every time…but we have a body that can handle that…I choose to see food as a tool…an enjoyable tool at times…but a tool…it is not good…or bad…food does not have a morality…there are foods that are more right for this moment…food is not bad.
In part 7 of this series we will look at our relationship to others in regard to food.
Would you like to work with Gene one-on-one with your weight release? Here is the current weight release special.
This is so right, Gene.
I have gotten to the point that I can tell when my body isn’t producing an enzyme it needs to digest “good” foods that I’ve eaten. But when I eat just the right amount of chocolate or cheese, frequently considered a bad food, at just the right time, I can trigger the production of that enzyme or another very like it so that the “good” food actually is digested efficiently.
Even so, there is a small tendency on my part to wonder if I’m eating too much chocolate (or cheese or cream cheese) on a given day.
I keep working at eliminating the reasons I need these foods to trigger enzyme production, so the quantity of “bad” foods I eat can be less as the weeks pass; but I’m wasting valuable energy when I judge myself harshly for eating something I know is producing a good — even essential — effect.
Karylee,
Thanks for sharing…What you are talking about is a prefect example of my weight release and having a healthy body is such a process. Often times there are so many moving parts. There is our bodies function (and the levels of how well it is functioning), there is our choices (and why we are making those choices), and there is our response to those choice and how our body is functioning.
By dealing with this a process and taking it a step at a time we are able to see progress and well as uncover new areas to explore which not only improve our physical health, but our emotional health as well.
Thank you for what you say about tapping woiutht words! I have needed this. I have many books on EFT, but have not come across this perspective yet at all. I am a writer, a former associate professor of religious studies, and I already tap with spiritual music in the background to help take away loud noises. Though I am rarely at a loss for words under most circumstances, I grew up in an extremely cruel environment; which was at the same time phenomenally cultured, musically talented, extremely intellecctual, PhD parents, yet cynical and sarcastic, et al. There are times when I simply have a reluctance to put into voice all of the horrible words which would explain the depth and unhappiness of my feelings, (the words of truth) to explain some of my residual feelings from my growing up years, which can encapsulate me close to bedtime. Thank you for showing me a way around this!Please take special care.Peace,Arielle Hart