When we think about making changes, we often procrastinate because we think of change as 'challenging', 'daunting', 'uncomfortable' or we just plain dread it.

We think we have to give up something to gain something and we're not always keen on giving up things we've grown attached to, even if they're things that no longer serve us in helpful, healthy or happy ways.

Forget about having to give anything up, you can simply allow yourself to out grow it.

Out growing stuff is easy right?

You've been doing it your whole life.

You've outgrown:
Santa
The tooth fairy
Sucking your thumb
Being scared of the dark
Toys you've loved
Friends from childhood
Friends from school
People you used to work with
Neighbours you no longer live next too
Groups you're no longer involved with
Schedules you've lived by
Having someone look after you
Playground scuffles
Being upset with your friend for having their lunch with someone else
The fashion you wore in the 80's
The hairstyle you had when you were a teenager
Eating your...

Here is just one of the many advice I give my client.

Have you seen the movie Yes Man with Jim Carrey?

Great movie about how saying "Yes" to everything can create radical change.

But for the women I work with, not saying "Yes" isn't their problem.

In fact, saying "Yes" is how they've gotten in the situation their in.

They've said "Yes" to soooo many things, they're on the verge of mental, emotional and physical burnout.

"No" is the word that's missing from your vocabulary;

No to more & more responsibilities

No to every person who steps on your boundaries

No to not speaking up

No to the voice in your head

No to chronic stress

No to being paid less than your male colleagues

No feeling powerless

No to conditioning

No to believing you have to do it all

No to not asking for help

No to emotional and comfort eating

No to not looking after your health

Learn the exciting art of saying NO.

And say YES to healthy, happy, living.

Dietless Living helps overweight, overwhelmed women master their mind so they can master their health & live, laugh, lose weight,...

Q. Which goals are easiest to achieve?

A. Ones that are just an extension of who you are or what you do already.

Q. Which goals are the hardest to achieve?

A. Ones that require you to become a different version of yourself, goals that require you to change your daily habits and do things differently.

Q. Why is it harder to achieve goals that require you to change your habits?

A. Because habits are thoughts, feelings, reactions and behaviours that you’ve cultivated over many years and wired into your unconscious mind, and now those habits run on auto pilot. This means, you don’t do your habits, they do you!

Q. Why does traditional goal setting let you down when it’s a goal that requires you to change your habits?

A. Because it’s focused on the result, not the process.

Q. What kind of goals do you traditionally set when you need to lose weight?

A. Results focused goals – a number on the scale or clothes tag “I want to weight X/Be a size X”

Q. What kind...

Your weight and health goals does not stop at the number on the scale.

When we reach that point where we can’t stand our weight any longer and we take action to lose weight we make a very big mistake.

Because we've just reached the end of our tether, there’s an element of panic, and in our panic, the resounding thought in our head is "Get it off me, now!"

We just want the fat to go and we want it to go fast!

So we dive in, boots and all, a calorie-restrictive diet coupled with intensive exercising.

We try to go from 0 – 100 and we change everything and do too much, too quickly.

The problem is, on top of your already busy schedule, working 50, 60, 70, hours a week, under time pressures, deadlines, staff issues, conflict, and burning the midnight oil at home, along with your already depleted energy reserves, very low fitness levels and stress-related aches and pains, this is a recipe for disaster.

Why?

Your mind and body is already living in a state of survival all day every day because, among many things, you’ve already tapped your...

If you're alone through the festive season:

Think about how you can turn that time to your advantage; it's a good time to do something you’ve been putting off all year. Perspective is everything, it might just be the ideal time to start that money making project you’ve been thinking about?

But if you do want more social time and people in your life:

Look through your address book and start phoning people, make coffee dates, have conversations, be confident to let them know you’d like to hang out this Christmas or find somewhere to volunteer and get your happy feelings giving someone else  a happy Christmas.

Laughter really is the best medicine:

Get quick laughter fixes on You Tube or watch funny, light movies. Leave all the heavy, depressing drama and horror on the shelf.

Beat the festive season blues with happy tunes to dance to.

Be adventurous:

Go out and have some fun somewhere and do one thing you’ve always wanted to do, especially if it’s something...

Your body tells you what you need to eat and pay attention to it. Investigate what it is that you're craving.

Is it something that your body needs or something that your body wants because it's your comfort food?

If it's something that your body needs then have a go at it, but if it's something that your body wants to have because it gives you comfort and so you have to have it, then that's a different story.

Take the pressure off of your credit card and bank account:

If people are old enough that they no longer believe in Santa, flying reindeer and elves, feel comfortable to give the gift of connection. This will relieve you of the pressure of gift preparation and the financial burdens that excessive gift giving can create. The best gift is genuine connection: having real conversations with people, listening deeply and giving the gift of loving touch. So many people are never touched lovingly and neutrally by other human beings. Did you know that we need 5 hugs a day for general well-being and happiness?

Take the pressure off of your friends and families credit card and bank account:

Let your friends and family off the hook too and let them know that this year you have everything you need but you can never get enough hugs and filling up your hug account is something you'd welcome over any silly old store bought gift.

Be choosy about what you spend your sanity on:

Embrace the fact that there...

Here are some more ideas on how to ease into a happy and joyful Christmas season with feeling the joy of embracing the happy no.

Be comfortable to say no this festive season:

If saying no isn't something you're particularly skilled at but you'd like to give it a red hot go, try this; 'Wow/Thanks/That sounds wonderful/thank you so much for inviting me/offering that to me, I'd love to/I wish I could/although unfortunately just at the moment I've got so much on, I'm sorry I can't help you/attend your party/fit that in right now, but have fun and thanks for thinking of me but make sure you show me the photos.

Remind yourself that other peoples dramas are all about them, it’s got nothing to do with you:

But of course they may like to put it onto you, and that’s a good opportunity to be comfortable saying no; ‘I know this isn't about me, so what’s it about/what's going on/what do you need help with/are you OK? Be kind always, we are all people doing the best that we...