If you’ve struggled to lose weight (or if you’ve lost it but keep finding it again) you may have a vitamin deficiency! We’ve all learned about fats, proteins and carbs, as well as calcium, B vitamins, etc. But what you may not know is that there is another category of nutrients that are absolutely essential to helping your body find and maintain its ideal weight without dieting or depriving yourself, and better yet – keeping it off!
Vitamin P: To activate your optimal metabolism you must have pleasure. Studies have shown that the “head phase” of digestion (your brain’s experience of taste, texture, aroma and satisfaction from food) accounts for up to 30-40% of your digestive and metabolic capacity*! Yet the whole concept of dieting tends to deprive us of foods we enjoy. Without pleasure, not only are you are operating in a lower gear, your brain continues to signal “hungry,” leading to cravings and overeating.
Vitamin A: You can’t have pleasure without awareness. Too often we eat with distraction (TV, driving, multitasking, etc.), or are so consumed with guilt and self-judgement when eating something pleasurable that we miss the experience entirely. Again, pleasure accounts for 30-40% of your metabolic capacity – best to pay attention!
Vitamin Q: Your body is smart. It has the ability to quickly assess the quality of the foods you eat, and when it senses that foods are low in nutrients it continues to signal “hunger.” Strive to improve the quality of your food wherever possible by choosing higher quality meats and produce, and also in the quality of the restaurants you choose. Love Mexican food? Try upgrading from Taco Bell to a place that offers Fresh-Mex. Even small improvements in quality can increase your satisfaction and decrease cravings.
Vitamin O: The virtual wonder drug of weight loss is oxygen. Not only does breathing fuel your body for the digestive process, it activates the relaxation response, which is the state in which your body is most metabolically efficient. In addition, centering yourself with a few deep, slow breaths before every meal and taking time throughout the meal to check in and breathe increases your awareness, lowers your cortisol levels, and reduces digestive upset, all of which help you get closer to your goals with greater ease and enjoyment!
Vitamin H: There’s a reason that 96-99% of diets fail, and that is our misguided belief that losing weight will give us happiness. The truth is that happiness is the cause and not the effect of long-term weight loss. When you choose to be happy now, your body is able to respond by releasing unwanted weight and eating habits.
You see, we are more than just scientific beings. We are body, mind and spirit. Cookie cutter diets and forced behavior modification do nothing to address the underlying issues that may be driving you to overeat. And when the soul is not fed, it’s all too easy to mistake its cries for nourishment for physical hunger. These 5 vitamins are the foundational ingredients for a nourished soul. Give yourself the gift of starting your daily dose today, and watch what unfolds!
