An unhealthy lifestyle is a major, maybe "the" major contributor to almost every disease, illness and health issue we face in this country and in much of the world today. Internationally, the world’s health organization labeled overweight as a global epidemic, and they are making it a major focus. In the United States, it’s estimated that well over 300,000 people die every year as a Result of health problems that stem from being overweight. It’s a major risk factor in almost every disease and illness facing our country. For some diseases, like diabetes, it’s THE main risk factor.

Right off the bat, I'd like to say something that is counter intuitive, or something that you may percieve to be a cop out. Here it goes. You need to understand one really important point. That is, weight or being overweight is not the problem. It is really just a symptom of something else.

That probably doesn’t make any sense but let me explain. Imagine you’ve just broken your arm. You know it’s broken because it hurts very badly, and even more obvious your arm is bent were it used to be strait. You go to the doctor and as soon as you walk in the doctor says, “Wow, you have a serious problem. Your arm is badly swollen.” At that point the doctor begins to treat you for swollen arm completely ignoring the fact that your arm is broken. How would you feel?

Realize that this is what has been happening with your weight. You have been working for years , perhaps trying many of the top diets and weight loss schemes, on something that is just a symptom. The weight is not the real problem. I'm not saying that it isn’t a problem, just like we wouldn’t say having a swollen arm isn’t the problem, it just isn’t the real problem you have to solve. It is actually a symptom of something that is deeper.

And as long as you keep working on the symptom instead of identifying and healing the underlying cause, or what I’m calling the real problem, you’ll probably keep failing. So what is the real problem? If so many people spend billions of dollars and try multiple diets, then why can't we lose weight and keep it off? Why is obesity continuing to surge in the United States as well as in other countries?

In all but rare cases where there are physical reasons causing weight issues (such as a faulty thyroid gland, etc), the reasons stem from faulty beliefs that we have deep inside of us. If you don't think that our beliefs (I'm not talking about religious beliefs here) can make a difference in how we behave, then let me give you a simple example.

Let’s say that we have a man whose mother died when he was very young, he got married once, and his wife for whatever reason left him. He now, for whatever reason, has this belief that eventually everybody leaves, especially women. So now, he meets a new woman who falls deeply in love with him, he loves her, and they get married and everything is wonderful. He still believes, even unconsciously at some level, that eventually all women will leave me. What does he begin to do?

He keeps an emotional and social wall up, he protects himself; and this is not a conscious decision. It is all unconscious. Because of this false belief, this behavior and action is very predictable and uncontrollable. So in case she leaves, because he believes she probably will, it will hurt less if he protects himself and dosn’t get too close. So he always has this wall up.

Now, year after year she keeps trying to get into and through this wall. She loves this man and wants this really intimate relationship, and she can’t have it. It gets more and more frustrating, and as she gets more frustrated, what does she do? She pushes even harder. He gets even stronger about his boundaries and pushes back even harder, and eventually what happens? She leaves. And what does he say? See, I knew it! They always leave. It is so predictable that it is almost scary.

Now on the other hand, had he somehow become aware that this false belief existed, the very awareness would enable him to monitor his behavior as a reflection of his belief and he could then start changing what he was doing at a conscious level.

You can learn to become aware of your beliefs, monitor your behaviors as a way to see your beliefs, and then change your behavior as part of a whole belief cycle. Can false beliefs and an awareness of them actually influence our eating behaviours? They most certainly can.

Many eating triggers are based on emotions. Our actions are the result of how we react emotionally to situations.

Now let's connect some of our own current patterns of behavior with when those patterns might have developed. If I see that a current behavior pattern was a choice I made at some earlier point in my life, even if that point was when I was a child, it is easier to recognize and I can now make a NEW choice. These patterns are not WHO I AM! They are how I am choosing to ACT. Actions can be changed. However, if I believe this is “WHO” I am, it may feel unchangeable. When I recognize this is not WHO I am, but HOW I act, change becomes so much easier.

Take a minute and answer the following questions, without allowing yourself to become critical of your past or of yourself. Answer them in the context of what you did as a child, growing up. Use whatever age comes to mind.

• What did you do when you were growing up to get attention?

• What did you do growing up to get even?

• What did you do to get what you wanted?

• What did you do when you felt angry?

• How did you react as a child if you felt overpowered or controlled?

• What did you do when you felt afraid?

Now take a minute and think about the similarities between what you did growing up and what you do now? They may not look exactly the same. For example, if you cried sometimes as a child to get what you wanted, you may have discovered as an adult that doesn’t work very well. But you may find you do get very quiet, or pout, or get depressed, or hurt – all in an attempt to do the same thing the crying did for you when you were a child – get people to feel sorry for you so they will give you what you want.

Again, if you find some things you don’t like – that’s great! This is the point of the exercise. However, don’t go into beating yourself up over those things – or judging yourself because of those patterns. Just recognize them, and decide you would like to find a different way of getting what you want, or handling your anger, or reacting when you feel controlled, or wherever you have your insights.

So, what are some ways your childhood patterns are similar to your adult patterns in

• How you get attention

• How you get even

• How you get what you want

• What you do when you are angry

• How you react when you feel overpowered or controlled

• What you do when you are feeling afraid

Now let's talk about the belief cycle that we must learn to alter and control if we are to change our behaviors. By the way, this process applies not only to the reasons why we over eat, but to a myriad of behaviors that influence the way we behave and live our lives.

There are 4 stages in the Belief Cycle. We find that it is usually easier to start at the fourth stage, Results, when explaining the cycle. This is because our results are generally the most obvious and visible of the four stages. Here is a short explanation of each of the four stages.

Stage 4 - RESULTS: (What comes about from an action, process, etc. These are the external consequences and outcomes of our actions, decisions, and choices.) The most obvious and perceptible stage in the cycle is “Results.” Generally, our results are a direct consequence of the actions and behaviors of those involved. However, as the graphic illustrates, our beliefs are constantly affecting how we interpret our results. It is as if our beliefs were a filter through which we see our results. This is one way we keep our results consistent with our beliefs.

Stage 3 - ACTIONS: (The doing of something, the act or thing done, behavior, habitual conduct. These are also any processes, tools, etc.—anything external leading up to results.) To generate success, one needs to clearly and honestly identify what actions or behaviors are causing failure, or conversely, the actions necessary for success that are not happening. Most of us recognize and accept the link between actions and results. Still, it is surprising how many people try to find some reason, other than their own actions and decisions, to explain the challenges they face, and the results they are experiencing.

Stage 2 - EMOTIONS: (Any specific feeling or sensation, such as love, hate, fear, anger, hunger, cold, etc. These describe our internal world of feelings, thoughts, and sensations.) This stage may be less intuitive to some. Let’s take an example to help. If I am feeling discouraged and hopeless, can you see how these emotions will limit me to a specific set of actions? On the other hand, if I am feeling confident and full of energy, I will act in a very different way.

When we recognize the emotions someone is experiencing, most of us can make a pretty accurate prediction for how they will probably act. It is important to realize that without an awareness of the emotions involved in the cycle, the ability to make significant, fundamental change is limited or completely blocked. This awareness can be extremely difficult to achieve and usually takes an outside perspective to be gained successfully. Here is an important question about emotions.

“For any outside stimulus, is there an infinite range of possible emotional re-actions?” Most people would probably answer, “Yes.” Theoretically this might be true, but in the real world?

The answer is NO! There is NOT an infinite range of emotional responses. In fact, the possible emotional responses to any given stimulus or situation is consistently and predictably limited and controlled by our beliefs.

Stage 1 - BELIEFS: (Anything believed or accepted as true; to suppose; an opinion, perception, or expectation. This is the basis of our “internal” world, and ultimately determines what the external world becomes.) The belief stage is the one with the most power and also the one most often ignored. We each have a set of beliefs about who we are the “world” perceives us, and what we believe about money, success, relationships, trust, authority, our roles, our value to others, etc. Included within these beliefs are our values or value system.

Overeating in MOST cases is caused by emotions and the triggers they induce. The way to change our emotions is to change our beliefs. This probably makes sense to you, but the first question is the obvious one. How do we change what we believe? Especially when we have had these beliefs so long they seem a part of us now!

Learn more by asking questions at the site of Tom and Jerri Fuhriman. It is called The Power2Lose at http://www.power2lose.com

They have been working on this process of change for nearly 30 years, and have come to understand how to find the root causes of obesity in our emotions based on false beliefs. It only makes sense. If the top 10 diets on the market all worked, then they would soon be out of business. But they are thriving, and most people go from one to the other trying to find the magic cure.

Remember, "Oz never did give nothing to the Tin man, that he didn't already have." The power to lose our weight lies within ourselves. We definately can learn to uncover the root cause of our behaviors related to eating, and change them. When we do, we can add years to our lives, and a quality of lifestyle that we deserve as humans.

Good luck with the quest!