I’ve just come across some very exciting research that proves how important your “mindset” is when it comes to losing weight.
You’ll be surprised at the amount of control you have over your body and how it responds to food…
The Battle of the Bulge and the Mind-Body Connection
This study was recently published in the online journal, Health Psychology.
A team of researchers at Yale University decided to see how ghrelin, the “hunger” hormone, responds to mental perception[1].
Just so we’re on the same page, ghrelin is known as the “hunger” hormone because it’s responsible for sending a signal to your brain that causes it to “want” more food.
When your body’s ghrelin levels are high, the signal gets stronger – creating a tendency to overeat, even if you’re already pretty full.
Similarly, when ghrelin levels are low, we feel satiated and don’t feel the need to eat anymore.
Your ghrelin levels will typically increase before a meal and decrease after you’ve eaten.
Indulging vs. Being Sensible
The Yale research team divided study participants into two groups.
Group one was given a 380 calorie milk shake. However, here’s the twist:
They were told it was, in fact, a 620-calorie “indulgent” shake.
Group two was given the exact same milkshake (380 calories) that group one received. They were told it was a 140-calorie “sensible” shake.
After drinking the shakes, both groups’ ghrelin levels were measured.
Can you guess what happened?
The folks in group one – the ones who thought they were drinking the “fatty,” 620 calorie indulgent shake – had a dramatically steep decline in ghrelin levels after drinking it.
Those in group two who thought they were drinking a low-calorie sensible shake had a neutral ghrelin response. Their levels stayed pretty much the same… meaning their feeling of satiety did not increase.
Here’s the cool part: The actual ghrelin response that took place in the participants’ bodies reflected exactly what would have taken place if the calorie counts in the shakes had in fact been as high – or as low – as the researchers claimed them to be.
All that changed here was the participants’ perception of the shakes they were drinking.
“This study shows that mindset can affect feelings of physical satiety,” said Alia Crum, the study’s lead author. “The brain was tricked into either feeling full or feeling unsatisfied. That feeling depended on what people believed they were consuming, rather than what they actually were consuming.”
“What was most interesting,” Crum added, “is that the results were somewhat counterintuitive. Consuming the shake thinking it was ‘indulgent’ was healthier than thinking it was ‘sensible.’ It led to a sharper reduction in ghrelin.”
Think and Grow Thin?
It always floors me that the majority of people will try everything under the sun to lose weight – pills… extreme fad diets… potions… exercise gizmos… laser fat removal…
It isn’t until they’ve tried everything that they turn to hypnosis. That’s because changing their minds becomes the last thing they ever think of – it’s often the last resort.
Ironically, changing your mind should be the FIRST thing on the list to try. After all, external fixes only attempt to remedy the symptoms. They don’t address the root cause.
That’s why focusing on your mind, your habits, and your beliefs about a healthy lifestyle are so powerful at creating effective, powerful and long-lasting change.
And this study further proves how critical this piece of the weight-loss puzzle can be to your success.
Think about it: Ghrelin is responsible for those irresistible cravings you get. It takes part in making you hungry. As a result, it causes you to overeat. The excess calories then get stored as fat.
And thanks to the researchers at Yale, we’ve just learned that we can control (to a large extent) this entire process just by changing our minds and thoughts about the things we eat.
So, if we can use our minds to make ourselves “think” we’re being indulgent… we can actually be healthier.
Can you imagine how much frustration, time and money would be saved if most folks started their weight loss journeys by first addressing that thing between their ears?
I’d love to hear what you think. Let’s get a discussion going here and I’ll make sure to respond below in the comments section.
