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A Review of "Meditate Your Weight"

Intimidated by meditation?  I was. I was afraid of setting myself up for failure.  (Is it reeeeaally possible to empty one's mind?)  I was also afraid that this book would be all "new agey" and weird.  But I promise it wasn't!

Here's what the book includes:

●  Info for newbies - how to sit, what to do with your hands, benefits and the science behind meditation
●  3, 5, 7, and 10 minute meditations with journaling prompts and a daily mantra
●  Top 5 foods to avoid
●  Tips for continuing your success after the retreat
●  Bonus yoga sequence to aid your weightloss journey!

My weight has been my most significant area of discontent my entire life.  And lately, after having three babies in 3.5 years,  that discontent with my body has turned to self hatred.  My inner dialogue was just mean.  I KNOW that I am loved deeply by my family,  my adoring husband, and most importantly, by Jesus Christ, who laid down His very life for me.  I know that.  But for some reason, that truth just couldn't settle into my bones.   I wasn't rooted in it.  

This book was exactly what I needed in this very moment of my life.   "Meditate Your Weight" isn't about emptying your mind so much as becoming an observer of your thoughts and needs without judgment.  I began noticing those thought patterns of negative self talk, acknowledging them ("Hmm, that's interesting that I thought that just now"),  and gradually over the twenty-one day retreat I noticed that self-talk change.   Yesterday I thought several times about how grateful I am for this body.  I have put it through so much in the past few years.  It has grown life and sustained life, and while my body isn't perfect, I am learning to see it as beautiful.  So, if nothing else about me changed,  the mental shift that is occurring is pretty remarkable. 

Most of the meditations begin with focusing on breathing patterns,  learning to observe without changing anything. So you're not emptying your mind, but taking control of it and teaching it to focus.  And it's ok if it wanders, just acknowledge the wandering and then refocus.  The reader is instructed to,  after a minute or so, focus on something else...the way you feel in your body in that particular moment,  for example. At the end of the time, there are journal prompts.  What did you feel?  To what did your mind wander?  Sometimes there are about eight questions in one, but if you like to journal it isn't so bad.   Finally there is a mantra, just a short phrase to keep coming back to all day long.  "I deserve to be healthy."

The author of "Meditate Your Weight", Tiffany Cruickshank, is knowledgeable, well versed, and experienced in her field.  I think this book is unique, practical, simple, and helpful.  I give it two thumbs up!  Ireceived my copy complimentary from bloggingforbooks.org in exchange for my honest review, but it is well worth the money if you're just feeling stuck in your life.

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