Take Shape For Life Weight Loss Program

Inability to Lose Weight

Low Thyroid and Estrogen Dominance

You eat right, exercise, do all the right things and you are still unable to loose weight. This is thought to be a Thyroid problem. It is but what caused the Thyroid problem?

If this sounds like you, you are probably suffering from a condition of estrogen dominance, although most would claim it is a thyroid problem. Estrogen is not the name of a specific hormone. It is the class name for a large group of compounds with estrogenic properties. These include human estrogens, animal estrogens, synthetic estrogens, phytoestrogens and xenoestrogens. As a general rule estrogen causes cell growth. We know that fat cells produce estrogen and once there are enough of them they are able to keep your body supplied with plenty of estrogen.

Estrogen and thyroid hormones do have some opposing actions. Estrogen instructs the body to store calorie intake as fat tissue, whereas thyroid increases the body's ability to burn fat for energy. Estrogen is made and stored in fatty tissues, so estrogen dominance is a major cause of obesity. Estrogen causes weight gain by its action of converting food energy into stored energy called fat. Fat cells make more estrogen causing a vicious cycle of increasing fat and weight gain.

Women, men and children who are estrogen dominant tend to retain water and crave simple carbohydrates like sugar, baked goods, and chips. Again this is recognized as a thyroid issue, rather than an estrogen imbalance. Women, men and children who are overweight also tend to become Insulin Resistant. which means sugar isn't being removed from the blood and utilized properly. This excess sugar is then stored as fat. This is caused by imbalances in the adrenal glands and increases in cortisol levels, which in turn affects the reproductive organs.

You are probably wondering which it is, estrogen or thyroid, that causes your inability to loose weight. Let’s look at the facts.

1. Cortisol is released in your body as a response to stress
2. Cortisol thins the lining of the stomach, leading to gut inflammation
3. Gut inflammation (Dysbiosis) will increase estrogen levels in your body by reactivating estrogen and preventing estrogen from being eliminated from your body
4. Gut inflammation will cause the liver to release more fat and sugar into the blood stream
5. Increased Cortisol causes increases in the amount of Reverse T3 which is unusable by the body
6. Increased Estrogen decreases free T3 and T4 Hormone
7. Increased Cortisol causes T3 receptors site resistance
8. Increased Cortisol causes decreases in the amount of T3

 Estrogen dominance decreases the amount of T3 and T4 thyroid hormones. Without free T3 or T4 thyroid hormones you loose the ability to burn fat for energy.

Does stress occur in your life? Then you are producing Cortisol. Your body works as a unit - when one part is out of balance, the rest tends to follow. If you need help, we have the expertise to assist you in restoring your health.

Wellness Alternatives uses comprehensive assessment to determine what is causing your inability to lose weight. You can fill out a Metabolic Assessment. If you mark 2's and 3's in any Categories, you would find it beneficial to have a consultation with the staff at Wellness Alternatives.

Call us today to start your weight loss process.

Call Wellness Alternatives 636-227-4949

Cravings and Appetite Control
How would you like a proven step-by-step program for lasting weight loss without dieting that can turn off the drive to overeat? If we master two immensely powerful internal skills—the abilities to self- nurture and set effective limits from within—the need to overeat fades away. This method directly addresses the feeling brain, the home of our most primitive urges, like eating. Other weight loss programs are based on knowledge and planning— activities of the thinking brain. The problem is that there is no significant communication between the feeling brain and the thinking brain. Reason can’t make most people stop wanting a cookie.

The most important thing you do in any given moment is to stay in a state called “above the line.” In that state you feel balanced and the drives to go to excess are low. Life is good, cravings are low, and you are able to move through life’s problems rather than getting stuck. You are above the line when your feeling brain (the limbic brain) is in balance, in a state clinically termed homeostasis. Mastering the internal skills of self nurturing and effective limits allows you to stay in balance so when you are “below the line” (a state of emotional imbalance), you can move yourself back to emotional equilibrium where excessive appetites fade.

So what is the key to keeping the feeling brain in balance? And what causes it to go out of balance?

The answers are related to the fact that your feeling brain is the clearinghouse of everything that’s going on in your body and in your world. It mixes all the input from inside and outside, and if the sum total of your life’s stresses outweighs your feeling brain’s skills to handle those stresses, then the stress response is triggered. In a flash, a cascade of stress hormones flows; the neurotransmitters that make us feel satisfied, rewarded, and good get drained; and as you can imagine, our appetites ramp up.

So, if the sum total of the traffic noise from the street, the emotional memories of my childhood, my burning eyes from allergies, the thoughts about bills that need to be paid, and the hunger from skipping breakfast is more than I have the skills to handle, then I go below the line.

Going below the line is not bad or wrong, but it is inconvenient, because in that state, my mind turns to thoughts of soothing and comforting with chocolate, sweets, alcohol, etc. and most likely, my weight goes up.

That’s how we go out of balance.

How do we get back in balance, back above the line?

Two ways. First we create a lifestyle that is fulfilling, that naturally feeds us the rewarding neurotransmitters and prevents the stress response more of the time. But modern life and the realities of life mean that relying on a perfect lifestyle alone is precarious.

The other way is to pump up our nurturing and limit- setting skills to heal past hurts, stay resilient to current stresses, and follow through with relative ease on anything we wish to accomplish, including bringing our bodies back to a healthy weight.

Homework: Ask yourself, “Am I above the line or below the line?” Just for today, check periodically whether you are above the line or below it. Just give it a guess. Above the line, you are in the present moment, feeling your feelings without cravings and appetites. Below the line, your feelings are extreme—way high or way low—or you are thinking too much, your mind turning to one excess or another. Give it a try. You’ll only become more skilled by practicing!

Contact Pat Koebbe, DTR, if you would like to learn more about these skills and how they can help you turn off the drive to overeat.

Call Wellness Alternatives 636-227-4949

I sincerely believe that you can retrain your inner life to naturally favor life above the line and we are here to help you reach that goal. - Pat

Weight Loss – Are You Ready for it?

Looking At The Big Picture
Achieving a healthy weight is hard—even harder than quitting smoking, according to people who have done both. That’s because when it comes to weight management, there are many behaviors and attitudes that will likely need to be changed before lasting weight loss can be achieved. Here is a list of just a few behaviors that may need to be addressed:

* Eating less food by reducing portion sizes and learning portion control
* Eliminating or limiting soda, alcohol, desserts, or “red light” foods
* Planning and shopping for healthier meals or snacks
* Keeping a food and activity journal
* Actively “moving” daily
* Reducing TV viewing or computer time
* Treating your health and well-being as a top priority
* Learning how to anticipate challenges and solve problems
* Taking responsibility for the food and activity choices you make each day
* Monitoring your weight, body fat or fitness level on a regular basis
* Learning if my body is balanced structurally and hormonally so that digestion and weight loss can proceed naturally

To move from one stage of behavioral change to the next higher level it helps to 1) increase your awareness of the importance or value of achieving a healthy weight and 2) increase your confidence that behavioral change is possible and achievable.

Before you begin, it may be beneficial to rank how important weight loss is for you, now, on a scale from 0 to 6. If weight loss is just a “wish” but you really aren’t ready to make the changes necessary to be successful, it may be wise to approach weight loss when it is a higher priority.

To increase individual confidence, it is helpful to focus specifically on HOW to move forward, keeping a close eye on the identification of strategies that will increase the sense of self-efficacy. There may be many behaviors that need to be changed, but breaking the process down into small steps and placing these steps in a manageable order may help. It is counterproductive to tackle many behaviors at once because it is too overwhelming.

As you can see, lasting weight loss requires changing habits. A habit is a pattern of behavior or thinking, repeated over and over, that is reinforced by repetition. Habits are typically hard to change, but by moving step by step, in predictable stages over time, lasting change is possible. Willpower is not enough; what is needed in WILLINGNESS to do what it takes.

It is important to know and accept that lapses and relapses are part of the change process. A lapse is a temporary slip; an example would be a special party or Thanksgiving. You know you will be eating more than you should but you plan for it and get right back with your plan. (An easy way to prevent a lapse is to remember HALT: don’t get too Hungry Angry Lonely Tired.) A relapse usually lasts longer; an example would be when we go back to our unhealthy behaviors for an extended period. Relapses are a normal part of the change process and should not be viewed as a failure. They are nothing more than a minor setback and an opportunity to rethink your plan and ask yourself: what would I do differently next time and do I need help with my weight loss goals?

Questions you may want to ask yourself:

* Are you mentally ready to make the changes necessary for weight loss at this time? 
* Do you understand that weight management is a lifelong commitment?
* Have you attempted weight loss in the past?
* What is different at this time that may contribute to weight loss success?
* What factors may interfere with the achievement of successful weight loss?
* Do you have a plan to address those factors?
* Do you have the resources (e.g., time, money) to learn and adapt the new behaviors to achieve your goal? 
* Is your body structure altered and your hormones in balance? Do you need to have correction so that weight loss can proceed as planned?

These are a few of the questions we would address at Wellness Alternatives. Please call our team of experts when you are WILLING to make a weight loss change in your life.
Pat Koebbe, D.T.R.

Contact Pat Koebbe, DTR, if you would like to learn more about these skills and how they can help you turn off the drive to overeat.

Call Wellness Alternatives 636-227-4949

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