Garima Gupta - The body nirvana: more than just a weight-loss book

THE BODY NIRVANA

More Than Just a Weight-Loss Book

GARIMA GUPTA

PHOTOGRAPHS: RISHI AGRAWAL

DRAWINGS: SHRIRAM HASABNIS

GRAPHICS: VIJAY KRISHNARAJ

Contents

I come from a family of doctors, and there is a very specific reason I studied to be a psychologist instead. In their years of experience, two-thirds of the cases my father and brother consulted on needed psychological counselling, not medicines. Giving professional counselling is something they were not trained for.

Many physicians now agree that a persons life situation and how they respond to it is what creates diseases in the body. A pill or a surgery can take care of their symptoms, but other symptoms will surely come up in the future unless they take care of what is really making them sick in the first place. I realized that to truly heal someone, we needed practitioners who based their work on this mindbody connection. We needed a new view of health.

The body listens, remembers, and speaks to us. We receive the bodys messages all the time, although we seldom recognize them. A message comes as heartburn when we are up all night worrying about our teenage daughter or our yearly assessment. My teetotaller, non-smoking, physically active father got a heart attack due to his Type A personality. Someone else I know got a frozen shoulder because he did not know how to say no to ever-increasing workload and responsibility. Our body expresses its unmet needs and calls for attention in many ways.

And so it is with weight. This is a puzzling matter only because some pieces of the puzzle are not in the box you were handed over. Your weight is not a body issue. Excess weight is really a multidimensional problem showing up as an oversized body. It has many dimensions because it may have roots in your familys history, your citys culture, your aspirations, events in your life or your personal coping abilities. You cannot tweak overnight either your cultural or genetic heritage, nor can you change your citys social fabric. But your thoughts, needs and fears can be touched and healed.

So, in this book, I will focus on the mind or the psychological aspect of weight gain. Think of it like this: If I ask you to slow down your breathing during meditation, you can always use your muscle strength for it. Using your willpower, you can also hold longer before each in- and out-breath; this slows down your breathing rate. But you dont have to do any of this. Instead, you can ask your body to go into deep relaxation by bringing your focus on your breathing rhythm. Just watch as your breath becomes deeper and slower. This second way is about creating the right conditions and watching the body naturally shift to a healthier state. So, you will initiate weight loss by creating a healthy state of mind. This is body nirvana.

Ask any health professional (yes, you can check with your doctor, gym instructor or slimming centre advisor) and they will heartily agree that stress, anger, sadness and other non-physical factors can decide whether or not you will keep the excess weight off. Psychology influences biology. It follows that dieting or exercise does not work in the long-term unless you align your psychology and biology towards this goal. There is ample research in diverse fields such as sports, design, physiotherapy, psychotherapy, music and medicine that says that your state of mind affects how your body will respond to everything, from surgery to workouts. Chances are, though, that you havent heard of this. Popular media is still full of diet and exercise advice that is based on sacrifice and punishment. Too few books use this research to show how weight can be reduced in a happier and healthier way.

I know you are busy, and time-consuming healing work is impractical. So this book contains a series of steps that will mix with your routine like milk in water. I will tell you what you can do about mindless eating (or eating on the run), sleep disturbances and painful experience that repeatedly make you ill. The actions take an average of two minutes each. Some are one-time activities, creating a healing space inside inside the home to nurture your life goals. Just making small but power-packed changes to your routine can take you from loathing and helplessness to a renewed excitement about delicious possibilities. These changes tell the body that the excess weight has fulfilled its purpose and it is time to let it go. It is empowering to see ours choices having a tangible effect on ours health. As I like to say, weight correction is a happy side effect.

To get the full benefit from your reading, play relaxing music softly and curl up with this book. Put it down often to stare in the distance as you ponder upon the points raised. Keep a pencil and pad handy to take notes, highlight lines or make the lists required in various activities. It would be best if you get up and walk around often, thinking over your routine or choices, looking at your surroundings and even your reflection in the mirror with fresh eyes, inspired by these messages. Be light-hearted.

The Body Nirvana is about gradually letting go of everything that literally and metaphorically weighs you down. It is time to rejoice in your bodys vitality and its capacity to take you towards your lifes goals!

W hat describes you better: 10 kg overweight but loving every bit of you, or overweight and too ashamed to be at peace with it?

According to Ayurveda, health is the enthusiasm to work and love. This book is not for you if you feel great no matter what your body size. If you are that person, you have achieved body nirvana. Body nirvana is a state where your waist size does not define your worth. You express yourself fully through your home, work and relationships. You feel OK. It is the natural state of your mind and body when you feel confident in the face of strains and stresses. The body functions at its peak and looks the part. If you are in this state, then close this book and gift it to the next person who isnt there yet.

This book is for you if you judge yourself harshly for your body. You dont like what you see in the mirror and you want to lose the weight. You are willing to do anything it takes. So, where will you begin? The usual first steps to lose weight include cutting back on one or more of your favourite foods, which you feel guilty about indulging in. And you might start an exercise routine that feels about as natural as a fish climbing a tree. You feel like a victim because you no longer eat or do what you really want to. Hopelessness and boredom are now standard diet. Yet the thought of taking a break from this weight loss plan leads to harsh self-criticism. Stress busters like eating ice cream are out of bounds, while others like hanging out with friends or watching TV are fraught with danger as these might trigger food cravings. It is a very lonely battle that nobody understands. Sounds familiar?

Losing weight or wanting to be healthier is the highest form of self-love. Lasting change comes when you accept every bit of you. Acceptance and self-love, not calories, are at the root of successful weight loss. When you love yourself enough, you ensure that you get plenty of fresh air and fresh food. You stand tall, breathe deep and get busy with activities you enjoy. In this state of mind alone do you have permanent weight loss. All this may not take you to size zero but you will be your natural fit self, the way nature intended you to be.