Recent research suggests that willpower by itself is inherently limited. However most of us believe self control is largely a character issue. The area of the brain in charge of willpower, the prefrontal cortex (PFC), can become easily overtaxed; when it is overtaxed, willpower can decrease dramatically especially when you try to do too much too soon. Studies show that the PFC can be improved by focusing on 1 behavior change at a time which in turn can lead to other positive changes. One such study asked college students to improve their posture and over the course of two weeks noticed other improvements of self control happened as a consequence. The key take away here is that the PFC cannot process multiple requests to change at the same time. Some of my patients who attempted to do too many health goals at once were not successful.

Three simple steps to help you reach your health goals

1. The brain cannot handle multiple health goals at once For example, all it takes is 5 extra bits of information to decrease willpower in the PFC. One study tested willpower by having subjects choose a fruit salad or a slice of chocolate cake while keeping in mind a two digit or seven digit set of numbers. Those trying to juggle 7 digits were twice as likely to choose the cake over a fruit salad. The solution is to focus on only 1 health goal at a time. This way you not only start your health goal but continue to commit to it until it becomes a positive habit and is successful.

2. Calories do count but not in the way you think. Another study gave one set of students lemonade with artificial sweetener and the second set of students lemonade with sugar. After viewing a video all the students were tested on several self control tasks. Those given the lemonade with artificial sugar, which had 0 calories, performed tasks less successfully than those who had consumed the sugar lemonade, which contained calories. The conclusion suggests that calories are needed to supply the brain with food to function effectively and increase self control. Skipping meals to lose weight or because you are too busy only makes it harder to maintain your willpower and will often lead to overeating or eating snack foods. I recommend you plan your meals and eat at regular times throughout the day to maintain proper blood sugar levels, and nourish the brain so it supports your health goals.

3. Simple and easy exercise is more important than you think. By simple and easy exercise I mean just doing some daily physical activity to start. Why? Because exercise releases positive endorphins so you end up feeling better once you adhere to a regular activity routine. For example it could mean something as simple as a daily walk around the block or joining a gym. Exercise trigger the brain reward center which helps us feel positive, improves our mood, helps us sleep better and stimulates the flow blood to feed the brain.

Weight loss is a big issue for some of my patients. In fact many of my patients talk to me about losing weight and ask if acupuncture alone can help. I always make the joke that if acupuncture worked perfectly for weight loss by itself I wouldn’t have to work anymore. What I do know is acupuncture can help sustain your health goals in these areas:

* Feel more relaxed which reduces those anxiety induced cravings for the bad stuff * Improved focus and be better able to concentrate on your goals and daily tasks * Experience more energy that sustains your commitment to changing your behavior * Enhance your digestion which allows for a more efficient processing of your food

By combining the Three Health Goals Tips along with a series of acupuncture treatments, you will be better able to prioritize, stay committed and succeed with your health goals in 2010.

Susan Wallace is a licensed acupuncturist serving the San Francisco bay area for the last 25 years and specializes in combining acupuncture, herbs and western nutrition to maximize health. New patients receive 1 free treatment for each paid visit for the first month. For more information or to sign up for her monthly newsletter click here.

What causes you stress? Your kids? Job? Money? Moving? Love or lack of it? Physical or emotional pain?

How much of your stress is from today, and how much is past experiences? You probably know what I mean by this, but the answer is not always easy figure out.

You know managing and reducing stress prevents many health problems. Problems like blood pressure, poor diet, potential addiction, and more. Stopping these problems before they start by managing your stress is a better use of time and money.

You know you would not choose to have trouble sleeping well or problems with your blood pressure. But, choosing to ignore your stress level is almost like that.

Some people with high stress look to avoid the discomfort by looking for pleasure to cover it. Things like watching TV, movies, medications, smoking and other addictions.

People tend to believe traditional talk therapy and medications are the only alternatives, and try to avoid that. If you knew there was a reliable and medically tested method to relieve stress, would you consider it?

Of course you would, if it really works.

You’ve probably watched a movie or television to relax. Does it really help? Probably most of the time you’re watching it you feel relatively more relaxed. Something else to focus on and think about? But there really isn’t much “thinking” going on… it just helps you make a more relaxed state of mind.

Some people achieve this same mental state using creative visualization, meditation, or prayer.

All of these examples technically achieve a mental state of hypnosis. With a little practice, it is very easy to get this hyper focused state. Like when you’re involved in reading a book, or on the phone.

Hypnosis is a state of mind everyone goes into several times a day. Hypnotizing yourself, on purpose, is so easy to do and is so beneficial to your stress and health in general.

There are medical clinical studies in the National Library of Medicine you can research on www.pubmed.gov.

Physical and mental stress relief of over 50% is possible in under 10 minutes. Honest.

Using an appropriately trained hypnotist or using a quality self-hypnosis audio to reduce general stress are great alternatives. Hypnosis has a higher rate of long-term success than medication and hypnosis has zero side-effects.

Note: Even though hypnosis has been an approved by the American Medical Association since’58, it does not replace conventional medicine.

Download a quit smoking hypnotherapy program today from Quick Hypnosis!

The most important part of the preparation for you quit your cigarettes is to be mentally ready. It is pointless to think that you should stop smoking if you’re not ready for it.

One thing is the mentally part; another is the nicotine withdrawal symptoms. So it might be a good idea to prepare yourself for this part as well.

If you really have the willpower, it is possible to stop smoking without any help; but if you are like most people, you will probably need some help. Today there are a number of nicotine products (e.g. from Nicorette and Nicotinell), which can remove the worst urge to smoke.

Nicotine plaster and nicotine chewing gum are the two most popular nicotine products. Other options are nicotine inhaler, nicotine nasal spray and nicotine tablets.

When you smoke, it is probably often more a matter of habit than a desire. So do you really want that cigarette at the bus stop or after lunch? Or has it just become a really bad habit?

Look critically at your smoking situations. Then you will be able to reduce your cigarette consumption significantly. This way you can take deliberated choice, when you decide to light a cigarette.

Do you dream about something, you cannot afford today? It might be possible in the future, if you do not have to spend a lot of money on cigarettes.

Give yourself (or maybe your family) a reward, when haven’t smoked for a week, a month, a year etc. Thereby you have a great motivation to continue to fight, when everything seems a little hopeless.

A good way to make the reward present is piggy bank. Every day without smoking you put the amount you normally would have used for cigarettes in the quit smoking piggy bank. Then you can see how much money you save. And after a few month there is probably enough for a nice vacation.

It might also be a good idea to write down your thoughts down, before you quit smoking. Write about why you have decided to stop, what you think might be the hardest part etc.

When the crisis comes (and it probably will sooner or later), you can read to what you’ve written to get a little encouragement and new motivation. You can also write a quit smoking diary, where you confidentially can write about your ups and downs.

Martin Elmer is writing about quitting your cigarettes on the website rygestop. You can also learn how to minimize your nicotine withdrawal symptoms in the section Nicotinell pris.