Spiritual Diets: Do They Work?

As it has become more apparent that there is a real connection between weight gain and a person's emotional state, more emphasis is being put on ways to distress and achieve a calmer state of being as a means of losing weight. One of the ways people are doing this is by using their spirituality as a guide. Evidence shows that it can be a viable method of weight loss.

Whether calling upon the Lord or Buddha, people seem to find comfort in appealing to a Higher Power as a means of controlling their food intake. Much of this is simply mind over matter. If a person believes that something is going to help him achieve a goal, half of the battle is already won. There is a certain comfort in feeling you are not alone when you are embarking on a weight loss journey. Add to that the feeling that you are doing something that will be pleasing to your higher power, and the motivation is even more.

Here are 5 of the top spiritual diets that people are trying:

"The Hallelujah Diet" by Dr. George Malkmus, hit number 1 on Amazon after its March release. The diet is based on an interpretation following God's natural laws and consists of no meat, with 85% raw food and 15% cooked food.

"The Maker's Diet" by Jordan S. Rubin, focuses on God's dietary laws, eating only Kosher foods (no pork or shellfish) and the elimination of processed foods.

"The Prayer Diet" by Matthew Anderson, is all about prayer. If you feel like eating too much or eating something you shouldn't, just pray instead of reaching for the food. This diet is about more than merely losing weight. It is also about growing in patience, which is a trait that is thought of as Christian.

"The Zen of Eating" by Ronna Kabatznick, calls upon Buddhism to learn how to use food in an appropriate manner. This is done by volunteering in a soup kitchen while meditating on the origin of your meals. The goal is to find a sense of balance in regard to food and your reasons for eating.

"The Writing Diet" by Julie Cameron, is a diet that urges you to express yourself by writing out your innermost thoughts, whether good or bad. The idea behind this diet is that you are purging your system of the stressful, negative emotions that are often the catalyst for overeating. A main component of this diet is to sit down each morning and purge your mind by writing your thoughts down in a freestyle form. Write what comes into your head and let the pen flow. It doesn't have to be grammatically correct or sound good. It is simply writing what is in your head.

When I tried "The Writing Diet", I had my doubts as to how effective it would be. As a writer, I am always writing, so failed to see what a difference "morning pages" would make. I was surprised to find that they made a huge difference. The difference comes in the fact that the writing is free flowing, with no thought given to what you are penning.

When this happens, it is absolutely amazing to see what ends up on the paper. I found my thoughts pouring out of me in a way I could never have imagined. Not only did this purging stimulate me creatively, it also gave me peace of mind. I did not have any negative emotions bottled up inside of me anymore. As a result, any emotional eating that I was doing was soon diminished, and I did begin to lose weight. On the days that I failed to do the morning pages, I could tell a difference in the way I felt and also in the way that I was eating.

If you have never tried a "spiritual diet", you might want to give one a try. There are many to choose from, no matter what your particular belief system is.