I started exercising regularly, but I’m actually gaining weight. What’s going on?

Hi there, this is Jonathan Clark from Lose Weight For Scotland – it’s my mission to Crush Obesity, Add Years To Your Life & help you to Look Good Naked!  I challenge Scots to lose 10 lbs of fat or gain 10 lbs of muscle, even if they’ve tried everything else, and it’s guaranteed.  One of the questions I get asked all the time is I started exercising regularly, but I’m actually gaining weight. What’s going on?

A: This is not unusual. Newbies are often surprised to discover how easy it is to put on pounds even when you start exercising. Starting an exercise routine almost always requires more effort, which boosts the number of calories you burn as well as your appetite. Your body is trying to help fuel your increased activity.  It's worse for women: Researchers at the University of Massachusetts discovered this heightened sense of hunger is stronger in women than men because exercise accelerates the production of appetite-regulating hormones, prompting them to eat more; men, it turns out, aren't as susceptible to these changes. 

Pay attention to whether you’re hungry, thirsty, or simply giving in to cravings or feelings of entitlement. When your body truly needs food, you'll experience fatigue, a rumbling stomach, or hunger pangs that accumulate over time.  That’s DIFFERENT from a craving.

To keep cravings at bay, remove temptations from your sight—if biscuits aren't on the kitchen shelf, chances are they won't call your name. You can also try a diversion, such as taking a walk; studies have shown that a brisk 15-minute walk reduces chocolate cravings. Or use your stopwatch as a tool: Force yourself to wait 20 minutes before giving in. Usually after 20 minutes have lapsed, the urge is no longer as strong. 

And try to avoid falling into the "I deserve it" mind-set. A 30-minute walk does not entitle you to inhale an entire pizza.   You have to avoid eating above and beyond what you need for recovery and wiping out the calorie deficit that you created during a workout—so make smarter food choices all day. 

Eat mostly whole, minimally processed foods rich in carbs, fiber, and protein. The latter two take longer to digest, keeping hunger at bay and helping you avoid eating more than you should. High-fiber foods (vegetables, fruits, grains) are often low in calories but filling, making them great for weight control.  Don't fill up on carbs from processed grains and sweets. Instead, carb-load with whole grains like brown rice and quinoa, which are more filling and nutrient-dense. And be sure to track what you eat: In general people tend to vastly overestimate the number of calories they burn, and underestimate the number of calories they consume.

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If I eat healthy during the week, can I splurge on weekends?

Hi there, this is Jonathan Clark from Lose Weight For Scotland – it’s my mission to Crush Obesity, Add Years To Your Life & help you to Look Good Naked!  I challenge Scots to lose 10 lbs of fat or gain 10 lbs of muscle, even if they’ve tried everything else, and it’s guaranteed.

One of the questions I get asked all the time is If I eat healthy during the week, can I splurge on weekends?

A: Saturday and Sunday represent about 30 percent of the week, so too many slipups will put you on bad terms with the scale. Dieters in a 2008 study dropped pounds during the week but stopped losing weight on weekends because they ate too much. 

It’s easy to cancel out five days’ worth of healthy eating with a weekend food fest. Consistency is key. Consume a similar number of calories on Saturday as you would a week day, she adds. Weigh yourself Friday and again on Monday. Any weekend weight gain is a sign you went overboard. On weekends, be sure to eat breakfast. Studies suggest that people who eat breakfast eat fewer calories later in the day. And give in to a treat during the week, so you don’t have the urge to splurge on Saturday.

A lot of experts recommend having a Cheat day – that’s one day in the week, usually at the weekend, where anything goes.  You can eat whatever you want.   It feels like a treat and gives you a reward for all your hard effort during the week.  So the idea is to deprive yourself of sugary snacks and cake til the cheat day [usually the weekend] and then savour every bite before you start another week of good behaviour.  That usually satisfies the beats for another week, and the spike in calories keeps your metabolism high cos your body doesn’t think its in survival mode – it thinks its found an oasis of plenty in the otherwise dry desert!  I know what you’re thinking – eating rubbish can help you lose weight!  Welcome to paradise J  Enjoy your cheat day guilt free.

Does eating breakfast help you lose weight?

Hi there, this is Jonathan Clark from Lose Weight For Scotland – it’s my mission to Crush Obesity, Add Years To Your Life & help you to Look Good Naked!  I challenge Scots to lose 10 lbs of fat or gain 10 lbs of muscle, even if they’ve tried everything else, and it’s guaranteed.  One of the questions I get asked all the time is Does eating breakfast help you lose weight?

Experts say: Yes.

There is no better way to get your metabolism going than eating a healthy breakfast, You see food actually increases your metabolic rate, and skipping breakfast can make your body think it’s going to be starved — sending it into "survival" mode and slowing your metabolism down.

Research shows that people who consume breakfast regularly are at healthier body weights. Why? Not only will your metabolism speed up, but eating breakfast helps with appetite control. If you skip breakfast, you tend to feel hungrier throughout the day, and once you get too hungry, you tend to choose less-healthy meal options.”

So breakfast is the way to go – whether you’re trying to lose weight, or build lean muscle.

Can I lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?

Hi there, this is Jonathan Clark from Lose Weight For Scotland – it’s my mission to Crush Obesity, Add Years To Your Life & help you to Look Good Naked!  I challenge Scots to lose 10 lbs of fat or gain 10 lbs of muscle, even if they’ve tried everything else, and it’s guaranteed.

One of the questions I get asked all the time is Can I lose fat and gain muscle at the same time?

The answer to this question really depends on your goals. For more advanced exercisers or bodybuilders looking to gain large amounts of muscle while losing large amounts of fat, those goals often conflict with one another. Building muscle requires eating more calories than you burn while losing fat requires eating fewer calories than you burn. When losing fat, your muscles aren't getting the fuel they need to grow larger.

However, the average exerciser looking to improve body composition can lose fat while improving lean body tissue over time and beginners will likely get the greatest benefits of both fat loss and muscle gain. In fact, one study found that women who followed a cardio and strength program for 6 months lost an average of 10 percent body fat while increasing their muscle by about 2.2 percent, while another study showed that men experience similar improvements after following a 16-week strength training program. This shows that beginners respond quickly and efficiently to strength training and cardio.

The key is to keep a balance of both cardio and strength training, whether you're a beginner or a more experienced exerciser. Doing all cardio with no strength training can actually harm your muscle mass, while doing only strength training without cardio can hurt your fat loss. If you're in that situation (e.g., a marathoner or a bodybuilder), your goals and training approach may be different. For the average exerciser, however, having a balance between the two is the best way to maximize fat loss while preserving muscle mass.

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How to lose weight becomes the next chapter for me...

Now how’s this for the power of the mind.  In 2005 Cheryl and I were planning to get married in Hawaii, and we quickly discovered that we were having issues with getting pregnant.  So when I learned that the hotel we were staying in had been built on the site of an old healing temple, I asked the Hawaiian elder for some help.  He told me about a fertility pond where the royalty would bathe on their wedding night, so we got permission to dip our toes in the waters.  Our son Luke was the result.  Coincidence?  Could be…

Life was good.  I had a successful business, we had our wee bundle of joy, I’m working from home and I’m exercising regularly and we’re enjoying a healthy diet…

Then something weird happened.  Everyone said “Aye you’re skinny now but wait till you hit your 40’s, then you’ll start putting the beef on.”  They were right – my wee boy started patting my stomach and calling me “Five Belly’s”.  Where had this disgusting band of jelly round my middle come from?  At night in bed I could actually feel it hanging to one side!  Eeuuww!  So I tried to cover it up and suck it in.

I tried Zumba DVD’s, took Herbalife shakes which tasted bland even though they’re full of sugar, cut off all the fat from meat, but nothing seemed to stop fat growing on me.  Before I did the programme, I could easily munch through a packet of chocolate digestives.  I’d say to my wife if you don’t buy them, then I can’t eat them. 

Funny how things turn out...

In 2013 a friend invited me to look at a new business that was coming from the States to the UK for the first time – a 90 day weight loss and fitness challenge with an 8 year proven track record.  At first I was sceptical and very cautious, but after meeting two great members of the company, and keen to drive a free BMW that the company would pay for, I decided to get involved.  Body By Vi launched Feb 7^th 2014 so it’s brand new.  For the people who say they’ve tried everything – you ain’t tried this!  Originally designed to help athletes build lean muscle and take off fat, the company aimed it at the weight loss market and it became the #1 consumed shake in North America.

Vi have a great model – lose 10 lbs of fat, or gain 10lbs of muscle using their meal replacement shakes and cookies, and they’ll give you a free t shirt that money can’t buy, you go into a prize draw to win £600, and they donate 30 meals to children in need in your name.  And unlike the other supplements I’d tried, this stuff tastes like a McFlurry!  I recommend a shake that tastes like cake to people who like cake.  And the more you drink, the more you shrink!

37 days later I qualified for the BMW.  53 days later I’d gained 10 lbs of muscle, and lost 7 lbs of fat.  My energy was way up and my belly had gone.  And an underprivileged child received 30 meals as a result.  My first ever experience of weight loss for me personally, and now I have abs!  And because it’s a meal replacement I saved about £15 a week on the grocery bill.   I’m still eating chocolate biscuits, but I’m 47 and in the best shape I’ve ever been in,  and I actually like what I see in the mirror.  Can you say the same?  Do you look good naked?

You see, I love seeing the impact and surprise when an old problem has disappeared in only 90 days.    Only this morning I saw a news item about a deaf woman who had an implant fitted and you saw her reaction to hearing for the first time.  She was trembling with joy and elation.  I love helping people to feel like that.

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Sick & tired of being sick and tired?

In 1986 I remember having pneumonia for the second time, lying in hospital on an drip, watching a small air bubble working its way down the tube and thinking to myself “That can’t be good” and I decided I’d had enough.  It was at this time that the doctor informed me that I had a suspected heart murmur into the bargain.  That pushed me over the edge.  Basically I got sick and tired of being sick and tired.

First thing I did as soon as I got out of hospital was buy a bike.  There was this hill outside the village where I lived, and my goal as to be able to cycle up that hill, even if it killed me.  Because of the pneumonia my lungs hurt like hell, but I got my head down and pedalled.  The hill was just too steep, so rather than look up at it I looked down at the white lines on the road and just pumped away.  At first I managed so far, 10 white lines, 12, then 15, then every day got a wee bit further.

After a few attempts I managed to reach the top.  So I kept going.  That stretch of road was called “The Fiddler’s Elbow” as it snaked around the fields with sharp 90 degree turns, high hedges on either side.  Week by week I pushed slightly further, which turned into a 2 mile cycle, then a 3 mile cycle.  Small baby steps, gradually increasing the load…

Sometime around then I stumbled across a great wee book on exercise and heart rate – I can’t actually recall what the book was called, but it got me training regularly within the right training zone.  Then I bought some weights, a bench, and kitted out my bedroom with equipment.  Plus a life size poster of Cory Everson [Ms Olympia at the time] to keep me motivated!    I was also trying every weight gain supplement and protein powder out there, and you probably know what a lot of meal replacements can taste like…  Then there’s trying to stay motivated and get yourself to exercise consistently – I’d have long periods of intense workouts, then months of “can’t be bothered”.  Know what I mean?

Eustress - Use The Stress

All the past health issues I turned around and as fuel to drive me towards health and fitness. But even though I was trying all these different things to change how I looked and stay healthy, I’d chop and change so often.  Nothing kept my interest for very long.  You get all excited about a new regimen, it’s new and fresh for a couple of weeks, then you get bored and gradually stop doing it.  So I got mixed results.

One day a friend of mine invited me along to a new martial arts class.  Whoah!  I’d grown up with “Enter The Dragon” and Marvel comics so I loved the idea, but I was the skinny specky asthmatic with zero coordination so what hope was there?  But despite my fears, I nervously went along, and met the Instructor – a tall skinny guy who was a world kickboxing champion.  64 of us enrolled that night.  7 years and 6 belts later I was the only one still training in Lau Gar Kung Fu.

Man I was fit.  We’d do 100 sit ups, 100 press ups, go running for 2 miles then come back and learn an hour’s syllabus 3 nights a week.  Looking back I didn’t really appreciate it at the time.  You don’t know what you’ve got, till it’s gone.

Now my brother had studied psychology, so I started to read all these thick, heavy books about Freud and Adler and traditional behavioural change.  But Freud said it would take 300 hours of therapy for the average person to change.  Mind you, Freud was a coke addict.  And if you prefer Carl Jung, well he based his psychological archetypes on the major arcana of the Tarot Cards.  So don’t preach to me about traditional routes.

So I started reading about personal development for my own benefit.  They say that people get into self-help books for one of two reasons – either inspiration, or desperation.  Well, I was pretty desperate!

Now I’m not a psychiatrist or psychologist – but I have now spent two decades in personal development helping people transform their lives – I’ve learned and taught advanced techniques like NLP [Neuro Linguistic Programming] and Hypnosis. 

  For me it was always about making changes.  If you’re not happy with the results you’re creating, then change what you’re doing.  Whining and complaining won’t make it any better, and nobody’s going to come and rescue you.  The sooner you realise it’s up to you, the better.  It’s what you do that counts.  So initially I did private therapy to help people and earn some money, and then started doing workshops to try and share this mind-set with as many people as possible.

  Then in the late nineties I came across a magazine article on the blossoming field of Life Coaching which had just arrived from the USA, and I saw a natural extension to what I was already doing.  Scottish people love American stuff don’t they?  So many Scots sing with American accents – have you ever noticed that? 

So… NLP helped me to help my clients clear up the mental clutter and limitations that hold us all back.  Life Coaching looks at the external factors that make you who you are – your health and eating habits, your family relationships, your intimate relationships, your management of money, your environment, and your career. And the great thing about it was that it could all be done over the phone – a weekly in depth chat with your own confidant who would never judge you – only gently explore, guide and help you move in baby steps towards your life goals.   No embarrassment, no shaming.  Now I had ways of dramatically improving my own life, and the lives of others, on both the inside and the outside.

And I slowly learned more about exercise, managing my diet, what internal dialogue to run in my head, how to avoid the numerous ailments that normal people get… and the people who knew me at school hardly recognise me now, because I’ve changed…

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Lose weight for Scotland - the next part of the story...

Growing up in the 70’s we had a typical Scottish diet at the time – sugary cereal for breakfast before school, chip shop fritters and burgers for lunch, and a plate of stodge at night which invariably involved the deep fryer.  Add to the mix sweets and sugary drinks.  No wonder my dentist loved me.  No wonder I could barely stay awake in class.  I’d wake up knackered in the morning before I even started, and I’d collapse into bed at night.  In between I relied on coffee to keep me going – sometimes five mugs a day.  Can you relate to that?

I never drank water either.  So I was exhausted all the time, full of phlegm and had frequent headaches, but I just didn’t like the taste of water.  We probably lead pipes for all I know. 

And this was way before the invasion of McDonalds, Burger King, KFC and the fast food chains.  Cheap, tasty and convenient food full of fat, salt and sugar has made the problem ten times worse!  Just type “Bionic Burger” into Youtube and you’ll have your eyes opened.

Add to that I was the stereotypical specky asthmatic skinny weed.  The classic Ectomorph characterised by long and thin muscles/limbs and low fat storage; usually referred to as “Skinny Malinky Lang Legs”.  The classic “hardgainer” with a flat chest and fast metabolism.  All my life I got teased about my weight.  People don’t realise that it hurts just as much to be called “skinny rake” as it is to be called a “fat b*****d”.

P.E. at school was a weekly nightmare – I’d cover myself up, try to be last into the showers, wear clothes that disguised my build.  But in the gym and the football pitch there was nowhere to hide.  Problem was because of the asthma, after 5 minutes of running around I’d be leaning against the goal posts gasping for air.

At school I became terrified of reading aloud in class.  I’d get really scared, I’d break out in a sweat, I’d stutter and my chest would feel like it was going to burst and I couldn’t breathe… In fact I used to dodge English classes in case I’d have to read out loud.  Especially plays – where you can see your line coming closer as you go down the page and the closer it got the more nervous I became. 

I had a duodenal ulcer by the time I was sixteen because I was so nervous and timid with people.  Imagine that – I managed to burn a hole in my stomach with my brain.  What a crap superpower!  So at 20 years of age I’m on a drug called Tagamet which lines your intestines to prevent irritation.  I called it “an old man’s drug”.

I found it nearly impossible to say hello to people I knew!  I’d keep my head down, avoid eye contact, stay locked up tight and be shut down emotionally.  Can you relate to that at all?  You’ve probably heard the old cliché about FEAR – that it spells “False Evidence Appearing Real”, or as I prefer to say “F*** Everything and Run!” 

My Dad had to go for frequent check-ups and the last time I saw him was when I drove him back from Stonehouse Hospital for his routine medical.  I left him at the fireside with a cup of tea and went back to work.  My Mum found him dead on the carpet that night.  And can you guess when he died?  [Black] November 1991.  How’s that for the power of suggestion.

Weight watchers alternative - should I trust the scales?

Hi there, this is Jonathan Clark from Lose Weight For Scotland – it’s my mission to Crush Obesity, Add Years To Your Life & help you to Look Good Naked!  I challenge Scots to lose 10 lbs of fat or gain 10 lbs of muscle, even if they’ve tried everything else, and it’s guaranteed.

One of the questions I get asked all the time is “Is the bathroom scale the best way to measure the fitness I’m gaining and the pounds I’m losing?”

Here’s my opinion – the answer is No! Many people get frustrated when they step on the scale after weeks of exercising only to discover they’re the same weight. What they’re forgetting is that they very likely have gained muscle while they were losing body fat—a more positive health change than simply losing pounds.   Especially if you’re using weights or bodyweight resistance exercises like push ups and crunches.

Like in my last 90 day challenge, I gained 10lbs of muscle and lost 7 lbs of fat.  So the scales say I’m only 3 pounds heavier, but overall I’m much leaner and healthier.  Trust me = The more lean muscle you build the more fat you’ll burn – so it’s a generative change.

There are other, more telling ways to track your progress. You can use low cost calipers to track body-fat changes. Take the measurement about one inch above your right hip. Taking your waist, hip, and thigh measurements on a weekly basis will help you quantify exactly how many inches you’ve lost. And how are your jeans fitting? 

Every so often, try on that old pair—the ones you wore when you were at your feel-great weight. Once they fit, you’ll know you’re at a healthy weight. And use a belt. Counting the extra belt holes you move up is an easy way to get daily feedback on your weight.

You can also get scales that send a small micro current of electricity through your body, and they measure not only your body fat, but your lean muscle too.  That way you can see BOTH week by week.  You’ll get them in stores like Argos for under 20 quid.

To be honest most people care MORE about the inches than the numbers on scales.  Like I always say, if you weighed 20 stone but you looked like Jennifer Lopez, would you care?  So measure inches and not weight.

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A little bit of background

I help people change their lives.  To be honest I’ve always felt the desire to help people, and when I began to get results using these methods on myself, it never crossed my mind to work with others.  I never set out to be a therapist of Life Coach or Trainer – I was going to be a journalist.  But once you know how to change a food addiction, and your mate’s sister sitting next to you at dinner confides in you that she’s hooked on pizza, why wouldn’t you help?

That was always my core drive, and still is.  To help people.  Now I’m not a complete altruist, because it’s my business and I expect to be paid.  But that was my passion – Maybe you’ve seen “Star Wars”, when Obi Wan Kenobi told the Imperial Storm troopers “These aren’t the droids you’re looking for” and they let them pass, instantly changing their minds.  “Wouldn’t it be really cool to be able to do that!” I thought.  I want someone to come to me with a problem like “I’m comfort eating cos I’m depressed”, and with a wave of my hand I tell them “Stop it!” and they stopped.  That would be magic!  Real magic.

My own family health record was atrocious.  My Mum had high blood pressure and would later develop all sorts of weird and wonderful ailments, many of them rooted in fear and psychosomatic illness – what the dictionary defines as a physical disease that is thought to be caused, or made worse, by mental factors.  Even my brother had hospital treatment when he was very young.

See, we grew up in a small cottage in the middle of nowhere, with dogs in the house, mice in the garden and my Dad’s racing pigeon lofts at the bottom of the garden.  We didn’t get out of bed until the coal fire was lit and the water was warm enough to wash with.  There was asbestos in the roof tiles and house dust that looked like tumbleweeds.  My mates at school would be running round in short sleeved shirts and I’d be dressed like a spaceman I had so many layers on – and guess who caught the cold!  No surprise that I got ill at least twice a year, especially in November.

Funnily enough, my Dad used to refer to it as “Black November”.  He told me that in his lifetime November was always cold and dark and wet, and he’d get ill every November.  And he installed that into me as well.  He’d developed testicular Cancer and as a kid I remember him going for radiation therapy.  He’d beaten it, but later that would play on my mind, especially when my brother got ill.  My Dad also had a hard time breathing – years of working with homing pigeons had given him a condition called “pigeon lung”.  Cruel that his bobby actually harmed his health.

My earliest memory is waking up in Strathclyde hospital with pneumonia, aged 4.  I’m told I had been left outside in a pram and got sick.  I would catch pneumonia again in 1986 only six weeks into a new job. Another Christmas in hospital.  Somewhere in between I was told I had an allergy to house dust, so they took me into hospital and cut open one of my nostrils to make it wider.  How the **** does that work?

Learn hypnosis techniques in Glasgow from hypnotist Jonathan Clark

“On The Count Of Six You Will Open Your Eyes…”

A 6 Part E-Course revealing the truth about Hypnosis

By

Jonathan Clark

Master Hypnotherapist

Founder & Developer of HGE™

PART 6

IDEOMOTOR SIGNALS & PENDULLII

I once worked with a 16 year old girl with Endometriosis.   During the appointment she embarrassingly admitted that she was worried that she was pregnant.  So we asked her fingers, and they said no, and she wasn’t.

What if you could ask the sex of a baby in the womb without having a scan?  Its called psycho-physiological thought reading.  You can find lost items for instance.

Some people use a Pendulum, or a Pocket watch, necklace, ring on a thread, even a plumbers plumb bob.  You see the mind runs the body, the Unconscious Mind controls the muscles, which means you can set up yes and  no signals, and you can then go ahead and ask your Unconscious Mind to communicate with you,  and it can answer you directly! 

Some people think that Pendulums are too “New Agey”.  So you could use a swallow, a flush, or even better two fingers on the same hand, one for yes, one for no.  We teach this technique fully on our Hypnosis Weekend.  This comes from Lesley Le Cron 1964 – who coined the phrase Ideomotor Signalling.  My Master Trainer David Shepard told me a great story about a car accident that we witnessed, where the driver of the car was thrown from the car and was bleeding on the roadside.  So David kneeled down beside him and asked to speak directly with the man’s unconscious mind, and the man’s eyelids fluttered.  He double checked that that was indeed the ideomotor signal by saying “if the eyelids flutter meant yes, they will flutter even more” and they did.  So having established contact, he asked the man , or rather the man’s unconscious, “Do you know what to do to stop the bleeding?” and the eyelids fluttered “yes”.  And the bleeding stopped.  But then the man went into convulsions and David asked him “Do you know what to do to stop the convulsions?” and the eyelids fluttered “yes”.  And the convulsions stopped.  The paramedics said it was David’s ability to stop bleeding that saved the man’s life.  But as David said “It wasn’t my ability to stop the bleeding, it was the man’s unconscious mind”

Ask your unconscious mind for a signal for yes, and a different signal for no.  If it’s your fingers, you may need to give it a Kinesthetic awareness by moving it first.  Hey, if you can lift and arm, you can lift a couple of fingers…

Remember when you were really small, and you knew the answer at school, what did you do?  You put your hand up, didn’t you?  And when you really, really knew the answer and you wanted to be noticed, you would wave your arm in the air, wouldn’t you?  Now, if you’re all grown up and at a posh restaurant, the staff are trained to see clearly your signals.  You don’t have to raise the whole hand, you just can raise a finger and they’ll know you’re trying to get their attention, won’t they?

It’s the oldest & wisest part of you, who’s been doing all that work for so long, the part that runs your body, stores all of your memories, no one has talked to it directly……..until now!  It’s bound to have a lot to say to you by now!

EXERCISE

            Go through the following questions, answering all of the questions consciously, with your best considered answer.  Then go back over them again, asking your unconscious mind to give you a clear yes or no signal, using finger signals or a pendulum….

DO YOU NEED TO….?

Feel safe.
Feel loved.
Be liked.

Be approved of.
Be punished.
Punish.

Suppress hostility.
Minister to others.
Serve others.
Be dignified.
Earn father's love.
Earn mother's love.
Get praise.
Be hurt.
Be respected.
Hurt others.

Have peace at any price.
Be alone often.

Notice any differences between what you thought was the answer, and what your unconscious mind knows….?

GENERAL HYPNOTHERAPY PARADIGM

Most Hypnosis books are full of specific scripts for specific problems.  Rather than teach you a whole bunch of different interventions, here’s the master template you can use with anything.  It’s actually more effective and gives the client more freedom to fix themselves in whatever way they need to.  You ask the Unconscious Mind questions directly.  You want straight Yes’s.  Whenever you get a No you’ve found something important and need to pursue it

1. Do you Know what to do to have this problem disappear?

no - "what other resources do you need ? Run through Values and other states, and "imagine an infinite source of___ above the top of your head..”

Give me a clear Yes signal when you have all the resources you need

2.  Is it possible ?

no - "When did you decide that you could not ___ ?

  Treat as a Limiting Decision and ask the Unconscious Mind to let it go.

3.  Is it OK ?

no - "/ know that there's a part of you that thinks it can’t _    "

For what purpose would you not let this go now?

Get it's highest intention and ask

"You know that you'd be more (intention) by solving this now  wouldn’t you? "

4.  Are there any other problems you’d like to work on?

"Are there any other problems that you 'd like to clear up today ? "

yes - go to step 1 no - go to step 5

5.  Give permission

Thank it and acknowledge if, and assure it that client's Conscious mind gives it

 permission to start immediately

6.  How quickly can you start now?

Set up time periods

Start -When will you start ? Immediately ? An hour/day/week/month ?

Finish -How quickly can you complete all the work necessary ?

 Will it take you an hour/day/week/month ?

START NOW!

*BRING THEM OUT OF TRANCE

 "In a moment I'm going to count... "

 *DISTRACT IMMEDIATELY

This locks in the session and prevents the client’s conscious mind from undoing all your good work.

POST HYPNOTIC SUGGESTIONS

You’ve probably heard about these - suggestions given in trance for the person to carry out after they come out of trance, to operate at a later time.  A Post-Hypnotic Suggestion is a suggestion that activates and operates at a time after the induction of trance. The time of the activation of the suggestion can be minutes later or months later.

1.   Requires Medium to Deep Trance: A Post-Hypnotic Suggestion generally requires a trance which is at a medium to deep level.

2.   Make the Suggestion Direct & Specific: While suggestions should, at first, be given in an indirect way, Post-Hypnotic Suggestions should be direct and to the point. This is the case with any suggestions given while the client is in deep trance.

3.   Tell the Client what the trigger for the Post-Hypnotic Suggestion will be:

E.G.: "Whenever you see chocolate or sweets…."

4.   Tell the Client what to do:

E.G.: "...you will feel an undeniable urge to look for food that is healthier and better for you"

5.   Tell the Client when to do it:

E.G.: "...and you will do it immediately."

Suggest that next time they will go quicker and more easily into trance - that way your trance work with that person gets progressively better. 

Give the client a suggestion that they will feel compelled to go to the gym, or eat salad with every meal, or take the stairs instead of the lift, or will remember all these hypnosis skills the next time they’re talking to a client, or a friend who needs help…

They will demonstrate the new behaviour, and it’s always a good idea to include the phrase “In ways that are safe, ecological and ethical”.

It’s also great fun at parties…

A Cautionary Tale…

As I end this E-Course, I would like to comment on the use (and misuse) of Hypnosis.  When it comes to ethics, I like to think of it like this – only do with a client what you would want done yourself in their shoes.  I could write an entire book on this subject alone (now there’s an idea!) but for now let me say this.  Technology has no ethics of its own.  You can use a hammer to build a house, or something awful instead.  The morals come from the wielder, the human being.

Newly trained students of hypnosis may have skills, but they also must have humility.  Another downside from my NLP days was seeing newly certified  Practitioners adamant that the methodology of modelling experts to quickly accelerate your learning, also somehow gave them wisdom and experience way beyond their station.  WRONG!  You may know a lot about hypnosis after a weekend training, but 2 days does not a hypnotherapist make!  (Nor one E-Course!).  You still have to build up your calluses and earn your stripes.  I encourage you, if this chapter has whetted your appetite, to seek out further training. Go to a reputable body and enrol in longer hypnosis training.  This is only the start, not the be all and end all.

You should also be made aware of another unfortunate occurrence in the hypnosis world – that of “The Hypnotic Seal”.  Certain unscrupulous individuals will include suggestions that they are the only person who can induce trance with that client, thus blocking any further inductions of hypnosis by any other hypnotherapist.  Purported to protect the client, this in fact removes their choices and thus is not in their best interests.  Again this approach tells you more about the therapist than the client.

Its far better to teach the client a trance-prevention technique which they can use if and when they choose to stop unwanted hypnosis, rather than limit their personal freedom.

Beware also the flamboyant advertising and hyped up claims of 100% success rates or one hour guaranteed smoking cessation programmes.  I don’t know anyone who can guarantee that a client will stop smoking after one session of hypnotherapy – not me, not my Master trainers.  There’s usually a huge catch, like having to listen to a CD for 21 days straight afterwards else there’s no money back.  Tell me, how can you prove you listened to that CD every day?  The unfortunate clients who fall for these shams usually then tell everyone Hypnosis doesn’t work and that they still want to smoke.  Worse, they’re disappointed and usually £500 worse off…

One can make a quick buck in Hypnosis if one combines it with slickly written misleading sales rhetoric.  Problem is they’re doing no one any favours, and they’re giving Hypnosis a bad name.

Then there’s the Hypnosis Trainer who makes up a fictitious Institute, or calls themselves a Society, so they can run paper thin courses and charge people a fortune, handing them a certificate that’s not worth the paper its written on.  Ask me for my “16 Questions You Must Ask” report for more guidance on what to look out for.

Do I run Hypnosis Trainings then, I hear you ask?  Yes I do – I include Hypnosis as part of my HGE Certification Courses.  Look at the Events Calendar on my website for the next scheduled training.  Students must first go through my 3 day Foundation Skills Training, so I can vet them and ensure that they have positive intentions and integrity.  Only when I’m satisfied that they are trustworthy and honourable, will I teach them Hypnosis in person.  And I’ll share with them the same cautionary advice that you’ve just read here.  Anyone not trained thoroughly in Hypnosis should consider a weekend course as purely an introduction.

There is one famous case in the UK of a household name stage show hypnotist who was sued for “causing a participant in the show to have a psychotic episode and subsequent mental illness”.  Firstly, note the cause and effect violation there.  Secondly, that entertainer has been working closely with the creator of NLP for many years now.  The risk of causing a mental illness using Hypnosis is highly unlikely, provided the Hypnotherapist uses common sense and sticks to these guidelines.

Health issues are another area that requires careful handling.  It is illegal to claim that you can heal someone.  See the Time Line Therapy and Health chapters for more information.  Pain is a sign that something is wrong.  Deal with the underlying issues, don’t ask the pain to go away.  It may be signalling that something critical is amiss, and to mask that signal could be a mistake.

Finally, as I conclude this section on careful management and cautious handling of people’s heads and hearts, there is again the issue of control – the general public still believes that hypnosis is a form of mind control – that the hypnotherapist can suggest things to the client and they will automatically do them.  Another big mistake.  In some cases that would be great!  Imagine no crime, no war, no self abuse, no cruelty.  Unfortunately [or maybe fortunately], all hypnosis is self-hypnosis.  No one has any power over you, unless you give it to them.  The individual creates their own level of relaxation and trance, and will only accept suggestions that are in accordance with their own beliefs and values.

CLOSING BENEDICTION

So as we draw our chapter on the all-important science and art of Hypnosis to a close, ask yourself “how many metaphors are still open?”  You’ll need to come to my other events to hear them closed!!  Or was that simply a suggestion?  Only your unconscious mind knows….

****AND I HEREBY CANCEL ALL SUGGESTIONS THAT WERE GIVEN FOR DEMONSTRATION PURPOSES RELATING TO PRODUCING HYPNOTIC PHENOMENA – THOSE SUGGESTIONS ARE HEREBY REMOVED, AND I WOULD LIKE TO ASK THE UNCONSCIOUS MIND TO REMEMBER ALL SUGGESTIONS THAT WERE FOR THE HEALTH, GROWTH AND ENJOYMENT OF YOUR CONSCIOUS MIND, AND YOU KNOW WHAT THEY WERE…………..WON’T YOU?****

AND SO BACK TO………

So there I am in “so and so communications” trying to choose which one to buy.  So we agreed on which category of mobile I needed.  We talked vaguely about price, vaguely about size.  Some of them you can even change the way it sounds.  Some can even change colour……..as you’re using it.  And I don’t know if you already know how to do this or not, but you can store all of it in the memory – you simply recall it from the memory and then speak.  That’s what happens – its voice activated.  You just open your mouth and speak, and the message goes through.  That’s what happens when you use the best, when you use an Erickson…………..

So John’s at the station, and now he’s even more spaced out.  How could this old machine, so old and dented and unused, hidden away in the dark, how could it speak such truths and say exactly the right thing?  So he took a deep breath and stepped up..put his money where his mouth is, and out came the same gravelly deep voice

“Your name is still John, you still weigh 10 stone and you’ve just missed the 2:20 to Glasgow!”

Remember…

“All learning, all behaviour, and all CHANGE, is unconscious”