Thinking about food seems to have been quite a theme for me these last few days. Not obsessing about food and tasty tid-bits, but really savoring food and looking forward to different types of food.

We went to see a local production (on the Isle of Man) of the musical "Oliver" the other day, and needless to say the refrain of "food, glorious food" rang in my ears for a couple of days afterwards. This rendition of Oliver was absolutely splendid and everyone left the theatre on a real high, smiling and happy.

I am also incredibly aware of how lucky we are. We have so much access to delicious food in a seemingly unending flow of both quantity and description; a far cry from a solitary and rather meager bowl of sloppy and tasteless gruel each day. No wonder we as a nation are currently rather prone to being overweight or suffering from obesity.

I am aware too of the contrasts in dietary availability and habits between different countries and cultures. There are even small variations from one county to another in England or from one State to another in America.

In England in general we have access to shop bought gourmet ready meals from Marks and Spencer’s, Tesco’s, Sainsbury’s and so on. We can just pop into the super-market, pick up a beautifully prepared and presented meal, take it home, pop it in the oven and thirty minutes later it’s ready to be eaten. Easy and delicious; no mess, no hassle. You can eat five star meals without even knowing how to cook.

An interesting knock on effect of this ready availability of great meals is that it is naturally possible to spend far less time thinking about food, or worrying about what to prepare for dinner. For those who are conscious of their weight, you can simply turn the packet over and immediately see the number of calories or grams of fat in each portion. Neither do you have to think about portion size. It’s all done for you. It’s really very easy to set yourself upon a gourmet diet!

I have to admit that I was surprised to find no real equivalent in California. Coming from the Isle of Man you tend to think that if you go somewhere bigger you will have a greater selection of everything, including food. And yes, there are so many more restaurants and more basic food ingredients readily available and definitely a load more fast food outlets. But gourmet meals to go are less available (almost extinct) in the local markets. And need I say anything about portion sizes? Chicken breasts look as if they have been taken from prize fighting turkeys and I woudn’t like to imagine how big American cows are!

A quick contemplation of this lack of fresh gourmet meals to go allows one to arrive at the conclusion that America is just too big a country to make this a truly viable business. A trucker can drive your meals from one end of England to another in a day without issue and so fresh food stays fresh. You simply couldn’t keep that food fresh for the length of time it takes to drive across America. And frozen ready meals simply do not have that five star gourmet quality.

When we are in California we also really miss our British and French cheeses. We think about cheese, search for good cheese and almost (but not quite) dream about lovely strong creamy textured cheeses. I have yet to understand why American cheese cannot have that same flavor and texture. But when we are in England we miss the wonderful barbequed American steaks and delicious salads and salad dressings. Yummy; food, glorious food!

The answer is always to make the most of what you have got. Enjoy what is readily available locally no matter where you are. I find it a great shame that so many people think about food to the extent of obsession and yet still manage to overlook its enjoyment. Instead of savoring each delicious bite they gobble their food quickly whilst suffering from a guilt complex at the same time. No wonder they become overweight; they do not appreciate their food and so cannot feel satisfied from eating it.

Overweight people tend to think that they should stop thinking about food. I am a firm believer that they have totally missed the point; you do not need to stop thinking about food. Rather, you need to learn to allow yourself to think about food in a different way which allows you to savor and enjoy it, take your time eating and feel fully satisfied as you detect it different textures and flavors.

You are, in this day and age, unlikely to obsess about food for the same reasons as poor Oliver. You are far more likely to have begun this food obsession as a result of thinking that you shouldn’t think about food or eat as much. To overcome this obsession and enable yourself to lose weight easily all you actually have to do is to think about food in a different way. Hypnosis mp3s designed to help you lose weight are perfectly designed to get you doing just this.

Roseanna Leaton, specialist in weight loss hypnosis mp3s which help you program your mind for success.

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