Happy New Year to everyone who is lucky enough to have a human life today.
The thoughts of the suffering following the tsunami are overwhelming. May all sentient beings be free of suffering and the cause of suffering. May all know joy and the cause of joy.
To respond to raindancer1's question--my understanding of meditation is that it's a practice used to quiet the mind. The more one meditates, the more that quiet, clear mind carries into daily life. The quiet mind is more able to see things as they are, with less of the distractions of "monkey mind," that is, a mind with thoughts and desires running wild and interfering with awareness.
Thinking of meditation that way, I haven't used it to "visualize" better health and weight loss. That seems like a different practice to me. So, I don't expect that meditating will directly affect my progress--I think it's a more subtle effect. It's harder to eat "unconsciously" if one is aware.
A person can always make a conscious choice, of course, to eat more than is necessary or foods that are not healthy and/or are fattening, but if one does it with full awareness, the "mystery" of how the food got in my mouth is gone--can't play that game any more. And lots of other games go by the wayside, too, like "Everyone else gets to eat X and I don't--poor me!"
It also helps me to consider what my "goal" is in weight loss. If it is truly to be healthy, that's good! If it's to look like the people in the movies or on TV or in advertising, then it's just another form of desire.
I am so fortunate to be born as a human being, how can I not take joy in my body, whatever its size and shape? But of course, that does not justify indulgence and mindlessness about food.
Love to all,
Jay